After only one year in business, the owner of Kiss & A Wink, Amanda Naito, is going home with a silver medal for Best Lash Studio in Kelowna.
The Kelowna local is incredibly grateful to receive this praise and recognition from the community she calls home. Working out of her home and running Kiss & A Wink herself makes the win even sweeter.
“It definitely feels good,” says Naito. “It’s the first year I've been out on my own. As a local it’s nice to have the support of the community I grew up in”.
After going to school to become a makeup artist and doing makeup on movie sets in Vancouver - she has her own IMDB page - Naito decided that the competition and long hours weren’t for her. She decided to work for a salon as a part-time job and quickly realized how good she felt making people look and feel their best.
She moved back to Kelowna with her partner and went to MC College for aesthetics, then went on to work at a couple of local spas.
At the last spa she worked at, Naito discovered her passion for lashes, instantly falling in love. She got to work with lashes regularly and was ahead of the lash extension trend.
“I love that it’s always changing. I took my first lash course ten years ago when people didn’t even know it existed,” says Naito.
Her devotion to learning and taking the necessary courses assures her that she offers the best service to each client that walks through the door. She loves giving someone a new set of lashes and seeing the smile on their face when they see their new look for the first time.
“My biggest thing with lashes is how happy my clients are after they see them. I have people in their 80s who are shocked in a good way when they see their lashes. They tell me they feel more confident”.
Aside from the absolute joy that Naito gets from making her clients look and feel their best, she appreciates the friendships she builds with them, too.
“People really trust you, you’d be surprised what people tell you. I have a great relationship with my clients. It’s nice that people feel comfortable enough to share their life with you”.
On top of being professional, knowledgable and friendly, what really sets Kiss & A Wink apart from the competition is that she works with clients on an individual basis and gives them natural-looking lashes.
“I will always take into consideration the client’s natural lashes and what they look like. I also always want to make my clients happy, but I will always suggest doing a lash style that won’t damage their natural lashes! Natural lash health is very important to me, so I think that sets me apart from others”.
To see what Kiss & A Wink is all about, check out Naito’s Instagram page @kissandawinkbeauty or book a consultation by visiting her Facebook page.
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