Lata Jagtiani

Lata Jagtiani came to the United States from India to pursue the American dream. Lata has been threading since she was a teenager and saw a need for threading services in the New Orleans metropolitan area. After working in several businesses, Lata wanted to open her own threading business.

Lata’s dream was realized in 2012, when she opened the Threading Studio & Spa. Threading has always been the most popular service offered at the studio, which also offers a full slate of services performed by licensed estheticians. But Lata cannot find any licensed estheticians who can work as threaders because licensed estheticians do not know how to thread. When Lata has hired estheticians, she has had to hire estheticians with no threading experience, and then teach them how to thread. She has also had to employ unlicensed threaders to keep her business afloat.

For years, Lata feared that the Louisiana Board of Cosmetology would one day shut her down. The Board repeatedly inspected her business and sent cease and desist letters ordering her to stop employing unlicensed threaders. In June 2016, the Board fined the business thousands of dollars for employing unlicensed threaders, and it ordered Lata to fire her unlicensed employees. Sadly, Lata had to let some of her most experienced threaders go. Her business has suffered greatly as a result. Customers repeatedly ask for these threaders, and Lata continues to have trouble finding licensed estheticians capable of doing the job. Lata hopes this lawsuit will give the Threading Studio the ability to prosper and grow.