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October 30, 2025 12 mins

Ready to trade comfort for purpose—without leaping blind? We sit down with Layonna Collado, the founder of Bliss Beauty Bar Aesthetics in Fredericksburg, to unpack how she left a steady 9–5 and built a two-time award-winning, all-inclusive spa during the most uncertain time in recent memory. From the earliest YouTube tutorials to opening her doors post-quarantine, Layonna shows how a clear plan, relentless education, and client-first service can turn a passion for beauty into a sustainable, standout brand.

We dive into the truth behind real skincare results and dismantle a stubborn myth: treatments alone won’t fix everything. Layonna’s fitness-coach analogy lands the point—professional, advanced treatments only reach their full potential when paired with a consistent home care routine tailored to your skin. She explains how Bliss crafts custom treatment plans and home regimens to target acne, discoloration, and premature aging, and why specializing in multicultural skin matters for safety, efficacy, and confidence. If you’ve ever wondered why your products plateau or how to stack services to get ready for big moments—weddings, travel, milestones—you’ll leave with a smarter, simpler approach.

Education threads through everything. We talk trade shows, partner trainings, and how to separate hype from real innovation so clients benefit from proven techniques and melanin-safe protocols. And we map the tactile details of a great client experience—the music, the scent, the seamless scheduling—that turn results into loyalty. Thinking about a career pivot of your own? You’ll hear practical steps to move from idea to action: validate demand, choose a specialization, invest in learning, and design a service model that matches your market. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs a nudge, and leave a review telling us the one change you’ll make to your routine—or your career—this week.

Layonna Collado

Bliss Beauty Bar Aesthetics 

blissbeautybarva.com

Info@blissbeautybarva.com

+1 540-685-5071

4820 Southpoint Dr. Suite 201, Fredericksburg, VA, United States, Virginia

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Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 01 (00:01):
This is the Fredericksburg Neighbors
Podcast, the place where localbusinesses and neighbors come
together.
Here's your host, Dori Stewart.

Speaker 02 (00:13):
Welcome back to another episode of the FXBG
Neighbors Podcast, where weshare the stories of our
favorite local brands.
I'm excited to introduce you tomy guest today.
Joining me is Layonna Colladoof Bliss Beauty Bar Aesthetics.
Layonna, welcome to thepodcast.
Thank you so much for having metoday.

(00:33):
Well, I am excited to get toknow you and learn more about
your business.
So let's start there.
Share with us a little bitabout your business.

Speaker 00 (00:43):
Of course.
So Bliss Beauty Bar wasestablished here in
Fredericksburg, Virginia in2020.
We are a two timesaward-winning spa.
We have won the bestesthetician practice in the city
of Fredericksburg for 2024 and2025.
We pride ourselves on being anall-inclusive space.
We specialize in advancedskincare treatments, eyelash

(01:06):
extensions.
We also offer waxing services,lash lifts, vegatials.
So we are that one-stop shopwhere you can get multiple
beauty services done in onespace.

Speaker 02 (01:17):
Amazing.
I was doing my research andchecking out your website, and I
was surprised how many servicesthat you offer.
So congratulations on yoursuccess.
Congratulations on your awardsand hitting that five-year mark
this year, that's a really bigmilestone in business.
So applaud you.

(01:39):
Thank you so much.
Appreciate that.
Yeah, of course.
Well, I would love to learnmore about you and your
background.
So tell us about your journeyand what led you to starting
your business.

Speaker 00 (01:50):
Yeah, it's so funny because before I ever became an
aesthetician or owned BlissBeauty Bar, I actually worked a
corporate job for nine years.
And I definitely appreciate myjourney that I had there.
There were so many, you know,tools and things that I've
learned that actually have beenable to really help me have a
successful business now.
But I just have always lovedbeauty.

(02:11):
I used to do a lot of like hairtutorials, makeup tutorials,
skin tutorials online.
And I would share it like on mysocial media platforms and
YouTube.
And I would just have so manypeople be engaged with it and
ask me questions.
And um it made me just realizelike, you know what, I'm never
gonna genuinely be happy until Ihave a career in beauty.

(02:33):
And so I kind of just starteddoing some research on a career
path that I could um do thatwould be beauty related.
And that's when I came acrossan aesthetician.
And so I ended up going toschool and getting my basic um
aesthetic certification, enjoyedit so much.
I went on and got my master'scertification.

(02:54):
And um, when I went to school,it was with the intent of
knowing that I wanted to open upa business one day.
And so in 2020, in the midst ofthe pandemic, right after we
got out of quarantine, I decidedto go ahead and open up Bliss
Beauty Bar.
And it has just been a successever since.
You know, when I first openedup Bliss Beauty Bar, I wasn't
sure on what was gonna happen.

(03:15):
I'm like, hey, we're in themidst of the pandemic.
I don't know if people aregonna come, but this is
something that God is calling meto do.
So I pushed forward.
And um, it's funny, when Ifirst opened up Bliss Beauty
Bar, I was a solo aesthetician.
I had no intentions of growinga team or having a bigger space.
But um, as the businesscontinued to grow, the business
continued to evolve, I continueto evolve.

(03:37):
Um, we just I went ahead andgrew a team.
We went ahead and got a uhlarger space, and you know, this
is where we are now.

Speaker 02 (03:46):
So I'm amazed by your story.
So you went from the corporateworld and you had a love for
beauty and you really wanted todo what you love, and you took a
leap during the pandemic andstarted a business, you are
truly living the dream.
So uh congratulations on thatsuccess.

(04:08):
I love your story so much.
And I wonder for peoplelistening who are have uh you
know something that they loveand maybe are thinking about
leaving their job, or you know,with all the you know, the
shakeup going on right now,we've got a lot of government
contractors and governmentworkers in the area that might

(04:28):
be thinking maybe it's time tochase that dream.
What advice would you givethem?

Speaker 00 (04:35):
I would definitely say follow your purpose, follow
your purpose, follow yourpassion, and just have a plan.
That's the biggest thing that'sgonna make the whole transition
um become easier, is justmaking sure that you have a plan
for where you want to go andhow you're going to get there.
I feel like that's one of thethings that really helped me
with the transition.
Um, especially when you're in acorporate job, you have that

(04:56):
comfort.
You know, I get my my um mymedical insurance and I get my
you know nine to five hours andI get all the benefits and the
401k.
And so when you're deciding toleave that and really um jump
into a whole new world andfollow your passion and purpose,
it can be very scary.
But as long as you have a plan,it can make that transition be

(05:18):
uh so much easier.
And um at the end of the day,when we're not really doing what
we're passionate about or whatwe're happy about, we're never
gonna feel fulfilled, you know?
And so just go after what it isthat you want.
Um, you'd be so surprised whenyou take risks and you take
chances that everything that youwant is on the other side of
that.

Speaker 02 (05:38):
I love that.
That's really good advice.
Thank you for that.
Of course.

So tell me this (05:42):
do you find in your industry that there are
any myths or misconceptions?

Speaker 00 (05:51):
Absolutely, especially when it comes to
skin.
Um, so we do advanced skincaretreatments here at Bliss Beauty
Bar.
Um, we do a lot of correctiveskincare.
That's one of the things that Ilove doing, is helping people
reach their skin goals,especially when they want to
correct things like acne,discoloration, premature aging.
And I find a commonmisconception is that people

(06:11):
think that they can just get theskincare treatments, and that's
going to give them the resultsthat they want and need with
their skin.
Um, not realizing that you alsoneed a solid home care regimen
and that when you getprofessional skincare treatments
and you have that professionalhome care regimen, they work
together to really see thoseresults that you want.
Um, I like to always relate itto my clients, similar to us as

(06:36):
petitions being your likefitness coach.
When you go to the gym and youwork out with a fitness coach,
they're gonna have certainworkout routines that you do
when you're there with them atthe gym, but they're gonna give
you a meal plan for when you'reat home.
They're gonna give you littlemini workouts that you need to
be doing in the meantime whenyou're not with them in the gym.
And so I like to relate itsimilar to um when you come in

(06:58):
for your skincare treatments.
You gotta have the solidskincare treatments that you're
getting here that are gonna beyour professional skincare
treatments, more advancedingredients that you're not
gonna get at home, but you stillhave those solid products that
are gonna help support thetreatments that you get here so
you can really see those, seethose results that you want to
see at home and correct thosethings that you want to improve
with your skin.

(07:18):
And so a lot of times when weexplain that to our clients,
they have a betterunderstanding.
And when they start seeing thatsuccess with having both the
treatment plan here as well asthe products at home, they're
like, okay, I completely get itnow.
I can't just come in for theskincare treatment.
So it's a whole system thatworks together.

Speaker 02 (07:37):
I really love that analogy so much.
And I imagine it helps yourclients realize too that just
like the gym, you have to keepit up, you know.
Uh, and so having that uh dailyroutine.
So I imagine your your clientsappreciate you for that.
So what I I'm curious, what issort of your um your your bread

(07:59):
and butter?
What are you finding mostpeople are are coming to you uh
for in terms of service?

Speaker 00 (08:06):
Definitely the advanced skincare treatments
that we offer.
Um, one of the things thatreally set Bliss Beauty Bar
apart when I first opened up in2020 is us specializing in
multicultural skin.
That's something that reallyhelped us uh stand out, is that
we specialize in helping umethnic skin reach their skin
results using the rightproducts, doing the right

(08:26):
treatments that are um effectivefor certain skin types.
And so we get a lot of uhskincare clients that come in
and we're able to just reallyhelp them with feeling confident
in the skin that they're in.
Um, so that is one of thenumber one services that we
offer because again, we offerthe advanced skincare
treatments, we offer uh theprofessional skincare products
here as well.
So they have everything thatthey need uh to see the results

(08:49):
that they want to see with theirskin.
We give custom treatment plans,we give uh custom home care
regimens, just so that theclient has a clear understanding
of what they need to reachtheir skin goals and they feel
more confident and um, you know,everything that we're doing to
help them with what it is thatthey want to improve with their
skin.
So definitely skincaretreatments is our number one
service that we offer here.

Speaker 02 (09:10):
I love that.
I love that.
And so tell me this.
I imagine in your industry thatthere are um new products that
come out, new treatment types.
What are what do you do to kindof stay on top of maybe trends
in education?

Speaker 00 (09:30):
Yes, education is so important to me and to the
Bliss Beauty Bar team.
I'm so big on it.
So I like to make sure thatwe're always involved in any
type of trade shows, um, anytype of educational seminars
that are coming up with the uhskincare partners that we work
with here at Bliss Beauty Bar.
We always make sure we attendthose.
We're very big on onlineeducation.
Um, the professional skincarepartners that we work with also

(09:53):
have a lot of continuingeducation on their platforms.
So we definitely like sure touh we definitely like to make
sure that we maximize on umutilizing those resources so
that we continue to grow, learn,and just give our clients, you
know, the newest things that arecoming out so they can really
reach their schedules.

Speaker 02 (10:10):
Yeah, so important.
I I love that you go the extramile in that area.
That's awesome.
So, what is something that youwish the listeners knew about
your business?

Speaker 00 (10:22):
So at Bliss Beauty Bar, we really pride ourselves
on the client experience.
That is something that is soimportant to us from the moment
that, you know, when you walkthrough the door, how you feel
when you walk in the door, fromyou know, the music that's
playing, the scent that's in theair, uh, you know, the the
treatment that you're receiving,the service that you're
getting, how you feel during theservice, how you feel after the

(10:45):
service, the confidence thatyou have, you know, you feeling
more beautiful.
Um, we really pride ourselveson the client experience and we
really go above and beyond tomake sure that you're satisfied
and that um everything that youneed is here.
We want to make things easierfor you.
Uh, that's one of the reasonswhy we offer multiple services
here at Bliss Beauty Bar.

(11:05):
Our clients really love theconvenience of being able to get
multiple services done in onespace.
You know, we have clients thatare getting married and they
love that they can get theireyelash extensions and get
their, you know, skincaretreatment so their skin is
glowing for that special day.
Uh clients love when they havetrips coming up, they can get
their waxing services done andtheir eyelash extensions done in
one appointment.

(11:26):
So our clients really love theconvenience of being able to
have multiple services done inone space.
But more than anything, we justreally pride ourselves on the
client experience and goingabove and beyond.
Um, you know, that's one of thereasons why we are a two times
award-winning spa.
We have over 135 five-starreviews on Google because the
client experience is everythingto us.

Speaker 02 (11:47):
That's amazing.
That's amazing.
So important.
I love that.
Yes, absolutely.
If the listeners want to learnmore from you, learn about your
services, connect with you, howcan they find you?

Speaker 00 (12:00):
So you can find us at our website,
www.blissbeautybarva.com.
You can also connect with usthrough our social media
platforms.
You can follow us on Instagramand Facebook at Blissbeauty Bar
VA.
We're always uh postingdifferent treatments, behind the
scenes, educational tips andposts.
So that's one way to stayconnected with us.

(12:21):
If you follow us on our socialmedia platforms or even check us
out on our website, we have umVIP text lists and email lists
that you can be a part of so youcontinue to stay updated and
know everything that's going onwith Bliss Beauty Bar.

Speaker 02 (12:35):
Amazing.
Amazing.
Layonna, thank you so much forjoining me on the podcast today
and sharing Bliss Beauty Barwith us.

Speaker 00 (12:42):
Yes, thank you so much for having me.
I really appreciate it.
Thank you.

Speaker 01 (12:48):
Thank you for listening to the Fredericksburg
Neighbors Podcast.
To nominate your favorite localbusinesses to be featured on
the show, go to FXBGNeighborsPodcast.com.
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