Spa La Posada/Merle Norman Cosmetics Studio is the only locally-owned beauty spa and salon chain in the Rio Grande Valley with locations in McAllen, Harlingen and Brownsville. The spa, which has been named “Top 5 Small Business” by the McAllen Chamber of Commerce, employees 21 people and annually serves more than 35,000 customers across its three Valley locations. Offering a full-range of beauty and spa services, Spa La Posada also offers a unique boutique carrying exclusive fashions and a full range of health and beauty products, including Merle Norman cosmetics. The company, Aldani Inc., was founded in 1989 and is owned and operated by Rio Grande Valley native Edna Gonzales Posada.
The owner’s passion for makeup took her from being a makeup artist at a department store to then owning a Merle Norman Cosmetic Studio. At first, her Merle Norman Studio was located at The Interplex on Nolana Street in Mcallen, Texas. It is now located at a much larger, convenient location at Uptown Plaza on 10th Street in McAllen. In 1993, she opened the Harlingen location inside Valle Vista Mall. While content with her two locations, it was her clients that weren’t. They often asked her when she would open a Lower Valley location. After contemplating it, she was in. Refusing to serve her clients was not an option, so she opened her third location in Brownsville at Sunrise Mall. She then purchased a building in Harlingen to move from the Harlingen mall location and add a spa as well.