By Kathy Chouteau
While the pandemic has caused many to pause, Cherry Tyler (“Miss Cherry”)—a Richmond business woman who has worked in the eye beauty space for 20 years—has instead been spurred by it to expand her services to include community wellness.
The fruits of Miss Cherry’s expansion efforts have culminated in her launching Vilansse by Cherry’s Eye, a 2,500 square ft. beauty and wellness center at 3718 Macdonald Ave. in Richmond that is “All about bringing community together and being in service in the place where we need it the most,” she said, noting that Richmond is a “historically underserved community.”
Miss Cherry called Vilansse a “safe space for community” that offers an array of services that spans the gamut from massage, body sculpting, facials and energy work to microblading, permanent makeup, lash extension and body waxing. On the wellness end of the spectrum, her business provides diet and nutrition counseling, holistic therapy and mental health services. Vilansse also offers a training facility where people can learn about permanent makeup and wellness and become certified in those areas.
With such a large space—that includes an outdoor area that’s a blank canvas for decorating—Vilansse has plenty of room for events like bridal showers and corporate parties and offers an in-house team to help coordinate everything customers need.
The newly opened Vilansse isn’t Miss Cherry’s first foray onto Macdonald Avenue. She’s provided eye beauty services via a business called Cherry’s Eye at 22nd and Macdonald Ave. since 2009, and before that worked for several years in the same line of business elsewhere on the street. When she decided to expand upon her existing services offered at Cherry’s Eye, she decided to open a second location up the street.
When it came to naming her newest location, Miss Cherry—who speaks multiple languages—turned to Haitian Creole for inspiration, combining vilaj (village) with esse (essence) to create Vilansse or “essence of village.” The Richmond business owner said that her passion and driving force is “bringing the essence of village to create that safe space, whether it be the services that we offer, the treatments, events or…mental health services.” She added, “The essence of village is all about bringing the community together.”
Miss Cherry said that “life as a day maker” is one of the best parts about her work—being able to help customers, from the moment they walk through the door, improve their day for the better. “It’s really important to me,” she said.
As her new location starts welcoming customers, Miss Cherry is actively looking to hire beauty and wellness practitioners to join her team. For more info about available jobs, contact her at 925-542-6161 or [email protected].
Vilansse by Cherry’s Eye is closed Sunday and Monday; open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday; and open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. For more info, click here or look for Cherry’s Eye on social media.
