Who among us hasn’t known the feeling of looking in the mirror and seeing insecurities—things that we want to change about our appearance? As the owner of Afterglow Sunless Tans, Kristen Willis often finds herself holding space for others as they talk about these perceived “faults.”
But for Willis, offering cosmetic spray tanning services isn’t about erasing faults and making bodies fit a certain “look.” It’s about working with clients to give them an experience that empowers them.
In fact, helping others cultivate this confidence is Willis’ way of paying it forward. “I love what spray tanning did for me when I was a client,” she says. “I just felt like I could walk into a room a little bit more confident. So I love that aspect of it, because people come in and they hate looking in the mirror, and then when they leave, they love looking in the mirror. That is such a feel-good moment.”
After moving from Mayfield to Saratoga last January, Willis celebrated the grand opening of her Spa City location in September. Located at 219 Broadway, the luxury salon offers spray tanning and teeth whitening services in a more customizable fashion than you might find in a traditional spray tanning setting, where it’s machines that do all the work. Willis is a Master Certified Spray Tan Artist: While this is actually not a requirement for spray tan practitioners in New York State, Willis holds herself to a higher bar—for herself and for the sake of her customers. “I personally wanted to know it inside and out,” she says, “just to be able to produce those flawless results based on what skin tones can handle.”
Part of ensuring flawless results is the products Willis chooses to work with. The active ingredient in spray tanning products is DHA—a chemical that reacts with your skin to create a tanning effect. Unfortunately, a lot of DHAs have formaldehyde in them. As someone who values skin health above all else (skin cancer hits close to the heart for Willis), having such an ingredient in her products would be unacceptable. Therefore, Willis imports her product from Paris, where the DHA doesn’t have formaldehyde and all of the other ingredients in the formula are organic.
Willis also prides herself on offering an experience that tailors itself to all different comfort levels. Feeling anxious about undressing? You can pop in and buy premium products that you can use at home. Or, during your one-on-one pre-session consultation, you can decide where your level of comfort is, and Willis will honor that. In short, she says, “Everyone is welcome.”