Beautycounter LEAD Conference Recap
and WE SAW MICHAEL BUBLÉ.
(I’m not even going to hide my creeper status. And don’t worry, my mouth didn’t actually touch the poster.)
Hi friends! How’s the morning going? I’m just getting back from a whirlwind trip to Phoenix for the Beautycounter LEAD conference… and to see Michael Bublé, my favorite ever.
I got into Phoenix on Thursday morning, and met up with Arsy and Tina at the adorable Airbnb where we’d be staying. It was my first Airbnb experience and I was beyond impressed with the whole thing.
Check out the cuteness!
It was in a neighborhood filled with unique older houses, and they completely gutted and redid the interior. The wood floors and tiling in the bathroom were gorgeous, along with exposed brick, modern art, and unique touches (like the book selection in each bedroom).
Arsy surprised us with little goodie bags on each of our beds, with Hu chocolates, travel Cote nail polishes, Bee’s wrap, the best hair ties, a Beautycounter pen, and a sweet card. She also stocked the fridge with some healthy essentials, cold brews, and waters.
I’ve been working with Arsy for almost 3 years and it was my first time meeting her in person. Of course, she was just as kind and lovely as I expected, and I had such a great time hanging out with her and Tina all weekend.
Thursday night, we had our team dinner at True Food, and then Friday morning, it was straight into the official festivities. We had quite a few sessions on Friday, and each one left me feeling more inspired, motivated, and grateful that I’ve had the opportunity to work for such a respected and innovative company. (Beautycounter is the #1 Googled beauty brand of 2018 and the top clean skincare brand in the world.) They generally care for the health of all living beings on this planet, and are constantly working to impart change in the beauty industry, which is severely unregulated. The last federal safety law for cosmetics was passed in 1938!! We’re actively working to get this changed and make clean products accessible to everyone. This means no matter what store you go to and what brand you purchase, you should be able to have have the confidence that they were manufactured without endocrine disrupters, known carcinogens, and harmful preservatives.
My very favorite quote from the weekend:
– The greatest gift you can give anyone who loves you is your own wellbeing
While there was a lot of motivational talk, they also addressed burnout and importance of paying attention to what truly matters: your family, your health, and your relationships. I love how much they emphasized balance and taking the time to share your life with those you love and make yourself a priority.
We also had the opportunity to hear Gregg Renfrew speak. She’s our CEO and the Founder of Beautycounter and she’s so.darn.real. The entire room of 1700 was captivated the entire time she was talking. She was so encouraging, humble, and generously shared her knowledge and inspiration with us all.
They also had some pretty solid snack breaks and lunch in between the presentations. 🙂
Friday afternoon, the Pilot picked us up from the conference and we headed to the house to get ready for the evening. The girls went to another team dinner at a downtown hotel, while the Pilot and I enjoyed a sushi date at Moira Sushi before Michael Buble.
(Shoes are here // dress is here — got it from Rent the Runway and was so pumped it actually fit. I feel like it’s so hard to tell what will work from the sizing but the S was just right)
We arrived at the arena, ordered wine in a can for me + beer for him, walked to our awesome seats (!) and I buckled up for the best concert experience of my life. I’m a HUGE Michael Bublé fan – I sporadically listen to his music all year and just switch to his Christmas album for November and December – so I was expecting a lot, but it was beyond anything I could have imagined. His perfect voice, the set design, the orchestra, his backup singers, everything. Just.SO.freaking.good.
(He started off with “Feelin’ Good” and I screamed like a teenager at a BTO concert.)
#1) He is HILARIOUS. He was cracking a ton of jokes in between songs, many of which were gloriously inappropriate, and the Pilot and I were laughing our faces off. I had to keep myself from breaking into the full-on dinosaur cry during Home and one of his newer songs, Forever Now. If you want to get a glimpse of what I was feeling, listen to the song, and then picture in your mind a child’s bedroom and how it changes from when they’re born (a nursery with sweet printed wallpaper, a crib, and a rocker) until they MOVE out (a large bed and a room strewn with moving boxes, to completely empty room). That’s what they flashed on the arched screen above the stage and I think they pretty much wanted to pull my heart out of my body. Of course, all of his lighthearted jokes and the fact that he doesn’t take himself too seriously kept me from crying too hard.
2) He is so grateful to all of his supporters. Multiple times he thanked us for spending our money and our time to be at his concert. He said that his supporters lifted their family while they went through something absolutely heartbreaking, and was so heartfelt and genuine in thanking the audience. You can just tell he’s a really good guy.
3) I tried to meet him but I failed. So here’s the thing, in college and my early 20s, I got backstage after concerts if I wanted to meet the band or singer. It’s not because I’m cool or had a VIP pass, but I’d just casually go to the side of the stage and ask security if I could just go back and get a photo with whomever. You’d think it would be a fail but it worked every time! I would just be chill about it and I think they saw a young non-threteaning kid and were like, “Go. Live your dream.” I didn’t know if I would work for Michael Bublé because, I don’t know, I’m like 15 years older now, BUT I figured this was my only chance and went for it. Unfortunately, they did all of the meet and greets before the show, not after. So when I went to ask if I could pleeeeeease go back and take a pic, security told me they did all of that stuff earlier. It’s NBD, but I did try. #shameless #dontcurr
The Pilot and I stayed at Westin, which was lovely, and then Saturday morning, we grabbed a quick breakfast at Coronado (a cute vegetarian cafe!) before he hit the road back to Tucson and I headed back to the conference.
I got there just in time to learn about the new products from our Product Development team, and get excited! There’s so much good stuff on the way, including a face cream that supposed to feel luxurious and gorgeous like La Mer, but with clean ingredients. So pumped about this! I’ll definitely share more info when it’s on the way, but our new line was modeled after Asian skincare rituals (yas yas yassss) and is going through clinical and client trials now. I’ll also have the chance to try it out before it’s released and will absolutely share my experience.
Beautycounter is also transitioning to more glass, less plastic, and are going to include refill options.
We attended sessions on social media and coaching, and then had a delicious lunch.
When I left the conference, I felt energized and excited to implement various action plans in my team and with my business. As you guys know, I’m very particular about brand alignments. For everyone I say, “Yes” to, there are at least 20-30 “No, thank you”. When I first joined Beautycounter, I knew I liked the products and I loved their mission to get safer products into the hands of everyone. I didn’t know that it was so much more than that, and that it would have such a huge positive impact on my life and business.
(Jumpsuit is here // shoes are here. Jumpsuit is also from Rent the Runway and I wish I could have kept it!)
Behind this mission, there are thousands of women working hard to change the beauty industry, sharing the products with those they love, and taking their success into their own hands.
I was so thankful to FINALLY meet Teri, who feels like my BFF after all of these years and I still hadn’t met in person! I also got to chat with Lexi, Juli, Cassy, and so many lovely women on our team.
Having this blog has been one of the biggest blessings in my life because it’s enabled me to connect with a motivating, incredible community of women (and dudes!). One of the best parts: I can do it anywhere! As a military wife, this was critical since we were moving every 2 years or so, which this makes it very hard to get and keep a traditional job. Beautycounter gives that same flexibility to those who want to work on their own schedule, wherever they want, and carve their own path. It has been one of the best things I’ve added to my business, and it’s fun, easy, and I get to meet with connect with new people. The money potential is bananas – if you want to talk about it, please email me – and it’s cool to be able to make an income while supporting a company that’s championing for change. If you’d like to make a transition to safer skincare products, or a tiny voice is telling you that consulting may be for you, please email me: gina@fitnessista.com
Well, I’m off to unpack my suitcase, only to RE-pack it for a short trip to Portland for a brand meeting. I hope you have a happy Monday!
xo
Gina
Tell me, friends: first concert experience? If you could see anyone live, who would it be?! My first concert was Boyz II Men in 5th grade. “Motown Philly back again….” Also, has anyone met Michael Buble?! Please tell me everything.
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I’m glad that you enjoyed the conference, and concert with the Pilot! I once met Michael Buble when he performed at the venue I work at, back in 2003. My coworker and I were walking outside past the stage door, and noticed Michael and a stage crew member playing hacky sack! He came over and said hello, and was very kind. I returned for the show that evening, and remember thinking that he would likely be playing arenas very soon – it was clear that he was quickly outgrowing 1,200 seat theaters like ours. We were lucky to experience the intimate concert!
ahhh i’m so jeal. that is amazing!!!!!!! he said for his first show in phoenix, he sold 800 tickets. there were over 15,000 people there on friday night!
I am a huge concert goer and I have been lucky enough to meet a lot of the band members or singers I like, but it’s usually before they make it big or aren’t as popular as say Justin Timberlake. Michael Buble is really popular too, so the meet and greets probably cost a pretty penny, but if you really like an artist, it might be worth paying for it once! He seems super great and genuine. I saw an interview with him recently talking about the experience with his son’s illness, and it was so sad. I’m so glad he’s made it through that okay because it is so devastating for a family I am sure. My first show was Limp Bizkit with Kid Rock and Staind when I was like 14 and they were at their peak of coolness then haha.
i can’t even imagine everything they went through. i’m so happy his son is doing well now <3
that concert sounds intense! please tell me you got in the mosh pit 😉
xoxo
You know it!
I loved all the talking Michael Buble did in concert! But I must say, Pink still may be one of my favorite live performers, because of the acrobatics while singing! So glad you had fun at LEAD — thanks for the recap!! 🙂
i saw pink in high school and she was INCREDIBLE. i couldn’t believe how amazing she sounded live, too!
excited for you to be at LEAD next year!! <3
What a fun weekend! My friend just told me about Cote nail polish, I’m intrigued by a travel size! My first concert was Tim McGraw in 6th grade, and my friend screamed and cried so much she lost her voice and my mom vowed to never take us to a concert again…spoiler, she never did Happy Tuesday!
My first concert was The Beach Boys when I was in 2nd grade!
Looks like such a great weekend!! I worked backstage during some events in college, and I met Josh Kelley and Jason Mraz, who were both super chill and down to earth. I’ve also met The Decemberists by doing exactly what you did – just walked over and casually got a pic with them haha. I was 16 at the time so I have a feeling it wouldn’t work as well as it used to. I have never purchased any Beautycounter products but this post is making me want to check it out!
same. i was 19 when i was in my concert backstage prime lol. please let me know if you need help picking products if you decide to give anything a try! i love the dew skin, overnight peel, and any of the lipsticks or glosses
My first concert was a Dave Matthews Band show – I wasn’t that into it because I wasn’t a superfan but these days it’s a whole other story! I LOVE going to concerts hosted by artists that I feel a real connection to. For me, those artists are Christina Aguilera and Carrie Underwood. I start feeling soo excited the days leading up to those concerts and literally can’t think about anything else besides the upcoming shows. Carrie sings some slightly religious songs which have led me to start tearing up while Christina’s music just moves me and makes me want to sing and dance and scream the whole time. I bought a meet and greet for the first time in my life for an upcoming Christina Aguilera concert and I will be so freaked out to meet her. I think I’m going to start sobbing haha. So anyways, this is why I loved reading your post about Michael Buble because I can totally relate to all the emotions you felt at his concert : ) Also glad to hear that you had fun at the Beautycounter conference. I love their mission and need to buy more of their products in the future!
ahhh i’m so excited for you!!!!
Mine was boyzIImen as well! They were so amazing live!!
I went to lollapalooza way back when as my first concert experience it was wild and I can’t believe my mom let me go! The whole Airbnb scares me. It looks like you got an awesome house though. It’s so tempting when traveling with a group or the family. I’m sure I’ll try it some time.
I am so obsessed with beauty counter! I am slowly trying to transition all my products!
so so happy you’re loving it! if you decide you might want to consult (you get 25% off products), please let me know!
I think my first concert was actually Janet Jackson. She was SOOOOO good. Still one of the best I’ve seen.
Those bee wax wraps have always intrigued me! Have you tried them?
not yet but i’m excited to try them!
My first concert experience was Sting with Melissa Ethridge opening when I was…16 years old? Something like that. It was so much fun. A concert I would LOVE to see is one of my favorite rock bands, The National. I also really would love to see Diana Krall. I just love her voice…
First concert experience was The Rolling Stones in 6th grade with my parents! It was pretty awesome! Glad you had a fun weekend!
My first concert was the Red Hot Chili Peopers! I won tickets by writing a paper about how to end hate in schools. It was a pretty cool experience!
that is incredible <3
My first concert was nSync!! Love that black dress btw! I like that BC is transitioning into glass containers!
me too! so pumped about it
My first concert was The Cranberries! Just curious, who did you get pictures with??
that must have been an amazing one!
blink 182, ryan cabrera, pink, the hippos, save ferris, no doubt 🙂 mostly during and just after high school!
The Hotwire customer service number is in the post…?! Just thought you’d want to know!
Lol such a fail! I had to change a reservation
Trying to delete it but I can’t find it
In the outfit details!
found it! i was looking at the wrong post. thank you!!
1. I saw Michael Buble like 10 years ago and he was hilarious then, I recall! 2. I just got my first Beautycounter order and I am super impressed! Thanks for your great recos, I’m really glad I made the purchase! (Only note is the mascara doesn’t do much for my tiny eyelashes )