At 23, Marie-Pier Halley has a dream: to have her own beauty clinic. This young nurse is therefore enrolling at the École Esthétique Médicale de Laval in July 2022.
I’ve wanted to be an entrepreneur and run my own company for a long time. […]Work in aesthetics.
She pays the highest price: $18,395.
On October 31, 2022, the school postponed her internship due to difficulty obtaining vacation at her own expense.
The next day, La Bill’s report highlighted serious deficiencies in the training provided. Finally, the school committed to rectifying the situation of dissatisfied customers.
Marie-Pier appeared after the broadcast, exhausted from the theoretical courses, which were often canceled at the last minute, and tired of waiting for practical training that she would never receive. At some point I wanted it to happen. That’s why I asked for a refund, she explains.
She estimates the value of the lessons she didn’t receive at $12,000. And in his eyes, the loss is even greater because the courses taken were of poor quality.
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The company premises.
Photo: WEB
A surprising name change
After trying several times to speak to a manager on the phone, she finally contacted the man described as the director, Jonathan Legault. He says he will refund it once he determines the cost of the lessons he didn’t receive. This call will not be followed up.
In addition to Marie-Pier, we spoke to several students at the École Esthétique Médicale who were shocked by the establishment’s actions.
An institution that has quite a surprise in store for Marie-Pier: the Medical Aesthetic School has given way to Dermysk. This new company, located in the same space as the old one in Laval, also has offices in Toronto, Regina and Edmonton.
A manager explains to Marie-Pier on the phone: We were bought by Dermysk. So we cater to former students, but it’s a new academy.
We confirm that a partial refund will be granted. She is promised that the director will call her back.
Broken promise
But the call doesn’t come. Marie-Pier Halley leaves Lévis to attend the School of Aesthetics in Laval. Mr. Legault, the director, introduces himself. He confirms that the Medical Aesthetic School is closed and has been bought by Dermysk.
He also tells him there will be no refunds, only courses offered…in Edmonton. Her self-confidence is shaken and she refuses.
Lawyer and law professor Louis-Charles Sirois specifies that if Dermysk really bought the Medical Aesthetics School, he has a responsibility towards his students. When one company buys the other […]The debts are taken over by the new company.
We cannot come to terms with the past so easily. This is legally wrong.
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Ali Cadili
Photo: WEB
Two companies, one man
The École Esthétique Médicale still exists on the Quebec business register. Dr. Ali Cadili, already registered as the first shareholder in the Quebec Companies Register, is the same behind Dermysk.
In 2022, the College of Physicians of Saskatchewan suspended him for activities related to his Clear Health Inn clinic in Regina. Hyperbaric chamber, light therapy, vitamin C. Treatments with no scientific value were sold to cancer patients.
Bryan Salte, legal counsel for the College of Physicians of Saskatchewan, explains that in Dr. Cadilis Clinic gave false hope to vulnerable people.
From our point of view, [c’est] very serious, he says.
Ali Cadili has not renewed his license to practice in Saskatchewan since then.
In a dispute between him and three former employees of the Medical Aesthetics School, a judge also found that he had entered a certain Husain as a candidate in the commercial register. Dermysk’s name appears as the largest shareholder. However, in this company we are told that he has no responsibility.
During a call to Dermysk, The Bill received confirmation that Ali Cadili was there. But he gave no sign of life either on the phone or by email. Jonathan Legault wrote that he himself was not involved in the management of the Medical Aesthetics School. He added that in Dermysk we occasionally consult him, especially in connection with his previous experiences with the school.
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Lawyer and University of Ottawa law professor Louis-Charles Sirois
Photo: Radio-Canada / Martin Brunette
Communicating vases
Professor Sirois believes that the numerous connections between the two companies prove that they are the same traders. He believes there are vessels of communication between the two companies. A glimmer of hope for all the students who informed La Facture about the lawsuits they filed. If it’s the same company, Mr. Sirois says, it will be easier for the judge to order both companies to pay restitution.
Marie-Pier filed a lawsuit against the École Esthétique Médicale in the small claims department. His claim: $15,000. According to Louis-Charles Sirois, Marie-Pier could also have sued Dermysk and its main shareholder under certain conditions. We will see if there are any shenanigans and if so, we could even ask the shareholder and his company to pay, said Mr Sirois.
At Dermysk, no interview, but an email explaining that former employees were working to undermine the School of Medical Aesthetics.
Dermysk says several changes have been made to its courses to improve the curriculum and provide better training. There is radio silence regarding Ali Cadili’s involvement in Dermysk.
Today on Dermysk Square we see a new poster on the company’s facade: Skynique. Currently, Skynique is not registered in the commercial register and we have not been able to verify its connections to Dermysk or the Medical Aesthetic School. However, the address of the place of business is always the same.
Recently, Marie-Pier received a formal notice from Dermysk offering to pay $6,500. In return, she had to sign a letter of apology, a copy of which Dermysk gave her for the unfair and inappropriate comments.
That letter said she wanted to retract her statement and requested that the show not air her comments. If La Bill broadcast it despite everything, Marie-Pier would have to publicly resign.
Marie-Pier resisted, even though she really needed the money. All his savings were swallowed up in this training. There is no longer any question of opening your own clinic. It’s a bitter disappointment for them.