Airdrie resident Avalon Lukacs has made it into the final 25 contestants of the RevolutionHER Momentum Award for Small Business, thanks to the recent success she has had with her wellness company, Aura Inner Beauty.
The ninth instalment of the RevolutionHER Awards will take place virtually from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1. The event will see awards celebrating and recognizing the work of female and youth leaders from across North America doled out. Finalists are in the running for one of five possible awards, with a combined value of over $45,000 in cash and services, according to a press release.
While working her day job in Alberta’s oil and gas industry around 2019, Lukacs harnessed her entrepreneurial spirit and founded Aura Inner Beauty – a line of holistic wellness products that “nourish your beauty from within while connecting your body, mind and soul as your own healthy vibrant AURA,” according to the company’s website.
After struggling with cystic acne in her mid-20s, Lukacs mixed and matched different treatments – including various supplements and topical treatments – hoping for results. Throughout the four-year process, she said she didn’t find anything that worked for her.
“Nothing had changed but all of a sudden, my skin was changing – I just had no idea what was happening,” she said. “It was a very challenging and frustrating experience for me.”
It was during that time she began researching probiotics, adaptogens and collagen, along with the relationship between gut health and skin health. In the moment, she didn’t feel it was applicable to her life, noting she seemed to do everything “right” in terms of diet and exercise.
“I thought I was extremely healthy,” Lukacs said.
Implementing these new practices into her life had Lukacs “amazed” at the state of her skin. Before long, she was raving about the positive impacts to her friends and family.
“I’m one of those people, when something like that happens to me, I just want to share it with everybody,” she said.
Slowly but surely, Aura Inner Beauty was born. The business now sells an assortment of health and wellness products, including Coconut Marine Collagen, omega oil dew drops, resilience and radiance powders and more.
Lukacs said she balanced the demands of her office job and her new business for two years before taking the leap into running Aura full-time – deciding to officially leave her corporate desk after eight years.
“It was really scary, which is why I decided to continue to do both until I had a high amount of confidence that I could take the next step into full-time entrepreneurship,” she said.
A boost arrived when Aura Inner Beauty was selected to appear in the spring 2021 instalment of the Jilly Box – a quarterly subscription box compiled by Canadian television personality and interior designer Jillian Harris. Jilly Box subscribers receive a myriad of lifestyle, beauty and fashion products touted by Harris herself. The box has been wildly popular, and subscriptions are currently sold out.
With this increased exposure, Lukacs said she knew she would have to commit even more time and effort to her new business venture – which seemed overwhelming given the demands of her current job and day-to-day life. Ultimately, landing in the subscription box forced Lukacs to jump into Aura with both feet, which she said has been rewarding thus far.
In addition to the nomination and becoming a finalist for the Momentum Award, Lukacs said a partnership with Chapters Indigo is in the works, as well as plans to expand distribution of her products to more than 20 retailers in Canada and the U.S.
To follow along with Lukacs and her business ventures, visit aurainnerbeauty.com
To learn more about the RevolutionHER Awards, visit revolutionher.com/award
