We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Daria Jagersky a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Daria, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Over the course of your career, have you seen or experienced your field completely flip-flop or change course on something?

About 15 years ago the massage industry completely changed with the introduction of large corporate chains. The goal was to make massage more affordable and accessible to the general public and to make getting a massage less of a luxury and more part of “everyday” people’s lives. It changed how massage was viewed and did make it more acceptable however it did greatly diminish the quality of the kind of massage therapy that had been previously offered. The large chains focus on how many people they can get through their doors and they rely on selling memberships to keep a steady revenue stream, the focus became less on the quality of the work and more on sales. I saw this as a great opportunity as a small business owner, I knew I could provide a better experience if I opened my own clinic and that’s exactly what I did. We are able to offer a more personalized experience then the corporate chains can and we are able to maintain a higher quality of therapeutic work as a local business. And we have a much lower staff turnover rate then the corporate chains as we are able to pay much more competitive wages then a business confined by corporate restraints. I appreciate the large chains advertising the benefits of massage therapy, they are able to reach a much larger audience then I ever could. And for many who have not received massage therapy it is a great introduction to it and gives them a chance to explore other options in their community. In the same way that Starbucks made coffee culture mainstream I believe that the massage chains are doing the same for the massage industry. And because people want to support local now more than ever this is the best time to be a local massage clinic!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I got into massage therapy because I loved helping people improve the quality of their lives and feel better, and I didn’t have the stomach for the medical field so massage therapy was a great alternative! What sets us apart is that we are 100% focused on the quality of the work that we provide, not the quantity of customers we get. Our massage sessions are client centered, meaning we customize each massage session to what the client needs, creating a personalized, results based, highly effective treatment for our customers. What I am most proud of is how different we are, everyone that comes through our doors always says that our clinic feels very “homey” and welcoming, not like a doctors office. And our clients know that we would NEVER sell them anything that we don’t believe in or use ourselves, which is why we don’t have a bunch of retail products we’re always trying to sell. The few products we do sell are from other small, local companies whose products we use ourselves!

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

The most important business book I have ever read that helped me more than any other that I’ve read and one that I recommend to ANYONE who is starting a business is “Profit First” by Mike Michalowicz. Hands down the most practical, useful advice that can be applied immediately to any business large or small, and it WORKS. It is a must read and I can’t stress enough just how important I think it is. I wish I had read it before I opened my business, it would have saved me a lot of trouble!

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

The most effective has been networking with other local professionals. When they know you and the kind of work you can offer to their customers that relationship you build and the referrals they send are invaluable!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thebusybodymassage.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebusybodytucson
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/TheBusyBodyTucson/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/tucsonbusybody