Eyelash Specialist licenses now available in Tennessee | News

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – One local entrepreneur has taken notice – and advantage – of a recently-enacted Tenn. law that enables individuals to become a licensed Eyelash Specialist without the prerequisite of gaining a cosmetology certificate.

The Memphis Skin Academy, opened this week in Bartlett, offering students a 12-week program that equips enrollees with education for the profession that includes safety and sanitation, eye disease, eye anatomy and more.

“It’s really in high demand right now, everybody’s getting lash extensions. Everyone wants to take a course and get a certificate but you really need a license to perform on somebody. I would have been in school for six months to a year, and this course, now I’ll graduate by the end of August so it cuts off the time. And, the money is so much cheaper than having to pay for aesthetician school and just really focusing on what I really wanted to do,” Adriana Caleti, Memphis Skin Academy student.

Upon completion of the program, Memphis Skin Academy students will be able to take their state board exams and receive their official license.

Tennessee State Rep. Antonio Parkinson was a key sponsor of the law signed by Ten. Gov. Bill Lee.

The incentive for potential students is that previously, to become an eyelash tech you need to complete 1,500 hours in cosmetology school.

“A lot of people are excited that they don’t have to sit through those long, tiresome programs. They can come through in as little as 10-12 weeks and get trained and go before the state board for licensing. So this is totally amazing . We’re doing away with certificates and we’re actually licensing them to lash,” Melanie Saulsbury, owner.

The newly carved out professional requires 300 hours of training and costs much less.

“We want our students to have every opportunity available to them,” said Melanie Saulsbury, owner of The Memphis Skin Academy. “We are diving deep within our curriculum to ensure they get the best training possible.”

Tennessee State Rep. Antonio Parkinson was a key sponsor of the law signed by Ten. Gov. Bill Lee.

You know in Memphis, almost everyone has lashes. Even the cars. And so it’s a billion dollar industry. “We just wanted to make sure that we positioned ourselves and our people to be able to benefit from that billion dollar industry,” Rep. Antonio Parkinson.

Economists say that the eyelash profession is a $1.62 billion industry and is projected to be a $2 billion one by 2027.