Rose Alcido is an expert in skin care with her own successful product line. But before she became that, a missed opportunity to be featured in Vogue Magazine pushed her to become a ‘walking information’ about skin care issues and create her own brand. This is her story.

In the early 1980s, I had the opportunity to live in London with my family. Back then, very rarely you see skin care centers or spas. Even in that modern world then, skin care was rarely heard of nor even talked about. The people who were into skin care were mostly the French and the Germans. The malls were not yet born, even in Europe. Ladies who wished to buy beauty products used to go to stores like Selfridges or the famous stores in Kensington Place.

During my college days in Cebu City, I used to browse the makeup counters, looking and appreciating the makeup of Helena Rubinstein, a Polish-American art collector, philanthropist, and businesswoman. I dreamed that one day, I will have my own brand, with my name on it.

So when I had the chance to live in London and traveled across Europe that was what I did. I browsed the counters of the big department stores, salivating over these products that I know I was not willing to pay for given their hefty prices. But I know my love and interest was on beauty.

And I believe that when you have convinced yourself of what you want, the universe connives with you to make it happen.

When The Universe Answers
One day, I was walking down the streets of London and walked into a salon to have a haircut, I was mesmerized with the glamor and the line of beauty products on their shelves. I ended up not having my hair done. Instead, I chatted with this old French lady who was an aesthetician at that salon and the rest is history. That encounter ignited my love and passion for the industry that brought me to where I am today.

That French lady introduced me to skin care and to a German engineer who taught me the science of electricity and eventually the wonders of the Kneipp Therapy, whose theory states that the body’s hot and cold temperatures increase its metabolic rate, which, in turn, increases the function of the immune system.

My Aesthetics Journey
From London, my family moved to the United States. In New York, I studied aesthetics and worked as a certified aesthetician. I worked with Marcia Kilgore, the owner of Bliss Spa, which was one of the biggest spas in the United States. My personal and private clientele included Susan White, the then director of photography of Vanity Fair Magazine; Felicia Milewicz of the then Glamor Magazine; top models Linda Evangelista and Frederique van der Wal; and actress Demi Moore.

What circumstances or an irresistible urge motivated you to follow your dreams?
Being an aesthetician, I recommend skincare products to my clients to be used at home after they come for treatments. Being a nerd at research, I know what ingredients should be in a skincare product to give the best results. I want my clients to see the benefit of their home regimen but I find it difficult to marry two or three products from different product lines so I could have the actives I want in a bottle.

Many times, it became too expensive for the client because he or she needed to have three to four different products to use. This frustration drove me to formulate my own skin care system. Following my dream to see my name in a bottle of a serum, I researched, developed, and formulated the Firm and I’ll Never Tell Serum.

What was the biggest challenge you faced building your business or career?
Since I opened my skin care business in New York in 1994, I thought of closing my business multiple times and just work for someone else. It was simpler and easier that way. You have no responsibility. But I always see my name on that skincare bottle and I stand tall because I believe my purpose is this.

What was the biggest failure you’ve experienced in your journey? What vital lesson did you learn from it? How has that shaped how you work?
My biggest failure was when Vogue Magazine in New York called me. That time, Allure Magazine already mentioned me as one of the best aestheticians in America. An article in Glamour Magazine mentioned my name as one of the aestheticians who does the Golden Spoons Facial. Vogue Magazine asked me if the said facial can encourage the skin’s collagen production. My answer was no. I didn’t elaborate anymore because I was shocked that they called me.

The experience hit me like a rock. Everyone knows that when Vogue Magazine writes an article about you or mention you in their magazine, you are a big hit, especially in the very competitive beauty industry in the United States.

I called this a failure because I did not make it in the Vogue write-up. I could have explained why my Golden Spoons Facial would increase collagen formation in the skin and why it will not. I did not explain it not because I don’t know how to explain it, but because I did not believe it does increase collagen formation.

I could have taken my time to explain even if the interview will last all day. Looking back, it was a blessing in disguise because it drove me to more research. I promised myself that I will be a ‘walking information’ on skin care in my industry and I did just that. Several TV shows and magazines in New York have mentioned my name and wrote articles about me since then. I had been the resource person of Vanity Fair Magazine, Time Out New York, Seventeen, and a host of other TV networks.

I think of my biggest failure as my biggest accomplishment, really, because with that experience, it pushed me to study more, attend as many classes and seminars as possible, do very thorough in research and development, and formulate my own product line.

What is your favorite quote that inspires you in your work and daily life?
My favorite quote is from Archimedes, “Give me a fulcrum and I will move the Earth.” What inspires me is Sirach 43:9 which says, “The beauty of the heavens and the glory of the stars, a shining ornament in the heights of God.” That is why the name of my company is Beauty Star.

Is your business or career today all you dreamed it would be? When did you realize this was what you wanted?
Coming from an average family in the south of the Philippines, particularly, the then small town of Pagadian City, I had a big dream. When I was in high school, I used to write down my ambition: that is, to go abroad for further studies. I did not only went abroad, I saw the world multiple times.

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