Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicole Policicchio.
Nicole, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I started ElectroYogi Electrolysis when my daughter was an infant, on the heels of both pregnancy and having been a longtime Emmy-Award nominated documentary television producer. I needed to continue working to support my family, but I wanted to be a present and available mom to my child. TV production was NOT going to be that. So, I went back to school to study electrology, pumping breast-milk for my baby in the tiny curtain-protected spaces of the electrology school throughout the day, and within six months, became a licensed electrologist. ElectroYogi was born, and my daughter was then a year old. Now, she is a teenager, almost 15, and ElectroYogi has gratefully become a 5-star brand and successful, inclusive, and well-known woman-owned and operated electrolysis practice in Los Angeles.
My passion for electrolysis began as a teenager myself when I wanted to be free from what felt like a mustache growing atop my Italian-Brazilian upper lip. Electrolysis worked then, nearly 40 years ago, and it continued to work– anywhere and everywhere on my body that I had unwanted hair growing. The positive self-esteem this brought me at that time was immeasurable, and I felt confident walking in the world. I knew it was a special technology that had the power to change lives. All these decades later, I don’t take it for granted how much electrolysis helped me, and it’s one of the major reasons I feel so blessed and grateful to do this work… for women, men, and the transgender community. One hair at a time, permanently!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The biggest challenges in growing a personal care practice are staffing, consistent quality and care among service providers, and surviving the peaks and valleys of owning a small business. I’m the janitor, the HR team, the customer service representative, the web developer, the social media department, the operations manager, the CFO, the bank itself, and a hands-on provider of the majority of service to customers. While I may only see clients myself 3-4 days per week, I am working on my practice seven days per week and often first thing in the morning until late at night. There is always a call to return, a consultation (now all virtual) to have, a communication with the team to have or to relay about clients or the shop, something to order or attend to, laundry to fold, equipment to sterilize, a witty or informative post to make, or something else. All that said, the COVID-19 pandemic itself has been the single most devastating and challenging situation in my 14 years of business.
In 2019, I had five team members including myself, and by June of 2020, I had 2. Between being closed for months on end, open with serious restrictions, closed again, reopen again, and now just as of the better part of January 2021 open again with the two of us seeing clients who waited for months and months to be seen, it feels sometimes like an impossible task to stay afloat. We truly went from thriving to barely surviving, and with the ongoing uncertainty of the pandemic, it does not quite feel like the right time to ‘grow’ again, but rather to hunker down and make sure we retain as many happy customers as we can while caring for our physical bodies and mental health in such a surreal time. Frankly, I’m grateful to still be in practice, which is more than the case for a lot of the personal care businesses out there, especially in California.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
ElectroYogi Electrolysis provides the definitive permanent solution to unwanted hair, head to toe, regardless of hair color, skin type, or body part. We specialize in serving the transgender community for all their pre-and-post operative electrolysis care, with the utmost inclusivity and compassion. Also known as the “electrolysis goddess” or electrolysis goddesses, I and my loving team of women practitioners are known for our exquisite care, attention to detail, experience, and loving-kindness in our approaches and vibe.
I think what sets ElectroYogi apart is that we are not just treating your unwanted hair. We are treating your whole person by elevating your self-esteem and confidence. The beautiful thing about being able to solve a problem that has plagued someone for years and sometimes decades is that you provide them with a new lease on life. A new sense of self. Freedom, and not in a self-centered way. Freedom in an emotionally inclusive way that allows someone to feel like their best self, with no insecurities, dysphoria, or maintenance. When people think of electrolysis or hair removal in all its forms, they may think of it as purely aesthetic. But for our clients, their unwanted hair causes a great concern, deep emotional challenges, frustration and embarrassment. And we are able to elevate them out of those toxic emotions and bring them to a place of peace. It’s the greatest feeling, and I believe that ElectroYogi’s compassionate approach is unique in the field. We don’t just care about your hair. We care about YOU.
Any big plans?
In the middle of the pandemic, my plans as founder, owner, and chief electrolysis goddess here at ElectroYogi are to stay the course, keep providing outstanding service with all the love I have to give and to make sure this ship stays on the water while we ride out the waves of COVID. Then, I hope to grow my team again, with a family-like group of wonderful electrologists who have a like-mindset and want to changes lives from this incredible process of electrolysis permanent hair removal.
I plan to continue working with my incredible and longtime colleague Vanessa, whom clients love and cherish (but not as much as I do ;), and I plan to take on some additional work hours to try and accommodate new clients whom we’ve not been able to see as a result of this pandemic.
Finally, I plan to grow my ElectroYogi YouTube Channel (currently 1400 subscribers, 60+ electrolysis videos, and counting) and continue mentoring new electrologists in the field with private coaching and programs to help them grow their practices and to be terrific electrologists.
I’d love my work as the electrolysis goddess to be so well-known that no one ever tweezes their unwanted hair again, nor lasers their face unless they have full beards and are transitioning. I want my experience, skills, and wisdom to educate the public so they don’t go down the dark and lonely path of feeling like they have to suffer in silence with unwanted hair, or worse, do methods that make more hair than they started with. Electrolysis to the rescue!! 🙂
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://www.electroyogielectrolysis.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/electroyogielectrolysis/?hl=en
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/ElectroYogi
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/electroyogi-electrolysis-los-angeles
Image Credits:
@mattodomcreative @electroyoginicole
