Eveline Charles, founder and CEO of EvelineCharles Salons | Spas | Beauty MD |Academy, is one of the most recognized names in the Canadian salon and spa industry. Driven by the words of her favourite poem, The Winner, “Think big and your deeds will grow”, Eveline Charles has grown her privately held business from a one-woman operation to a multimillion-dollar corporation bearing her name.

Eveline Charles began her career in the beauty industry in 1974 when she chose to study hair design. Ten years later, her passion and determination led her to open her first salon, Bianco Nero, in Edmonton, Alberta. Her extensive knowledge of the industry and affinity for business allowed Eveline to expand Bianco Nero and create the EvelineCharles Salon | Spa in 1999. She had turned one salon into an empire of six and became an Albertan household name.

Soon Eveline’s innovative ambition inspired her to step outside the confines of salons and spas. Determined to become the market leader, she expanded her business in 2005 to include the EvelineCharles Academy: a state-of-the-art facility where budding beauty industry professionals could harness and perfect their trade. Now with two fully established facilities in Edmonton and Calgary, EvelineCharles Academy is the largest and most renowned hair and esthetic school in Canada.

Throughout her 40 years in the beauty industry, Eveline Charles has been honoured for her leadership, innovation and remarkable business accomplishments. Her countless entrepreneurial awards include Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women of 2011 and Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year, Eveline Charles’ salons and spas have won Consumers Choice awards for seven years in a row.

Founder and CEO, EvelineCharles Salons|Spas|Beauty MD, EvelineCharles

As President of EvelineCharles Salons | Spas | Beauty MD, Lina is responsible for conceptualizing the company vision and implementing corporate strategies to meet revenue, productivity, and profitability goals for the company’s six Salons | Spas | Beauty MD, two beauty academies, a company product line, and the newly formed EC Labs. Lina is an independent leader who thrives on creative problem solving and innovation within the company. If there was one word to describe her business personality, it would be persistent. No matter what hurdles have come forth while building the EC enterprise, Lina has always had the ability to maintain the vision that has elevated EvelineCharles to the next level.

In 1995, Lina joined EvelineCharles Salons | Spas | Beauty MD working at the location level, where she was recognized as Spa Manager of the Year by Spa Management Magazine. Over the years, Lina led many departments including product development, marketing, and operations. Her comprehensive understanding of each department makes her an integral member of the executive team. As President, Lina now works in the strategic level, guiding the encapsulated and vertically integrated business and overseeing the company of 215 employees.

EvelineCharles innovative nature is driven by Lina’s tenacious need to exceed the beauty industry’s boundaries, which is why the company has branched into custom formula design and manufacturing through EC Labs for the health and beauty industry. Throughout the implementation of the EC Labs business model, Lina continues to work with an international team of formulators and chemists as well as with the Alberta Government, in order to diversify the Canadian export industry.
Lina assisted in the implementation of EC Academy, further vertically integrating the company. In addition to the various full-time and part-time courses that EC Academy offers, Lina envisioned bringing the beauty education online. This idea was accomplished through the EC Virtual Classroom, an online makeup course that is offered nationwide. As Lina grew up in the small town of Falher, Alberta, she saw the need for a platform that provided opportunities and education to these remote areas.

As an advocate for the beauty industry, Lina is a keynote speaker at colleges and universities throughout Western Canada. Lina refers to her Marketing Diploma from NAIT as the launching point of a career she is passionate about. To raise the bar in the beauty industry, Lina delivers national and international workshops on topics such as product development, marketing, salon and spa operations, succession planning, and successful business management models. Her success has been recognized by the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and the World Presidents Organization (WPO).

President, EvelineCharles Salons|Spas|Beauty MD , EvelineCharles