Her new skin care salon, which opened in July, is actually in a home on Mathilda Avenue, across the street from Sunnyvale City Hall and near the intersection of El Camino Real and Mathilda Avenue. She says she has always wanted to have her business in a place where she could ensure customers feel at home and comfortable.

"I want my customers to feel like they are coming into a home—not an impersonal business," Brandon says.

With her landlord's cooperation, Brandon has turned the two-bedroom, one-bathroom house into a cozy, homey salon that compares favorably with other upscale salons in the area. Brandon greets her customers at the door and shows them into a lounge area furnished with comfortable, cushioned wicker chairs and up-to-date magazines. It's a world completely removed from the hustle and bustle of the busy street just outside.

Getting to where she is today hasn't been easy.

She had been doing facials as a hobby for 10 years when she decided to pursue the training and certification process that would allow her to go into business. With the goal of making her passion a profession, Brandon took a yearlong beauty course at Skyline College that required her to work on 120 customers, which she says greatly boosted her confidence level. While she was in the class, she continued to work full time at her job in sales and marketing.

"I had 12- to 16-hour days. I was busy all the time but enjoyed every minute of it," Brandon says.

She was finally able to start her business with financial assistance from Lenders for Community Development (LCD), a nonprofit community development financial institution that gives loans to women- and minority-owned businesses. Where other financial institutions had denied her requests for a business loan, LCD not only gave her the funds she needed but helped her through the six-week process of setting up the business.

"Our technical assistance helps our client with several necessary steps, such as competitive analyses and financial projections," says Robin Miller, the small-business marketing coordinator for the development program.

Since 1995, the organization has lent more than $2.5 million to small businesses in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. With contributions from 23 banks, LCD is able to offer a number of different loans at competitive interest rates to entrepreneurs who otherwise might not be eligible for financing from banks. The program provides up to $50,000 for a maximum five-year payback period.

LCD also challenged her to examine her goals for the salon. "I put together a very extensive business plan, which I worked on for three months," Brandon says.

But the loan committee did not take the plan at face value.

"They went through it with a fine-toothed comb," she says.

With LCD officers pointing out areas where she could expand her plan further and refine it in others, Brandon says, she learned how to confidently run a successful business.

With a consultant's help, Brandon was also able to develop some unique services that would set her salon apart from those of her competitors. One of these services is a facial party, which is already a big hit. Clients often book a facial party for a birthday, anniversary, bridal or baby shower, or some other celebration. Both couples and private groups of friends or colleagues can enjoy the service.

With only one other specialist on staff, Brandon is able to offer her customers unique skin treatments at a good value. However, she is also looking to hire a manicurist/pedicurist, which will allow her to expand her services.

Although the current economic conditions bother her to a certain degree, Brandon says she is hopeful that her business will perservere. It's during trying times that people try to forget their troubles by pampering themselves, she says.

Brandon is preparing for an open house celebration of her salon on Sept. 27, at which there will also be a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony by Sunnyvale Mayor Fred Fowler.

Best Face Forward is located at 560 S. Mathilda Ave. in Sunnyvale. For more information about services and appointments, call Shelley Brandon at 408.774.0200. For more information on getting a loan from Lenders for Community Development, call 408.297.0204 or visit the organization's website at www.l4cd.com.