Boardman business owner opens licensed salon after 20-year long finance career
After spending 20 years climbing the ladder in banking, an esthetician and business owner in Boardman took a chance on being her own boss.
Kim Foerster is the owner of Royal Glow Beauty and Esthetics, a five-room salon offering spa and beauty services like facial treatments, waxing, massages and spray tans.
Foerster and nail technician Jordan Decker are hosting a ribbon cutting for the remodeled Royal Glow Beauty and Esthetics at 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 5 at 7087 West Blvd. Suite 7 in Boardman.
“Going back to school was the best decision”
Foerster said wanting to spend more time with family and have more control of her own schedule led to the decision to change up her career after 20 years.
She worked as a part time teller while taking classes at Youngstown State University, but moved to Columbus and started moving up the corporate ladder in finance.
“I was successful in my career there,” she said. “I worked my way up into branch management, then switched from straight branch banking into home lending. While we were working from home through COVID-19, I realized that it wasn’t for me anymore. It was time for a move.“
Foerster said while she had career success, it left her with less time to spend with her kids.
“Branches were open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. so there really wasn’t a whole lot of time,” she said.
When she was laid off from her corporate finance job after 2020, Foerster said she was “devastated” but ready to return to school for something new.
“I was 39 years old, had been in corporate America from the time I was in high school around 2003,” Foerster said. “It was scary leaving banking. It was a huge leap of faith.”
Foerster started by getting her spray tanning certification from Norvell, then attended Casal Aveda Institute in Niles, becoming a licensed advanced esthetician at 40 years old.
Since starting her new career, Foerster said the work-life balance for her family has greatly improved.
“Going back to school was the best decision,” she said. “I can be at my son’s wrestling tournament, I can be at my daughter’s baton practice, or her football games. I don’t have asked anybody if I can go. It’s a big deal, because my daughter started high school last year and I want to be involved for the last four years of her school life.”
Foerster quietly opened the salon just a few weeks ago and is already serving clients daily, according to her husband, Robert Foerster.
“Kim isn’t just opening a salon — she’s redefining what the second chapter of a career can look like,” Robert said. “After years of working for others, she’s now creating a space where other women in beauty and wellness can grow their own businesses too. She recently brought in a nail tech and is working on building out a small beauty collective within the space.”
For more information, call (330) 333-1246 or visit the Royal Glow Beauty and Esthetics website.
This story was originally published August 1, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
