The Grit & Grace Leadership Podcast

Balancing Business and Self-Care: Cristina Saroli's Wellness Wisdom

• Jen Kelly • Season 3 • Episode 1

Share episode

Join us as we sit down with Cristina Saroli of Village Wellness Spa, a family-run business with over 35 years of history and deep community roots. Cristina shares her family's journey of transforming a local spa into a wellness hub, offering insights into balancing business and motherhood, creating meaningful self-care rituals, and navigating the challenges of a family-run venture.

Discover actionable tips for prioritizing self-care to better serve others, embracing innovation, and making execution count. Whether you're an entrepreneur, wellness enthusiast, or looking for inspiration, this episode delivers insights to elevate your wellness journey.

Learn more about Village Wellness Spa


For us for actionable tools & tips for your leadership journey
Instagram @Grit.Grace.Podcast
Follow our LinkedIn Page



Jen:

Today we welcome Christina Ciroli. Her family-run business, the Village Wellness Spa, has deep roots in our community.

Cristina :

Self-care, I think now is becoming more of a priority for many people. It really is like this shift in lifestyle that encompasses holistic health and wellness and beauty and self-care and prioritizing oneself in order to better serve those around you. In this episode, we explore the evolving role of self-care and like prioritizing oneself in order to better serve those around you.

Jen:

In this episode we explore the evolving role of self-care and how it has shifted from being a treat to becoming a priority. Let's dive in. Christina welcome. It's a pleasure to speak with you. We have a lot to talk about as relates to women's self-care, the evolution of self-care and general advice for women in business and entrepreneurs. Before we get into all that, the story of Village Wellness Spa. This is a family run operation that has been in business for 35 years. What was the inspiration to get into this line of business?

Cristina :

Yes, so my mom, she came to Canada from Colombia as a teenager and she was an esthetician and it was, I think, that she always had this like underlying drive to sort of have her own thing and you know, working with customers at the time spas were not really as popular as they were here. We're talking late 80s and someone kind of approached her and said, you know, I really think that you could do your own thing. And so she did and she started. It was like a two room spa with one like manicure station, one pedicure station and one skincare line, and it's just, over the years has really evolved into this like community staple of, like a big destination day spa in the GTA.

Jen:

What have been some pivotal lessons for you, like what has really kind of shaped your understanding of running a business.

Cristina :

After watching your mom, she really involved us from day one, and so I think that when you grow up in a business that is your family, you really feel a sense of responsibility and it becomes really like a part of your life. So you know, we've learned like the value of hard work it's not easy to start something from the ground and we really foster that sense of community in the places where we ran and operated our businesses.

Jen:

Let's shift the conversation slightly and really thinking about the evolution of the self-care journey. What has been the biggest shift that you've seen in client understanding of self-care?

Cristina :

Self-care. I think now is becoming more of a priority for many people. It really is like this shift in lifestyle that encompasses like holistic health and wellness and beauty and self-care, and like I think now it's very much an understanding, especially like I'm a young mom and like young women in their like late 30s, early 40s are really using. I guess they're like really prioritizing these treatments. It's really become um there, there's become a rise in this that where it's not a treat, it's more of like necessary. It's become um like prioritizing oneself in order to better serve those around you.

Jen:

I think about the shift in longevity. You know these kind of wellness terms, but I think we're also very aware today that it's a personalized journey, like it's not a one size fits all. And how do you see this personalization of care showing up in your business?

Cristina :

So I think that starts with just one knowing your customer and having a conversation with them about, like, what their goals are, whether it's skincare related or treatment related, and we've really tried to related and we've really tried to come up with personalized treatments that are self like focused on what the client really wants.

Jen:

What is the process that you take people through to help them really tune into? Is it acupuncture I need? Is it this type of you know like? How do people know, as long as, like they're feeling anxious, I'm just like anxious and unsettled how do they know what's going to work for them?

Cristina :

So I think that looks different for everybody. Many people are looking for these like short sort of bursts of self care and wellness throughout their day, as like a daily integration. If you can find the one thing that is like serves you and makes you feel the best, then then I think that we have done our job.

Jen:

You're a busy mom running a business as you think about self-care and just kind of stepping outside of spa services and just your daily practice like what, what is it that you need to do for you on the self-care journey?

Cristina :

so there's a couple things I don't compromise on. Uh, one of them is my skincare. So in the morning and especially at night time after my kids go to bed, I have a skincare ritual. It changes like based on how much time I have really, but I do not compromise on that. Two is getting outside. Even if it's for five minutes, and sometimes it's with them, I think I we all feel better if we've like gotten outside, even for just a few minutes, if they are riding their bikes or, you know, going to the park. That's my time to just like be outside.

Jen:

And I think the question I'd invite listeners into. It's like and I found this for myself, you know I might be, you know, doing one thing, but if I really asked myself deeply, like what do I need right now, listen to that answer and giving ourselves permission to act on that desire, because I might be thinking, oh, I have to get this done for so and so. But if I actually ask the question of what do I need right now and the answer is for so-and-so, but if I actually ask the question of what do I need right now and the answer is you need to pause. This is the practice that I'm now trying to be a little bit more mindful of within myself.

Cristina :

I agree and I think that when I feel like that, for me personally, like a face mask does a lot for me, like just to sit in the silence for a few minutes with a face mask on, is really big for me, and there is always going to be a to-do list like and that can really, it can really take over. You know there are, there is a hundred things to do all day, every day, and um, it's just like you said, you can't really pour from an empty cup.

Jen:

Cannot, and the quest to understand when the cup is depleting and be mindful of that cup is really something I'm going to kind of challenge us all to think about. Getting kind of back into the business here, has there been anything that you guys have been innovating on as it relates to clean beauty, sustainability, mindfulness?

Cristina :

Yes, so we use raw ingredients and botanical extracts from the Colombian Amazon to create a full skin skincare and wellness line. So that includes face, body and apothecary. So, for example, like for the face, we have phenomenal face products. But also for like, moving into that wellness space too, we have a lot of like essential oil roll-ons that are like for the temples and wrists before you go to sleep, with valerian root extract and it just like allows you to unwind and like it's just like something that you can do for and it just like allows you to unwind and like it's just like something that you can do for yourself for just like 30 seconds before you go to bed. It's used traditionally in like ancient medicine and we made like our whole line, like the whole skincare and like this, the wellness line is an extension of that. So we use a lot of like botanicals from the Amazonian rainforest that were like ancient medicine and we use those to create a skincare line for the face and body.

Jen:

That feels like such an ambitious uh thing to solve and you know, walk me through the backstory here this is.

Cristina :

My mom says I think we should do this, and then we do um, and like where there's a will, there is a way. Truly so she traveled literally to the mountains of bogota, which is like the capital of columbia, and met with these farmers, um, who harvest their own natural remedies that are wild there, right? So that's something that we really wanted to bring to our customer base here. It's a lot of research you have to, and it's a lot of trial and error too. So you know, we work with a chemist here in Toronto and he'll say okay, here are your three prototypes for so we talk about the consistency of the face oil, what we want it to look like, what we want it to feel like 15 minutes after it's applied, and all of that stuff. So it's a lot of trial and error. We give it to our friends and our family. They try it, they see what they like, what works for them.

Jen:

I feel very empowered by hearing these stories. It is a process and a journey, though right Like test, test and retest.

Cristina :

It doesn't happen overnight, it's not something, and like we have also made many mistakes too, you know it's. I think now, though, is like the time like there's so much information out there, and when you know listening, coming on podcasts like this and listening to things like you really do get some valuable insight about where you can start.

Jen:

Creativity builds off of execution, and we have to get the first version done before we can get the second version done. How has it been, you know, going through all this with your family.

Cristina :

Listen, I think we've been very fortunate. We definitely collaborate and we work really well together because all of the departments and all of the roles are so intertwined. At the end of the day, we are still a small team, so sometimes we do have like our hands in multiple things. But I think you know like I think also growing up in it, I don't know, it's kind of always been in our blood, I think. Has there been any lessons learned growing up in it? I don't know, it's kind of always been in our blood, I think.

Jen:

Has there been any lessons learned? I think about kind of the universal themes even if you're working inside of a company or with a close team of conflict resolution, especially when you deeply care about the opinion of the person that you're working alongside Any lessons learned there that we can impart?

Cristina :

Yes. So I think moving into any conversation, um like with kindness and respect, is very important. Especially when you're working with your family. You can have this familiarity that will cause you to, can cause you to get very emotional, Um, and so really approaching and sometimes I feel like even just taking a step back and taking a day to, you know, sit with it and see how you're going to approach it is really important.

Jen:

You and I were chatting before we started the recording and you made the choice to kind of move outside of city life and and I am now on side of this journey I've been thinking a lot about nature and what nature does for creativity, innovation, ideas. What has been your experience by having more time in nature?

Cristina :

I think it's made a big difference in terms of the way that you can like ease into things and like. It's just great for your overall well being. And it also helps with like mental clarity, especially if you are sitting at a computer screen all day or if you are, you know, connected all day long. I think five minutes just walking around outside in the peace and quiet can do wonders for your mental health.

Jen:

Small changes in the right direction and you know, for some of us going to be nature like you, it's like really noticing that that impacted you. For me it is. It's not that way for everyone. So back to kind of the importance of the personalization along the journey. Where do you think the trends are going Like, if you have to kind of forecast five years, and where we're all going to go in our self-care journey like what do you think is going to be important for people?

Cristina :

I think, especially after the pandemic, I feel like a lot of people really wanted to have these like small moments of wellness and self-care for them to take home with them, because not, like you said, not everybody has the time or the resources to visit a spa every week, and we totally understand that. But I think people are really interested in like these little self indulgences, small things that they can do, whether that means like buying a new lip gloss or, you know, doing a five minute meditation, and it's just like incorporating and it's so like your every day, and it doesn't have to be this extravagant thing, it really doesn't it. It can be something so small and that might even just mean like a sleep mask at nighttime, like you know, just small things that I think we're going to bed earlier, right, like turning off the TV, stopping the scroll going to bed.

Cristina :

And that's very challenging, you know, because I feel like people are more connected than ever these days, like on their digital like devices, and there's this expectation that you have to be like working or you know you have to always be connected, and it was a big thing that came up during the pandemic. Since, like working from home became such a big thing. Nothing is going to change drastically. If I don't respond to an email at eight o'clock at nighttime, they can wait until tomorrow morning. It would be very valuable for you know people to kind of like take this into consideration too valuable for you know people to kind of like take this into consideration too.

Jen:

I'm with you. I'm on a mission I have very clear ideas of after speaking to so many fantastic women coming on the show and yourself included. There's a very clear under thread that goes through every single one of these and sleep and the importance of us like managing into that evening space correctly. I think it's, it's going to be, it's critical for me. It's changed a lot for me, um, but I love what you said.

Jen:

It's like we have to give ourselves permission that like the world's not going to change if the email doesn't get answered at eight, 30. And so like what bad habits are we just in a guilt loop on here, thinking we have to meet certain expectations for everybody, including ourselves? I hope that if anybody takes anything away from just that our chat is just to settle into the piece that is inside of them and to give themselves a little bit of time, space whether it's treatment or something in the home otherwise, a bit of time and energy for self-care. Thank you so much for coming on and sharing kind of all of your insights and the evolution of this journey for everyone to listen to.

Cristina :

Thank you so much for having me. It was such a pleasure.

Jen:

Thank you for joining us. Don't forget to follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn, where we transform the wisdom from our podcast into practical tips, tools and takeaways for your leadership journey. Find us at gritgracepodcast. See you next week.