Most esthetics schools share the same goal: preparing students to pass their state board exams. However, once those exams are behind them, many new professionals find themselves facing an entirely new challenge—building confidence, finding employment and learning how to apply their training in a real-world environment.
This is where professional skin care brands have an extraordinary and often overlooked opportunity to make a lasting impact. Supporting schools isn’t just about providing products or a curriculum; it’s about creating pathways that help students transition into the workforce with clarity, confidence and loyalty to the brand that helped them get there.
From State Board to Real World
Passing the state board is a necessary milestone, but it doesn’t fully prepare students for success in today’s results-driven skin care industry. Instructors focus—appropriately—on safety, sanitation and foundational knowledge, but advanced topics like client base development and retention, retail success and treatment customization often receive limited coverage.
Students who graduate without understanding the business side of skin care are more likely to struggle, and that struggle impacts the entire industry. A student who leaves the field within a year represents a lost investment for the school, the spa and the professional skin care brand that might have earned their long-term partnership.
Brands as Career Partners
When a product brand steps in to provide meaningful education and mentorship beyond the classroom, the results are transformative. Here are three ways brands can play a pivotal role in supporting career success:
1. Career-Ready Education: Develop modules that go beyond product knowledge—topics like “Building a Loyal Client Base,” “Retail with Integrity” or “How to Create a Professional Treatment Experience.” These lessons don’t replace the state board curriculum; they enhance it by connecting technique to career outcomes.
2. Mentorship and Continuing Education: Offering students access to mentorship programs or early-stage advanced training builds lasting loyalty. When students feel seen and supported by a brand before they even graduate, they’re far more likely to stay connected and bring that brand with them into their professional environments.
3. Recognition and Connection: Celebrate student and instructor achievements on social media, at trade events and through brand platforms. Recognition inspires confidence, reinforces professionalism and helps future estheticians feel part of something larger than their individual journey.
The Ripple Effect
When brands invest in students, they’re not just supporting individuals—they’re strengthening the future of the industry. Schools benefit from stronger student outcomes. Employers benefit from better-prepared graduates, and brands gain a generation of professionals who already know, trust and champion their products.
The data is clear: early engagement drives lasting results. When I built Dermalogica’s national school program, we reached over 700 schools and exposed the brand to more than 20,000 students and their families each year. Those relationships didn’t just create classroom success—they fueled consistent retail growth, new account openings and deep professional loyalty that extended well beyond graduation.
Building the Bridge
The professional skin care industry thrives when schools, instructors and brands work together. It’s not about selling to students; it’s about preparing them for meaningful, long-term careers.
Brands that view themselves as career partners—not just product suppliers—will shape the next generation of estheticians and, ultimately, the next era of industry growth. Exciting and innovative new programs in 2026 will elevate esthetics education to a completely new level, enabling the development of more successful students and instructors.
