Greenvale has a new salon, though for many customers it’s less new and more of a commute-saver.
KarinaNYC’s new Greenvale location is the company’s second after its first on the Upper East Side opened five years ago.
The store will have an official grand opening in October, though it’s been operating for existing clients, who formerly would trek from Long Island to Manhattan, and owner Karina Freedman’s devoted Instagram fans since Labor Day.
The salon offers lash treatments and facials and uses methods and materials from Freedman’s European roots; she immigrated to Long Island from Russia at age 21.
She said she sees the difference between European-style and American treatments in both the ingredients and the process.
Her business’ approach requires commitment, treating time as a necessity for the skin rather than a luxury. Routine visits lead to gradual, healthy and lasting results, she said, and contrast from the instant gratification many Americans crave.
“They do injections or some insane laser peel and they expect immediate results, and in the long run some of those results can be extremely dangerous and damaging,” Freedman said.
Freedman’s salon was among the first in Manhattan to offer eyelash extensions, she said. The lashes she offers, appointments for which range from $85 to $280, do not use clusters and permanent glue like cheaper competitors, she said. Top lash artists from around the world apply to work with her, she said, and she trains them to match her style.
“We can make any length, any curve, any thickness without it looking fake,” Freedman said.
She decided to enter the beauty business because of a recommendation from her own facialist.
In Europe, women start going to them around age 21, Freeman said. When she immigrated to Huntington, the first thing she asked around about was who to go to.
She was so passionate about skincare that the facialist she found took note and suggested she go to beauty school. So she did.
Freedman spent eight years at NuBest salon in Manhasset where she gained a loyal following – so loyal that clients trekked over to Manhattan when she opened her first KarinaNYC location.
Anna Naso, Freedman’s former co-worker at NuBest, said it’s the quality of her treatments that make her services stand out. Plus, “everyone likes Karina,” Naso said.
“She just makes it easy for you to feel comfortable,” she said. “People fall asleep during their services, and, if not, she gets to know you and makes you feel like a friend.”
Beyond finding passion in the beauty industry, she has developed pride and gratification in crafting her own business. Her estheticians and lash artists are young women, and Freedman says mentoring them is “the biggest privilege and my personal calling.”
“Being a woman and immigrant and starting a business from scratch…it’s encouragement and inspiration, I think, for every little girl,” she said.
