Meet Mai Nguyen: Dental Hygienist

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

Hi Mai, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I wanted to create a business that included every aspect of who I am. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and I am currently a dental hygiene student. I wanted to create a business that relates to self-esteem and the importance of having a beautiful smile. I started Skyelux Smiles laser teeth whitening to help boost up smiles, mood, and confidence. I named my teeth whitening business after my mixed chihuahua, Skye, because she is a part of my life that I wanted to incorporate into my business. I also created a space from painting the walls and changing the house floors to make it a calming, relaxing vibe every time a person walks through the door. I didn’t want to make my space similar to a dental office because I want everyone to enter a place that reflected me and my personal interest. Growing up, I didn’t have the best teeth. I was very insecure with my smile, which reflected my whole mood. I had to get braces and dealt with people staring at me all the time because my teeth weren’t all that great. After I got my braces removed, my confidence was slowly growing every day. I decided to become a dental hygienist to educate others on the importance of keeping a healthy smile. I love cleaning teeth and being able to recommend people for various treatments to boost their smiles. Along the way, I knew I was missing something else in my smile, and that was teeth whitening. I’ve always thought my smile was perfect until I noticed how yellow they were from all the coffee and tea I consume, so I tried teeth whitening. Teeth whitening has helped me feel so incredible about myself. My whole life experience has brought me here today and I love to tell my story repeatedly because I want others to feel how I feel every day. The best feeling about starting a business that can help others is the smiles that I receive in return after a nice relaxing teeth whitening treatment at Skyelux Smiles.

What should our readers know about your business?
I started laser teeth whitening business. I incorporate aspects of who I am into my business. My dog, Skye, inspired the name of my business. The environment I created is not like a typical dental office but more of a place for people to be themselves. It was not easy to start a business. I had to learn how to start a business and promote myself while going through my dental hygiene program and working almost every day. I started my business by becoming more organized and setting specific days only for Skyelux Smiles. I want others to be inspired to believe in themselves and create something they always wanted to do. I contemplated a lot about starting a business for myself but finding a passion that relates to who I am helped me overcome my fears.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I currently live in Gwinnett, GA. There are so many places up north to eat and drink. I would take them to eat Korean BBQ, hot pot, and drink some bubble tea in the area. My favorite spot as of now is either 9292 Korean BBQ or KBBQ factory. My favorite hot pot place is either J’s Mini hot pot or Pop pot. I also love bubble tea! It is one of my addictions. My favorite bubble tea spot is currently Onezo. All I do up north is eat, so I would introduce them to different places to eat and grab a drink. 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 want to recognize my soulmate, Gustavo Gomez. He has been my greatest support system, biggest comfort, and strongest motivation. I definitely wouldn’t be here without him. He built my business from the floor up and never doubted me along the way.

Website: skyeluxsmiles.wixsite.com/skyeluxsmiles

Instagram: SkyeluxSmiles

Image Credits
My teeth whitening specialists Linda Lieu and Gustavo Gomez.