A Passion for Skincare and Customer Service

I have had a deep love affair with products and skincare since I was 13 years old, and in 1997, I found myself inside of an old-world apothecary interviewing for my first skincare job. To my delight, I was hired for a sales position at Kiehl’s. This unusual place that was filled with memorabilia, motorcycles, skeletons and tons of formulations were to become my home for the next seven years, and this is where my journey into learning about skincare, ingredients, and extraordinary customer service began.

At Kiehl’s, I worked for Jami Morse Heidegger, who had three generations of skincare and pharmaceutical knowledge behind her. She was diligent about her team knowing the products inside and out and giving our customers the absolute best customer service possible. For instance, as a new hire, despite receiving detailed product training, I was not allowed to speak to clients for the entire first month I was there. Instead, I made samples in order to become even more familiar with all of the products and observed the way in which my senior co-workers interacted with clients.

As time went on, I was allowed to answer customer phone calls and from there, my training really began. I loved it! I learned about ingredients and what they do for the skin, I learned about the history of the brand, I learned what I didn’t want in a product, I learned how to give each and every person that walked through the door the same respect, the same attention and the best advice for their skincare concerns that I could possibly give along with samples that would complement their new purchase.

I took that knowledge, education and general love of good customer service with me when I moved on professionally. (To this day, I still maintain a close relationship with a number of clients whom I assisted decades ago at Kiehl’s!) To my great surprise, I happily found myself working again with Jami Heidegger – this time, for Retrouvé.

As Director of Customer Service, I absolutely love to give my clients my best, and it makes me happy knowing that they had a great experience. My job rarely every feels like “work,” as I love being with people and learning about them. I don’t see my interactions as trying to sell a client on a product; I view these conversations as an opportunity to get to know people and hear about their lives, exchange stories and feel like I, too, am learning something perhaps about their culture, a recipe, a fun hobby, their children, pets etc. It gives me a warm feeling inside because not only have I met someone new and helped them, but I also gain the trust of a client who knows that I will always do and recommend what is best for them.

Working for Retrouvé allows me to represent a product that I deeply believe in and know that when I recommend it to my clients, I am recommending a preparation that is made with integrity, the very best ingredients and enormous love and care because once again I am working for Jami Morse Heidegger and like her, I take my customer service very seriously and want my clients to leave with a smile and glowing skin!

If you love what you do and genuinely care for the people you work with, it will always be acknowledged and appreciated because it comes from a real place and taking care of people is real for me. I appreciate each and every one of my clients and hope to continue our skincare journey together for years to come.