WHERE BRAINS MEET BEAUTY

As long-time fans of reality television, we knew this episode’s guest Dr. Jason Diamond from his appearances on programs such as Dr. 90210 and The Celebrity Plastic Surgeons of Beverly Hills, so we were thrilled to get a chance to speak with him about his career journey to becoming a world-renowned plastic surgeon and founder of The Diamond Face Institute. 

Tending to the faces of Hollywood A-listers wasn’t always the plan for Dr. Diamond; he recalls a childhood dream of playing professional baseball, and facing his first feelings of rejection when he was cut from his freshman team. But this early disappointment proved to be something much bigger: it provided a “chip on the shoulder” that Dr. Diamond still uses as a motivator to this day, pushing him to be the best version of himself. 

This mentality has served Dr. Diamond well over the years as he has built a successful plastic surgery practice that has taken him all over the globe-he’s so in demand that it’s not uncommon for clients to fly him to their homes in Dubai when they need a touch-up! But Dr. Diamond found that not everyone is able to fly him to their homes (or movie sets!) and wanted to make his much-lauded “Insta-Facial” more readily available to those who couldn't always visit him in-office. Thus, Dr. Diamond’s Metacine was born as a way to address the skin on an expert level. If anyone’s curious what’s on our holiday wishlist…

For more of our talk with Dr. Jason Diamond, be sure to tune into this episode wherever you get your podcasts!

We are beyond thankful that we got to sit down for a chat this week with Lisa Lundy, Co Founder & CEO of Complex Creatures. Lisa comes from a career in fashion - Tommy Hilfiger and J.Crew jump out from her resume - even working with Bravo star and fashion icon Jenna Lyons back in her J.Crew days! But it was her sister’s breast cancer diagnosis that set Lisa on a trajectory that she likens to a calling.

When Lisa’s sister was diagnosed at the age of 37, it was an eye-opening experience; from learning how to properly administer a self examination, to hearing about the effects of radiation, to finding out about the nature of hereditary breast cancer (there was no history in Lisa’s family of breast cancer), Lisa realized that up until this point, her own breast health had been an afterthought. And if that was true for Lisa, the same must be true for many other women. So Lisa took action.

Lisa and her sister Tara created Complex Creatures as an online community for breast wellness. They provide breast-related knowledge via their Instagram which also dives deep into topics like menopause and perimenopause, which are often censored and even avoided in the wellness space. Lisa mentions that Complex Creatures often gets censored because it’s still not okay to show women's nipples on the platform-mens nipples are of course fair-game, though. Insert eye-roll emoji…

Lisa recognizes that there is still clearly work to be done in bringing awareness to breast health, but as an activist at heart, she’s in it for the long haul. We can’t wait to see what’s in store for Lisa and Complex Creatures. Be sure to check out this episode wherever you get your podcasts!

We couldn’t wait to speak with Komel Caruso, Co-Founder & Chief Growth Officer of HerMD, a comprehensive women's healthcare clinic that’s creating a safe, inclusive space for patients. We were particularly interested in HerMD’s mission in breaking the shame-cycle so often surrounding issues like menopause and sexual health. Komel founded HerMD with her sister Somi, inspired by their mother’s experience of being repeatedly dismissed by doctors when she was experiencing pain. While Somi had experience working as a doctor for 15 years, Komel had never worked in the medical field. What she did have was a desire to make an impact in women's healthcare and experience in marketing and social strategy with 16 years of working for Kaplan under her belt.

The sisters noticed a trend in women not being believed (about their own bodies!) and wanted to fill this great void in women’s healthcare. One thing that makes HerMD stand apart is that all of their obgyn’s are trained in menopause and sexual healthcare, which should sound like a given, right? Unfortunately, it's not. Only 20 percent of obgyns are trained in menopause and sexual health care. No wonder there can be such shame and stigma in talking about this stuff!

What started with one office quickly grew when Komel noticed patients were traveling to HerMD’s soul location from 35 states! Clearly the void was even greater than she or Somi had realized. Thanks to Komel’s background in business, what started out as helping her sister with a passion project became Komel’s full time job, and a saving grace to women all over the country.

To hear more of Komel’s career journey, tune in to this episode wherever you get your podcasts!

As far as Health Innovators go, Ron Robinson has cemented his place in the ever-shifting beauty landscape as a go-to-guy for all things skincare. He created BeautyStat first as a blog, and now as a successful skincare line. Along with BeautyStat, Ron has a social media following where he helps his audience navigate which ingredients work and which ones don’t. But looking back, Ron tells us his career journey wasn’t always a given to those who knew him from the beginning.

Growing up, there were two options in Ron’s family: be a doctor or a lawyer. When Ron strayed from the path that had been laid out for him, he became an innovator within his own family. Rather than pursue a career in medicine or law, Ron found that cosmetic chemistry blended his knowledge of science with his passion for creating new things. When Ron was hired at Clinique in 1990 (on the spot, we might add) he broke into the beauty industry and never looked back.

To hear more of our chat with Ron Robinson, including the heart-warming full circle moment of when his mother finally “got” his career choice, listen to this episode wherever you get your podcasts!

We are so excited to be diving deeper into the Health Innovations theme with Dr. Jennifer Linder, board certified dermatologist, Mohs Skin Care Surgeon and founder of Linder Health. As a military kid, Dr. Linder was keenly aware that life can change in an instant, so she learned how to adapt. Science became a huge part of her life, leading her to study engineering in college which scratched a problem-solving itch. The next piece of the puzzle was helping people. Well, living people…

Dr. Linder took a physiology class where she worked with-wait for it-cadavers. Did someone say spooky season? But Dr. Linder saw a learning opportunity where others (this writer) might not. She describes working with the human body as “magic” and this fascination set her on a path towards surgery and dermatology.

Dr. Linder has since completed a fellowship in skin cancer surgery and is now a Mohs Skin Cancer Surgeon. She has even developed her own skincare line-an idea she came up with while on vacation! 

To hear more of Dr. Jennifer Linder’s career journey, including her hard and fast breakdown of hyperpigmentation, listen to this episode wherever you get your podcasts!

We couldn’t think of a better way to kick off our Health Innovations Series than with Alan D. Widgerow, Chief Scientific Officer at Galderma and Head of Innovation at Alastin Skincare. Alan began his career in South Africa, where he was in private practice for over 20 years. He is currently Division Chief of Research at UC Irvine Medical Center and it’s evident from speaking with him that his passion lies in the laboratory. But interestingly enough, he might have never ended up there if not for a fateful phone call…

Alan was all set to go into a career in dentistry when a phone call quite literally changed the trajectory of his life. A voice at the other end of the line encouraged him to follow his passions towards medical school and plastic surgery and Alan never looked back. Alan describes plastic surgery as an “amalgamation of creativity and science” and that no two cases are the same. It’s easy to see what drew him to such an-ever evolving field and how he’s still fascinated over 20 years later.

To hear more about Alan D. Widgerow’s career journey and to hear what book he’s currently reading, tune in to this episode wherever you get your podcasts!  

We know and love our latest guest Ian Michael Crumm from his podcast BeautyCurious, so we couldn’t wait to dig into the career journey of this esthetician and fellow podcaster. Ian first took an interest in skincare as a teen when, struggling with his own skincare concerns he sought out the help of a dermatologist and eventually subscribed to an online dermatologist’s journal. Ian started an “online journal” of his own in high school when he began blogging. By the time Ian was in college, his lifestyle blog had taken off: Ian was getting subscribers of his own and even seeing paid advertisers. 

Having a platform is one thing, but knowing how to use it is what separates the skin-fluencers from the scam-fluencers. Ian knew from experience that there is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to skincare, and wanted to be able to speak from a place of authenticity when it came to recommending skincare brands and treatments. With that in mind, Ian made the decision to get his esthetician’s license.  

What’s next for this go-getter? Ian is never one to shy away from a challenge and thinks that a cosmetic chemistry class could be next. Whatever it is, we can’t wait to see (and hear) what Ian Michael Crumm will do next.

To hear more about Ian Michael Crumm’s career journey, his podcast BeautyCurious, and the fabulous nickname he has for his grandmother (trust us), listen to this ep wherever you get your podcasts! 

Growing up in a family restaurant, Giovanni Vaccaro was accustomed to the hospitality industry, but at a young age he realized that he was destined for a different type of hospitality. An experience at a hair salon watching the transformation women underwent in the chairs from slouching to smiling after a beauty treatment left him feeling that this was a world he needed to be a part of. 

While Gio knew where he wanted to be, how to get there was a different story. Gio tells us of a moment that changed everything: a recruiter from a top salon had come to his cosmetology school-here was an opportunity staring him in the face. He knew that putting himself out there would be risky, uncomfortable even, but the pay off? That could be huge. So he went for it, he asked for a job. And it worked! Gio landed a job as a shampoo assistant at renowned salon Frederic Fekkai & Co and showed that he was willing to start small and work hard.

Fast-forward and Gio knows the business inside & out and saw that the industry was changing, but not in a way that supported the beauty pros. He thought “why not treat the beauty professional like the client?” From there Gio and his partner David Goldweitz built Glamsquad to be a hospitality-first brand for beauty professionals to book opportunities for events, fashion weeks, shows, photo shoots and more.

For more on Gio’s career journey and to find out the beauty of the “bro-walk” listen to Giovanni’s episode wherever you get your podcasts!

Most kids dread going to get their first haircut. There’s usually a bribe involved, maybe some tears, definitely a worn-out stylist by the end of it all. Ian Mayer-Marszalek, Lead Colorist & National Corporate Trainer for Schwarzkopf Professional on the other hand, looks back on those childhood trips to the salon fondly. Ian remembers feeling special sitting in that chair, like he had found a place he fit right in, knowing this was something he wanted to be a part of. 

Ian was a natural at beauty school-where there may or may not have been some perm rod fights-but knew for certain that he was in the right place. He even had some regular clients while he was still a student! 

One thing Ian realized that has helped him gain a competitive edge on his career journey, was his ability to carve out a niche for himself in the industry. Ian became an expert colorist, and has since become a National Trainer for Schwarzkopf Professional where he travels the country training other hair colorists.

To learn more about Ian’s career journey, listen to this episode wherever you get your podcasts!

When Kia Ragland says she has “the perfect eye”, she’s not kidding. Kia has been tested for nuances in the way her eyes detect color, and it should come as no surprise that the Director of Product Development at Kylie Cosmetics is a shade above the crowd when it comes to spotting the differences in say, Ruby Woo and Dior 999.

Kia tells us she got into the beauty game early on, but it was slightly out of necessity. As a bi-racial woman in a predominantly white area, she learned how to do her own hair and makeup in the 4th grade, and from there an interest grew in learning how the products she was using were created, eventually resulting in Kia becoming a cosmetologist by her senior year of high school. Okay, so when we say “interest”, we’re clearly under-selling-Kia has ambition for miles and even tells us that during college, she was known to work 2-3 internships at once!

This ambition has clearly served Kia well with stops along her career journey at Stila and SmashBox Cosmetics where she created one of the products she is still proudest of to this day: “Punked” a purple-grey lip color that was so well-received it not only sold out and turned Kia into an award-winning creator.

To hear the whole story of how Kia trusted her gut all the way to winning Fashion Group International's Rising Star Award and more of how she takes products from concept to market, listen to this ep wherever you get your podcasts!