Meet Tee Nguyen | Artist/Instructor: Serendripity Studios and Academy

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tee Nguyen and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tee, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
My view on risk taking decisions that affect our life/career is that is it essential to our growth in terms of understand out capability, and our limits. Most of the tougher decision require a little risk taking, which sometimes turn out to be a mistake but other times the turnout is life changing.

When I started my business Serendripity Studios and Academy, that was a risk taking decision all in itself. I decided to change my career course completely, deep diving into learning the ins and outs of providing a service and opening up my own business, rather than working for someone else. The path I chose was a rough and bumpy at first, a lot of times it was very hard and I felt alone. However as time passed, I grew into a version of myself that embraced the risk because although the stakes are high, your advantage from making those tough decision can make a difference. Instead of having good life, you have an incredible life!

Now that I took that risk in my career, I get to make an impact on my students and clients. I get to share my knowledge and spread that wisdom that I have learned along the way, inspiring other women to do the same which is take the risk that I took to grow into a version of myself that I can be proud of.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My work at Serendripity Studios stands for instilling confidence and power back in to women that may have lost it along the way through Permanent Make-Up (PMU) and Beauty Services. PMU services is a work of art that changes peoples lives through reconstructive tattoos and cosmetic tattoos. The services we provide are Lip Blush Tattoo, Ombre Powder Brows Tattoo, Hyaluron Pen, Microneedling and Plasma Fibroblast. I’m proud to say that these services were carefully put together to create beauty that is timeless and long lasting for clients to feel confident in their own skin.

Some women that I have served suffer from sudden hair loss, poor vision which makes it hard to see while putting on makeup or just don’t know how to apply makeup that compliment their look. Some of them were insecure, or have suffered abuse from the men leaving them with low-self esteem. These women come to me to share their most vulnerable stories and seek a service that can change the way they see themselves. For that I am grateful that I can build relationships and hold space for these women while providing a service that is essentially life changing.

My students that come to the academy are looking start their own journey in beauty entrepreneurship. As a PMU Artist, the biggest fulfillment is to pass on that knowledge that I have learned along the way, and to teach them how to create their own work of art. Some of my students are college students or young mothers looking for a new path in career. It is a challenging risk to invest energy and time into a career choice that has yet to come to fruition. PMU is not an easy path, let alone learning how to become an instructor in the industry, but it is a risk worth taking because the advantage is life changing and the lessons you will learn about yourself can set you apart from others.

After my first Permanent Make-up training back in 2018, I was so inspired to perfect my craft and create my own business where I get to teach other students internationally right away. I was ready to work twice as hard towards a career that finally felt right for me, However, after that first training, I felt lost. The PMU culture during that time was tough because artist and trainers in the industry were not as willing to share their knowledge, while the training courses were not set up for students to succeed in the industry. I felt used after investing so much money into these courses but not learning a whole lot. But I did not give up. I practiced relentlessly, showed up everyday, taught myself the craft and the business aspect to succeed. After 4 years of practicing and working 2-3 jobs to fund my growing business, I can now proudly say that as long as you don’t give up and continuously show up, you will reap your rewards.

Now that I have paved the way for myself and my students, I have vowed to myself to provide the most quality, value and knowledge for my students in our training courses. Everyone deserves a chance at success and feeling powerful. If I can instill that in my students, one training at a time then my work is fulfilled. This line of work has taught me the art of patience, resilience and community. It really forces you to learn how to be resourceful and strategic which the time and energy that I have investing into the PMU industry is a risk worth taking. My mission is to provide high quality services for clients and set up my students for success through our extensive training courses.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Some amazing places to start with would Downtown LA area, visit the museums like LACMA, The Getty Museum and then later at night head towards Little Tokyo for some dinner or visit K-town for some korean food. Next we would hang out by the Pike in Long Beach and grab some mexican food out there then visit Signal Hill at night to look at the city lights. Another great place with be to visit Laguna Beach Arts District or hangout by the Montage Resort. specifically Treasure Island Park for a day lounging by the beach, then if were hungry there is Shake Shack or some good ol’ In n Out Burgers. After that we’ll visit even further down south in San Diego where we can find sunset cliffs, amazing hiking trails, delicious mexican food, asian food and gelato. Not to mention La Jolla Shores where you can find a whole bunch of sea lions just hanging out on the rocks by the water.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to dedicate this shoutout to my mom and bestfriends, my colleagues and my mentors. My mom has stood by me in every part of my journey, without the support I would not be able to show up as powerful as I do today. She is a beauty business owner herself. She is my number #1 supporter, urging me to learn my craft, perfect my skills and never to give up. I owe this to your Mom!

My bestfriends Phi and Fabian who relentlessly push me to keep going when things got tough or when self-doubt kicked in. They see the value in my work and skill that I sometimes forget, and for that they deserve recognition because they’re a huge part of where I am at today.

My colleagues and mentors Tamia, Diamond, Briana, and Danicca. These women have helped me tremendously through out my career in Permanent Makeup and Entrepreneurship. I can’t express my gratitude enough to these incredibly talented and hard working women.

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