Welcome to our blog!

Some of you may have been thinking … “well it was about time”, or maybe others are wondering “why?”. 

My hopes in starting this blog are for all of you to get to know me a bit more, along with us being able to dive a little deeper into all of the things that make JRAD SKIN, JRAD SKIN. I want this blog to be an extension of what you already experience within our clinic - where you feel heard, safe, cared for, and have you leaving like you gained some valuable information. I was inspired to start a blog from our “Skin Sunday” series on Instagram, which I have been posting consistently on every Sunday for over 3 years. And with that, I decided what better way to give more information and provide a place for you to continue to come back to. 

… Let’s dive in!

WHO IS JRAD? 

 Hi! If we have never met, my name is Jordan Radke, Owner and Advanced Aesthetician.

 I thought we would start with 3 facts about me, and then dive deeper into what you can expect from this blog later – because work + play balance is important, right?

·      I absolutely love animals, but more specifically dogs. When I was young, I would beg my mom to get me a dog by writing notes and putting them under her pillow before bed every night, in hopes that one day I could convince her. I had been saving all of my money from walking other families dogs, and performing chores around the house. Finally, when I was 11 we took my $900.00 to Clareshome and we brought home Max. He is almost 15 now, and the most precious baby prince we could have ever asked for. 

·      I am extremely spiritual - I believe in the universe, signs and feelings throughout our body. My family, closest friends, and co-workers know that I will not make any decisions before it feels right throughout my entire body, no matter how long it takes to make the decision. 

·      One of my dreams later on in life is to build a house on an acreage, have a whole bunch of animals, a big family, and be the host for all special events throughout the years. Connections are the most important part of my life, and when I picture this dream, I picture waking up, pouring a tea, watching the sun rise with my family, playing with the animals and living a slow peaceful life. Now, this dream is of course in combination with the busy lifestyle of being an entrepreneur, but the hope is to connect with people and their skin throughout the day, and in the evening be able to enjoy the peace and quiet of my home.

Now moving onto how “JRAD” came about.

When I first began Instagram, and when my dreams of owning my own skin clinic came to fruition, I was thinking of a name that would be different from other skin care clinics in Calgary. I wanted something noticeable, intentional, personal, representable and different. A name that would boldly represent me, and what I did - “JRAD” came to mind, and I just added skin onto it. The rest is history. 

WHO IS JRAD SKIN CLINIC?

I started this company at the age of 23, back in December 2018. When I look back on that time I wonder, “how the heck was I this brave?”. 

I first walked into this space and it felt cold, dark, dingy, and I immediately left and said to my mom “this isn’t the space”. But, after a couple of days I thought, no, this is the space, and I have the power to change the feeling to what I know will attract the connection I am in search of, along with keeping the connections I have already created. 

Myself, my mom (who also was working full time somewhere else during all of this) and a couple of friends did majority of the renovations, with a little help from a plumber and electrician. We ripped up flooring, caulked baseboards, painted all of the walls, all at the same time of setting up our booking system, credit system, and ordering the necessary tools and products. You could say we learnt a lot. At times we felt like it was never ending, as dealing with city permit approvals, decorating and ordering all takes an immense amount of time.

We started September 10th 2018, and we’re ready to operate December 10th that same year. Exactly 3 months of nonstop, 12+ hour days to get us to the grand opening. Such a world wind, but so worth all of it.

To think that our three-year anniversary just passed… I could not have prepared myself for the twists and turns of starting and owning a business, matched with the overwhelming love and support I’ve gotten from you all in return. We were open for a year and 3 months, mind you it was just myself and my mom working within the clinic at this time before we were hit with a pandemic, and we have been able to survive. We hired our lovely Kendal in January 2020, who trained with me and later began treating clients alongside me in August 2020. Kendal has been a massive shoulder to lean on during the ups and downs we have faced, and I could not imagine the space being the same without her. To say the least it’s been one incredible experience. An experience that has surpassed honestly my wildest of dreams – and to you I say a MASSIVE, thank you.

WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT?

I wanted this blog not only to have a space for all of you to feel safe and heard, but to share my years of experience with all of you! I have been practicing Medical + Holistic Aesthetics for 5 years now, and in growing the business, I’ve had such a gamut of ideas that I wanted to open up to you, but could never find the time. A lot of our Skin Sunday stories briefly touch on all kinds of topics, but I wanted to delve deeper into these. Topics I had in mind will fall into one or all of these categories:

1. Skincare, 2. Holistic Wellness, 3. General Learning, and 4. The ins and outs of business + more. 

 Prior to starting this blog I asked myself “Who are we writing for?”,

And my answer was, we are writing for those that have had to say, or have thought any of these things about themselves… 

 “Ugh I’m breaking out; I don’t know why.”

“My skin has been really affecting my mental health.”

“I don’t feel beautiful.”

“I can’t go out like this.”

“My face is so red, itchy and painful.” 

“I’m not as youthful as I once was at 20.” 

Trust me when I say this, you will never feel alone with these feelings. I’m not saying you may never feel these feelings or have these thoughts again, but we are a support system to guide and educate you. We do what we do, for the people who lack feeling beautiful or confident because of their skin. This blog has been created as an extension of what we already do, knowledge that empowers us and helping each and every human feel beautiful in their own skin. 

 So, with all of this said, 

 WE ARE HERE FOR YOU.

WE WILL HEAR YOU.

WE SEE YOU.

Thank you for being here with me.

“It is so much more than just a treatment; it is an experience” 

– Jordan Radke