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warmth of the people,” she explains.
GUTSCHE GRIT
Turning her practice into a busi-
ness wasn’t easy. Gutsche initially had
to borrow from family because the
banks “thought that an Oxford schol-
ar-turned-tattooist with no business
background was too risky to support.”
A bank manager actually told her to
return to the ‘ivory tower’ because
her pigment dispersant idea sounded
so crazy and would never make it in
the real (business) world. However,
Gutsche made a believer out of her
family and friends (and eventually
her banks). Family first realized the
potential of her work when they saw
what she did to restore a young burn
survivor’s facial features. The little
boy who had been severely disfig-
ured by the fire was so excited about
his transformation that he delightedly
squealed: “I think my friends are going
to want to play with me again.”
Her father, investment banker
Sig Gutsche (best known for his own-
ership of the Calgary Stampeders
football club), and her brother, well-
known social media innovator Jeremy
Gutsche of Trendhunter.com, gave her
sage financial advice; while her moth-
er, therapist Shelagh Gutsche, gave
her valuable advice for any business
owner: business is about relationships;
understand how to foster and maintain
strong relationships and you will build
a successful business.
ADVERSITY, ARTISTRY AND
INNOVATION
“
I’m a strong believer that adver-
sity can often be the catalyst for inno-
vation and success in life,” she says.
“
I believe that people should focus in
on everything they’ve been through
and make something better. We all
go through hard times. We all have a
story and are uniquely weird in some
way. Take all the kernels of your par-
ticular story and your unique knowl-
edge and bring them together to create
something you’re passionate about—
chances are, your enthusiasm and your
innovation will prove contagious.”
ART WITH HEART
With the royalties she receives
from the sales of the tattoo disper-
sant, Gutsche has started a foundation
through which young trauma survi-
vors can have work done at no cost.
Gutsche donates her time and the ma-
terials and costs come from the foun-
dation. “We have two different mar-
kets: the medical side of the business is
geared towards people who have suf-
fered trauma or illness and the cosmet-
ic is for those who want to look like
themselves only better. However, our
clients are linked by a quest to restore
confidence in their appearance without
the need for conventional make-up,”
she comments. “It’s an emotional type
of work we do. We’re not one of those
businesses you can easily sum up.”
For a business owner who previ-
ously had no formal business training,
Gutsche is taking each day as it comes,
learning something all the time—
whether it’s about running Cosmetic
Transformations, the art of managing
employees, or creating a new pig-
ment line or treatment. She has come
a long way since her own experiences
with cancer and micropigmentation
treatments. And the results are the
hundreds of people whose lives are
changed for the better because of the
dedication and commitment Cosmetic
Transformations has to its very special
clientele. Gutsche concludes, “I really
love what I do, and the people I do it
for.”
For more information on the company,
visit
“
It’s an emotional type of
work we do. We’re not one
of those businesses you can
easily sum up.”
COSMETIC TRANSFORMATIONS
