Erika Wilson, co-owner of Columbia Laser Skin Center, looks forward to greeting the community as the Center celebrates 10 years in business Nov. 13 at their office in The Dalles. Below, Wilson stands in the room used for Botox treatments. The event will feature demonstrations and an open house.
Erika Wilson, co-owner of Columbia Laser Skin Center, looks forward to greeting the community as the Center celebrates 10 years in business Nov. 13 at their office in The Dalles. Below, Wilson stands in the room used for Botox treatments. The event will feature demonstrations and an open house.
Columbia Laser Skin Center will celebrate its 10-year anniversary Nov. 13.
The center first opened in the Marketplace building near the Hood River Inn and soon had two offices, one in Hood River and a second in The Dalles. A year ago, both properties merged and the center now has a single facility in The Dalles.
“We outgrew the space in Hood River,” explained co-owner Erika Wilson. The center in The Dalles, located upstairs in the Cascade Eye Center building, is more then double the size of the Hood River office. “The space is bigger, it allows patients more privacy, is quieter, and allows us to expand our services.”
The business has certainly grown since it began 10 years ago. “Two of us started it, 10 years ago,” Wilson noted. “Now we have a staff of 9.” In addition to the skin laser, they offer spa services that include facials, massage and waxing.
They are also an account for Alleran, manufacturer of Botox, a popuar treatment that smooths wrinkles, frown lines, forehead line and crows feet. “It's a very safe, comfortable and effective treatment,” Wilson said, a service that makes up a significant portion of the center's business.
Treatments last three or four months, although with continued use the effects last longer. Wilson, who began treatments 11 years ago, not long after the procedure was introduced, said that the effects for her now last six months.
In addition to new services, the center has continued to upgrade its laser technology. “That's one of the fun and exciting things about being in this specialty,” she explained. She and her co-owner, Dr. John Willer, invested in a system that could be upgraded as the technology changed without another large capital expenditure. Today, the laser is safer, with less down time and quicker healing. “The equipment we use offers the best, safest results,” she said.
Doctors also better understand the changes that happen to our skin as we age, and are better able to correct those changes. “We have better options, better results,” Wilson said. For example, fillers used today to reduce wrinkles and lift sagging skin lasts at least two years, a big improvement over the old fillers.
Wilson keeps track of industry changes in the medical journals, and makes sure any new product is safe and effective. “We have to feel comfortable and confident in what we are recommending,” she explained. “It must be a benefit to our customers.”
The center will thank those customers, and the community at large, with a 10th Anniversary Gala Nov. 15, 6 p.m. at 301 Cherry Heights Road, upstairs at Cascade Eye Center.
The free event will feature Holiday makeup, sugar hand polish, live demonstrations, personalized skin analysis, specials on products and services, free gifts with purchase, prize drawings, local food and wine.
Already, the center is moving into the future. They will be purchasing a new laser in the near future, and have just finalized planning for a comprehensive acne treatment program.
“We do an excellent job treating acne,” Wilson noted. “We are seeing a big increase in acne.” Over the last 20 years many more adults have developed acne, she added, even those who did not have it in their youth. Their treatment includes working with diet as well as the skin. “I see us being the regional place for people to come to receive treatment for their acne.”
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