About us
Vis a Vis is a skin clinic in Little Italy, Toronto, run by Florbela & a small team of medical estheticians. People come for our facials, microneedling & IPL, & a lot of them have been coming back for decades.
Our story, in six chapters
Plenty has changed since 1984: the treatments, the technology, the logo. What hasn’t is how every visit starts. Here’s how we got here.
Chapter one
1984
Florbela’s mentor opens a small boutique spa in 1984 & names it Vis a Vis, face to face. Facials are the heart of it from day one.
ArchiveChapter two
late1990s
Florbela grew up in Europe watching her mother go for facial treatments. When she came to Canada, she knew what she wanted to do. She joins Vis a Vis as a young esthetician & Claudine becomes her mentor.
ArchiveChapter three
2006
In 2006 Claudine retires & puts the studio up for sale. Florbela doesn’t have the money, but she sees her opportunity. She takes out bank loans, buys Vis a Vis & keeps the name.
ArchiveChapter four
2008
The 2008 crash lands two years after she buys the studio. Staff leave, the loans don’t wait, & giving up would have been the easy way out. With a little one at home & clients counting on her, she keeps the doors open.
ArchiveChapter five
2018
Florbela’s son joins the team & takes on everything behind the scenes: the website, online booking, marketing & the books. Florbela stays where she’s always been, with clients. If you found us online, that’s his doing.
Chapter six
Today
Florbela runs the treatment room, & her son runs everything behind it. The families she’s looked after for years now bring in the next generation. A family business, built on families.
Then
Now
“The goal was never to be the biggest skin clinic, but a clinic clients can trust.”
Why people stay
Real Google reviews from clients who’ve trusted us with their facials & skin treatments, some since 1988, some for just a few years.
Since 1988
A client for 37 years
I am one of Vis a Vis’ earliest customers. My first facial with Claudine was in 1988. Yes, that’s correct! 37 years ago! And I’m still experiencing the same commitment to professional skin care, with all the new technologies and techniques available now.
Deresti-Robinson family
Read on Google
Since 2010
A family of clients
My mother, sister, and I have been loyal clients of Studio Vis a Vis since 2010. I vividly remember as a teenager feeling self-conscious about my unibrow and upper lip hair. The employees always made me feel beautiful and confident in my own skin, never making me feel ashamed about something so personal. It’s been a staple in our self-care routine for over a decade, and we wouldn’t go anywhere else!
Maxine P.
Read on Google
3 years
Facials with Florbela
I have been going to Florbela for facials for the last 3 years. My skin has never looked or felt better! Florbela does an incredible job of making every experience relaxing, from the foot massage to the weighted blankets in the winter.
Brittany R.
Read on Google
The lady
Eyes closed, completely at ease. Exactly how we want you to feel on the treatment bed.
A local artist drew the first lady for Claudine in 1984. Florbela kept her in 2006, & in 2019 she got a new face to match the renovated studio. Different lines over the years, same feeling.
The team
A small team of medical estheticians, led by Florbela.
Your first visit
Online in a minute, or call us on 416-537-3232.
A proper look, in person, before anything else.
What will help, what won’t, & what to do at home.
