Pampering With a Purpose
Meet Anne Pipkin, the SouthPark small business owner encouraging you to trade sunburns for spray tans.
It might surprise you to learn that the owner of Gorgeous Glo, SouthPark’s premier blowout and spray tan boutique, has an investment banking background.
While not a licensed cosmetologist herself, native Charlottean Anne Pipkin has a personal connection to her sunless tanning advocacy and business.
After watching her father and sister get diagnosed with melanoma at young ages, Anne knew she wanted to get involved in a business that promoted a bronzed glow without the risks of UV exposure.
Gorgeous Glo started in Midtown as arguably the first standalone spray tan place in the world before eventually expanding to SouthPark. Anne says she spent the first year working hard to spread awareness about sunless tanning and trying to overcome some misconceptions. Anne’s next-level dedication to the cause meant meeting with dermatologists and even becoming part of Atrium Health’s Melanoma Advisory Group.
And Anne’s deep connection to her community doesn’t stop there. Committed to helping those battling life’s biggest challenges, Gorgeous Glo offers free blowouts to women undergoing a particular type of radiation—the kind where you can’t shower or get wet. This allows even the strongest warriors to still feel their best. Gorgeous Glo also donates a percentage of their sales to the Levine Cancer Institute and other skin cancer research programs each year.
The expansion to Charlotte’s upscale mixed-use district just seemed like the right move for this ever-expanding business to keep growing and thriving. And while both locations are great, the SouthPark location is the only one open seven days a week. This location is also as pretty inside—with a spacious layout, luxury flooring and modern décor—as the clients who exit with fresh blow-outs and honeyed hues.
Aside from a strong partnership with Atrium Health and the Levine Cancer Institute, Anne credits Gorgeous Glo’s success to an incredibly supportive network and her women’s entrepreneurial event that prioritizes diversity and allows her to continue learning, growing and meeting new people.
If you’re interested in combining your annual skin checks with a fresh spray tan, mark your calendars for March 28th and October 28th. This is when medical professionals pop into Gorgeous Glo to conduct annual skin checks.
And if you’ve avoided spray tans because you think you’ll end up looking orange or streaky, Gorgeous Glo debunks that myth with a natural, effective method for a golden glow: brown sugar. In addition to unmatched blow-outs and spray tans, Gorgeous Glo also offers updos, Japanese scalp massages, mobile spray tans and more.
SEE THE FULL LIST OF GORGEOUS GLO SERVICES
Subscribe to the SouthPark newsletter for monthly neighborhood updates, and follow @southparkclt on Instagram and Facebook for the latest happenings and news. Find more things to do in SouthPark using the daily events calendar, or explore the 350+ ways to dine, shop, and play in the neighborhood.