Wednesday's Woman: Barbara McClure

Barbara McClure has owned her own business since 1987. As a registered nurse, she is the founder and chief executive officer of Snellville-based A Defined Image Med Spa, along Scenic Highway.

Before opening her own business, she worked as an operating room director in a hospital. Much of her 28 years of experience in nursing was in aesthetics, including 15 years of work in plastic surgery. It was that experience that gave her a love for helping people look and feel better.

After years of working for other people, she began to wonder if there was a niche she could fill on her own.

When she first opened, she named her business Image Electrolysis, Inc. According to McClure, she was the first person in the southeast to offer microdermabrasion, which she learned about from a friend in Colorado.   

As her business evolved, she began to offer services like laser procedures, hair removal, spider vein and spot removal, as well as permanent cosmetics.  She stayed up to date with trends and new technologies.  

When she decided to offer botox and dermal fillers, she added a medical director, Dr. L. Jack Chang, to her staff.

Out of all the different services her business offers, McClure's passion is for weight loss and nutrition.

“I really just want to help people look and feel their best,” she said.

McClure acts as a coach for people who come to her to lose weight and get healthy. She teaches them portion size, how to eat correctly, how to choose wisely from restaurant menus and offers a holistic approach to the process.

One of many of McClure's success stories was a young woman who came to her for advice.

“She was embarrassed,” McClure said, “and had a lot of facial hair.”

She was treated at A Defined Image Med Spa and had excellent results. For others, their physical symptoms were a sign of a much larger problem.

“Some of my patients came to me in their teens with facial hair issues,” she said, “and no one had ever done a full medical history on them.”

In one situation, she referred her client to an endocrinologist, who discovered she had polycystic ovarian syndrome. If she and others like her had not gone for proper medical care, the condition could have caused many more problems, including diabetes and difficulty conceiving.

Earlier this month, McClure sponsored the Ladies Night of Indulgence, an evening that benefited survivors of breast cancer. She often sponsors events that are in the community and has a booth set up at many Snellville events.

McClure is also passionate about encouraging women to be the persons they are inside.

“We can do things to improve the outside,” she said, “but they need to know they are already beautiful inside.”