Richard Anthony and Ida Podcast Transcript

Hello, I'm Rich and I'm from the Rich Mix and this is my new podcast and I'm really lucky to have either on board today. And welcome Ida. Thanks for coming on board.

 

Hi, thank you Richard, for, you know, inviting me to do this interview. It's basically it's going to be a chat. As I understood this is a chat.

Yeah, we've known each other for a long time, everyone. So it's just more of a just a chat, see how things are going and just really more of a catch up as well, so on what we've been up to. So Before we start, so
Ida, let me know a little bit about your journey in becoming like, you know, a CEO and the founder of eyebrow Experts in Sydney. Because you've been doing this now for a long time.

 

IDA:
Yeah, I've been doing it for a very, very, very long time. It seems like it was a different era, different kind of life at that time. You know, I always was very curious, very interested in beauty, fashion, styling and presenting. And sometimes it's also how you present yourself, how people will perceive you, how people see you. It's an art in a way as well, you know. And. yeah, and my background is, you know, I was born in a different country. I was born in Uzbekistan. And presentation is everything. Women are beautiful women, feminine women understand them how to seduce and how to make beautiful food and make beautiful hair, You
know, that kind of, it's all very, very traditionally. Past the generation to generation in that culture. So even though I'm not Uzbek, but I was born in Uzbekistan. The, you know, former Soviet Union slash Muslim country

 

You've had a very interesting life because your whereabouts is your
business based?

 

It's in. It's in Double Bay. It's a very good location and you know when I did all my trainings in the past you always look for the best location ever. It it's like McDonald's. It's not the best food but location is location is location you know

 

100% especially this type of top end service you know it's not cheap so you really want to clientele that can afford it and a lot of it as well especially like in Double Bay you know people they're not really. Going looking in their bank account before they can't get a service, they just want it. They want they want it done by the best as well in the area you know. So I think that's awesome. So leading on to that you wrote a wrote a book as well and So what inspired you to write that first book, The Busy and Waxing Queen and then The Ultimate Brow Guide.
You did both didn't you?

 

I did both, yeah, I actually was heavily pushed by my own clients. Because every time you know when you're doing a treatment, it's very intimate, it's very personalized. You know all the eats and bits of people's lives, what's happening and they. Can you share something with us that's. I won't tell anyone. You know, everything is in the book, but not everything. I had to, you know, protect the privacy of people and be loving and compassionate. But it's still. I still could. You know, grabbed a lot of information and make it into light hearted fun kind of you know coffee book for many party you just you know and sometimes what my clients used to do is they used to open a just a kind of a page and just read and just have laugh and have a good fun about it. And actually one of our client came from New York a few years ago and she said to me, Oh my God, I didn't know that you know Naomi Watts. And I'm like, no, only what I know Naomi was she was like, Oh my God, I met her the past. And she's the one in New York who told me about you because
she has your book on her coffee table. I said this, you said. Listen, get a photo of Naomi Watts with my book on the coffee table. I know, I know. Yeah. I was like, Oh my God, I want that. So yeah, the clients actually pushed me through it because people always used to say to me, you know, I tell you things and you. Tell me things and always have good interaction, great time together when we, you know, doing the treatments and you know, it will be fun to have a, you know, I'm, I'm sure you have a lot of
stories and I'm like, yeah, I have a lot of stories. And then I thought, what am I going to do with these stories? And I'm going to take it to the grave. I'm just going to rise. And at the time, actually it took me about a year or two years to write and I actually was pregnant with my first child and and I was like I for some reason had so much energy. I think that's what kids do to us. Has so much like lasting energy. Yeah, I didn't even know where it was coming from. And yeah, it was. It's Actually, with the first copy was delivered into Maya into the hospital the day when I gave birth. It was beautiful. It was amazing. Very
memorable time.

 

RICHARD:
Fantastic. So now how do you stay in forefront of like, the brown waxing
technique? Yeah, so how do you stay ahead of the game regards to learning new techniques? Especially you're known for this seven-minute Brazilian wax that you do.

 

Look, I'm a very good believer there is nothing new. There is always already there. You just need to tap into it. And that's where I love
practicing your manifestation energy work. What you just do you
just basically that's what I did you know I when I arrived to Australia no one was doing Brazilian like 7 minutes. Everyone was like 45 minutes and so eyebrows was hideous and. What I start doing it, I start challenging myself, not against the other people. Are they doing half an hour? Are they doing 40 minutes? Are they doing 20 minutes? What I was doing, I was purely challenging myself. OK, so I I did to yesterday 10 minutes. Can I beat it? Can I do something different? And then it ended up 7 minutes. And actually, honestly there was time when it was just
5 minutes, but I just kind of like those 7 minutes. It's like a cool sound of it, so. And seven's a good number. So, yeah, so, so
it's really just practicing techniques more than anything else and trying to fine tune those techniques to be a lot better at some of those treatments, yes. Yes, yes. Because if something works, really would like to need to change it.

 

Yep. So you've had a real diverse clientele with, you know, from celebrities to housewives. How do you ensure each client receives a unique, high-quality experience?

Yeah, it's all comes down to a customer service. You look at the people and the best thing you do is you be there, you be there, they give them the time, you know, don't rush the treatment and be very present. I'm like anywhere else, like when we're not present relationship, relationship is going to go to, you know, 100% a rubbish bin. But it's just about. You create an original relationship with your clients so you need to make sure you're super present and you listen, really listen you know and when you listen, when they let you to tell you what they want and how they see and what's the imagination, what the fantasy about their whatever it be, eyebrows or anything whatever they want to do in life it's all it comes down to good listening. Be present and just be open minded like sometimes they can tell you. A couple of tricks when you haven't even thought about it. It's just basically sometime like you learn about not just about your clients from your clients sometimes. So basically be present and you know do your job to the 100%. Yeah,

no, definitely. So and you've been featured in a lot of magazines and publications in the media as well. How is that exposure impacted on your business and your own personal brand?

 

It was amazing. It was amazing at the time when it was so crucial for the business for eyebrow experts. It was so crucial for when I'm saying crucial is to make sure that. You give this interview to people and people you know. You pass in all your knowledge and that time there was no. Like very kind of a niche in a way. No one was doing anything and I was you know blessed. There was opportunity for me to do all that and you know I I did with well with publicity with celebrities. I also do used to do touring around Australia and teaching people. I had a lot of students who were coming from Hong Kong you know New Zealand other parts of the I had someone from actually tempo in in.
In Miami. So it was amazing. I think it was a very, very important time for me. And I could do it and I could pass it on and and I love teaching people.

 

And that's something else you do because you work as a trainer as well and you've been doing that for many years, which is fantastic. And yes, and you've done a lot of that over the years and I know you're very
passionate about your craft.

 

I'm very, very passionate about my craft and I'm also open and I'm not afraid of teaching because a lot of people. They would hold on true to their gifts and it's my life, it's all about to educating and empowering and pass it on to people. There is no point to hold on to it and just probably because I truly understand that nobody is going to be like me. And when I train, I always say don't worry. You do your best job, you be present and nobody's going to do the job just like you do. Never. And if your clients love you, they will be there. And don't you know your client? It doesn't mean it's going to be forever. People come and go. Be comfortable with that.

 

Awesome. So have you had any challenges like that you've faced with building the brand and in the business? Has there been any times
in your life in the last 10-15 years that you've had You know some major challenges that has affected you personally and the business?

 

IDA:
Challenging, I mean COVID. COVID, yeah, COVID, you know, a lot of
restriction. It was really hard. It was, yeah, yeah, it was so hard
when they close in the beauty businesses for first three months and then next year four months, that was really tough. But I guess therefore everyone was tough. But before COVID, I think it's usually. The people, the people. Sometime when you find and you trade, I think, but every business owner faced with that when you train people and
 they stay with you, but then you understand and the life changes. They get pregnant. They, you know move to another country.

 

It's always a little bit hard because you train them, you need so much time and love, care and then they do an amazing job but then they have to move on
and you're like oh you know that's probably challenging. Again, it's for
everyone. Life goes on. That's the thing. Look, staff are the biggest issue and you know any form of service business.

 

Staff is a big issue. They come, they learn and then they think, you know what, I'm going to do this myself and run my own business and they just move on and it is heart breaking because you put so much love. And faith in them, especially with yourself and for your clients and when they move on, it's like heart breaking and upsetting, you know, for you, you know, So yeah, yeah, the interesting thing, I don't really worry they will open something else again. I don't worry if they, you know, because I always have a good understanding about that. But it just, it just it's time, you know, your time. You spend so much time with them and you can't take it back.

 

Yeah, that are awesome. So can you share any like memorable stories or transformations? From your career that really stand out?

 

I have a very lovely woman that was actually just not a long time ago. She, I think she was  77. Well, she's alive with us. I think 7 is 7. And she and her husband passed away like 10 years before that. And she came to the clinic and she said to me, listen, I want to do a really good transformation because I got a date. On tutor So I have so much pressure to create a beautiful look with her eyebrows and her, you know, so she looks beautiful and the more beautiful. Yeah. So she was good that day. She was like, I'm going on a date.

 

That was, how did she go and how did she go with the date?
 

I don't even know. She hasn't been back yet.

 

God, tell her mate what's going on. I want to know what's happening.

 

I really was itching to give you a call or text. How did you go? But I
kind of got busy and forgot about that. But I think that was about like 3
months ago. So yeah, I hope, I hope you're fine.

 

So what advice would you give entrepreneurs aspiring to make their mark in the beauty industry, someone that's young and wants to get in and open their business? What advice would you give them?

 

IDA:
probably would say that the best thing is it's just. Make sure you discipline yourself in what like you know what you want, and then make sure you discipline yourself because cut out all the distractions, all the noise from, you know, external forces and make sure you really. Driven. And if you driven, if you goal oriented then you're going to achieve what you want. And the second thing I would say would be sometimes if you want to start something you're on sometime maybe look around, but there is already business. Established and they really sailing because they're going overseas maybe. I think that would be a really good option for you to invest because you're paying for what you would be while you're already setting up. Exactly. And then you all you need to do is just. It's really good starting point. You just change the name on the same name and just then Yeah.

 

Now it's been a few years like we've been talking for years and last time I think we talked. Sometime last year, we chatted. You went through a bit of a Transformation, so you were known as Svetlana. Now it's either. Can you tell me the reason behind the name chain?

 

The reason? Well, I did it a couple of years ago. The reason was because I went to From Beauty. Parallel to that, I'm very interested in practicing spirituality and, you know, connection to a high source. And that was named very private for quite a few years actually. And then I was I was given a permission to actually announce it and get it changed, get it as a legal name. So it's more spiritual. It's sometimes it's interesting. I often, I'm a white person and I often ask myself questions. It's like why do we carry the name which was given to us by parents And I always loved my first name, my birth name, Let's put it that way. But. Sometimes I wasn't really connected to it and sometimes I feel like there is a split and in the name. And yeah, and then when I actually. Was given this name. Ira. It's much more resonate with me and it's very interesting because when I was telling my friends about that I'm going to change my name everyone was like are you crazy? Why would you do that And they came up with all sorts of strange versions of what's going to happen this and I'm like no, but that's how I feel.
And when I feel how I feel it's I have to be really it's a strong
feeling how I feel usually and since I changed a few years ago, a
couple years ago. Some of them still changing the names too. They're just so funny and they're like, Oh my God. Yeah, And they say to me, I actually went to numerologist and astrologist and they put the name together. Apparently, that's why I had a bad luck in the past. That's why I had a bad marriage or whatever it was, it was not together. It was something. No, I understand why. Why I do it and I and I sometimes. Have these things I do in life. Out of blue and people really kind of, they don't, they don't resonate with that. But sometimes they do the same what I do. It's like, you know, a light worker. It's like I'm holding the tools. It's like in the darkness for people. And actually that's the meaning of the name either Hikaru. So yeah.

 

And you're right. Because, like, you know, we are born with a name that we didn't pick. And and yeah, if you look at, there's so many people that have got names that don't really like. So then they have to use a nickname. So we get to change our clothes, where we live, what we do, what we eat. Why don't we change our name to what we want as well. We only got one life. And so, yeah, awesome. Congratulate. You're doing that and you look so much happier. You're glowing. It's awesome, you know, So looking ahead. Is there any like new projects or expansions in the business or for yourself that you've got planned

 

for this have few. I have so many ideas. I just met her off again, focus on them being disciplined and just executing. But so many ideas. It's
like I just sometimes don't know which way to go to me. Yeah.
 

So when did you, so obviously you migrated to Australia. When did you
actually, come to Australia? What year was that?

 

Can't remember what year was. It was 23 years ago or whatever year was
that? Yeah, yeah, 1001. Yeah. I have a sister. She's an older sister. She's 7 years older and she lives in the Gold Coast with her husband.

And you still go back to go overseas a lot. Like travel to Uzbekistan. You've just got family there or anyone there or, or everyone's here.

 

I've only been there back like twice in 23 years. I know it's very Naughty. First one was, you know, was good, second was good. But it just,
I would like to go there a little bit often. But when you have a business and you have kids, it's usually sometimes a little bit difficult. But yeah, maybe it's just an excuse again, you know, and we live at the other side of the world as well.

 

That's the other problem, you know, travelling there is a pain in the bum, you know. But no, that's fantastic. Well, one of my goals is doing a lot more travelling, getting out and about. And, yeah, meeting more people and, yeah, being healthy, you know, cause as we, it's funny, cause as we get older, you know, I’m 53 this year and I look at my, you
know, you look at your life and you're like, oh, my God. It's like there's only this little window now of opportunity to do things. And so,
especially with younger kids, so it gets to a point where you just, like,
you need to really make the best out of every day that you have.

 

You know, yeah, yeah, be present, yeah, the 100%.

 

So no, very exciting. So any anything else exciting you want to share with me?

 

I don't know. Life is very exciting, just life is. You know the key life. 2024 is pretty good here where we are now. 8th of March, actually
today is 8th of March. It's Woman's Day in Europe. Yeah, I know in Australia we don't celebrate it here, but it's huge. In Europe, is it.

RICHARD:
Yeah, awesome. So with obviously with the coaching, you do a bit of coaching on the other side. So so where, where do you split your time
between both businesses or is it another business or is this something
you're passionate about the coaching side of it?

 

I don't. I don't really call it as a business because when you're a light worker and when you counsellor, coach, healer, whatever you call it, it's
not really become a business. It's more, you know, it's more non profit. It's more like practice. Yeah. I mean, you take it seriously. It's not just, you know, it's not a hobby, but it's not. It's not something it's like as a business, you know, So I call it practice. And I do it. I pretty much do it 5050 now. And I don't advertise. I have clients through referrals only. Yeah, yeah. And it's, it's been growing really steady since, you know, few years now, yeah.

 

And how long you been doing it for now practising?

 

It's been now for about 6-7 years. Yep, yeah, this has been a while.
So yeah, no it's really good. And change is always good. You know it's always good for your mind and for your soul. Anyway, yeah and it's again it's all to do with my clients again being present because they remember when people used to come and sister say to me no I want to book in with you and the option they always had an option to book with one of the staff which would be like you know half price of Orange services and then we used to always select no, no, no, no, no. You and I never actually understood why it was only me. Until quite a few clients, their feedback was extraordinary because they say to me. It's not just what you do it's how you do it. You make me I feel lighter I feel happier and when you tell me something things happen or you suggest something and it's doable. It's better than you know I go to other practitioners it's better and that's when it's actually pushed me through there then professional training then invest in it you know professional trainings and when people and it's a very good and in a way in a business service because you already like a counsellor you. You're not guilty clients because they have. Strange, yeah? Exactly so. And then it became as OK, if you just want to talk and do the session treatments, that's fine. But if you want a professional session then I can also book you in so that people go a little bit more in a in a different way shifting like it's much they actually get what they pay for as a result. So, and that's how it came and when sometimes people ask me the people who Didn't know anything about the beauty business. They only see me as a counsellor or hypnotherapist coach, and I'm going to mention something about beauty. And they say, Oh my God, you. And I'm like, yeah. And they're like, oh, my God, this is incredible. And then people who only saw me as a beauty person, when they find out about counselling, coaching, hypnotherapy, they're like, oh, yeah, I can see you because you've been listening my stories for a long time and forever. Yeah. Being true to never offer your culture counselling. You're very understanding, but how come you never told me about it and I said Well, because? I understand you coming for these services and if you will need one day you will enquire about that services because you know and they're like oh OK well let's can I book in can I try it's yeah it comes hands and hands it's very interesting and then they gain and I remember it's actually from our industry remember like there are few actually cosmetic tattoos.

 

Because I think it's because you're meeting a lot of people, you're talking a lot of people and it brings something from inside you anyway that wants to come out and I've been doing a lot of training and you know in in what do you call it, mind? Mindfulness, you know, just you know. Manifestation and all this kind of stuff and yeah, it's awesome. I think there's, yeah, there's a lot to talk about there, but that's something we have to do in our next podcast. We're going to dig a bit
deeper into that side of your life. And it's very interesting. And. Yeah, and I can't wait to talk to you again about it. So thank you, Ida.

 

Yes, thank you
 

so much for joining me today. And yeah, we'll obviously catch up
soon for another. Take two. All right.

 

Yeah. Beautiful. Thank you. No
worries. Thank you so much. Have a great
day.

 

Enjoy the sun and we
will chat soon.

 

Thanks, Richard. Bye
bye. Thank you.