We were lucky to catch up with Krissy Wilbraham recently and have shared our conversation below.

Krissy, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you share a customer success story with us?

We have had so many wonderful success stories with our customers but this one stands out the most.

This was a few years ago but we had this client call us saying that he was an over the road truck driver. He was here on a contract away from his home for a few months and was experiencing a lot of pain and asked if we could help. We always love a good challenge and helping people is what we do so of course we said yes!

When he came in for his first massage session, he said he was in an accident where he hit a cow with his truck, he was visibly crooked, his shoulders were uneven and his hips were a mess which totally made sense after hitting a cow! After his first visit I asked that he come in weekly to continue working on his pain so that way we could start making some improvements. Often a client will come in, expecting us to work miracles and then take weeks to come back but by that time the progress we made during the previous session is gone.

I had him seeing myself and one of my therapists to help give him different therapeutic approaches and after about a month or so we started seeing a huge difference! We continued working on him for a few more weeks and then came the day where he had to go back home. I’ll never forget after his last appointment, he came out glowing and sang us a song because he said he was finally pain free, I’ve never had anyone sing to me before! He said he couldn’t remember what it was like to feel no pain and was so grateful for us. I think about him from time to time and hope he has been continuing his massage therapy sessions.

I always knew I wanted to help people but I never in a million years thought it would be so rewarding and soul satisfying, it brings me such joy to see people make amazing and visible improvements! Even if they are not always seeing us for extreme pain, we are able to give our clients something to look forward to each visit. Massage therapy is my passion and I love how much we are able to do to help others feel their best. I wish I could work on everyone but there is only one of me so I strive to hire the best talent because I know how much good we can do together in our community.

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’m Krissy, the owner and a practicing Licensed Massage Therapist at massage Therapy by Krissy.

I have been a licensed Massage Therapist (LMT) since 2009 and opened Massage Therapy by Krissy (MTBK) in 2012. I decided I wanted to become a LMT when I was in High School because I wanted to help people in a more holistic way than modern medicine plus everyone always told me that I had healing hands so it just made sense! In High School, I wasn’t a great student and messed around a lot but when it came to massage school, I soaked everything up. I studied hard, graduated with honors and I knew I found my calling.

After school, I got my first spa job and I loved it! I was always booked and they quickly promoted me to lead therapist but after 2 years I wanted more flexibility in my schedule so I decided to go out on my own. After about a year of working out of my home, I kept getting more and more referrals so I decided to rent my first office space and since then we have continued to grow into larger spaces, adding staff and now we have 12 LMTs, a front desk coordinator and an office/social media manager.

I’m huge on hiring the most talented Massage Therapists because of our fantastic reputation and this business has my name on it. I’m all about providing a stress free work space, encouraging self care and having regular family gatherings where we can have fun together. I feel like most massage places just burn their therapists out by packing their days full of massages, offering little breaks and when they are slow, they make their therapists stay and do “house chores” for those who are busy. I knew I wanted something different and I strive to give my therapists a better environment that encourages longevity in their careers.

All of our services are customizable because every body is different. Our therapists are trained to use a wide variety of techniques to help their clients feel great after the session. We offer Deep Tissue, Swedish, Neuromuscular Therapy, Cupping, Hot Stones, Trigger Point, CBD Oil, Reflexology, Prenatal, Reiki, Back Walking and more! Often our clients need a mix between Deep Tissue and Swedish and our therapists will blend the two if they find it necessary. I feel that separates us from other Massage Therapy places where as if you book a Swedish (lighter pressure) but you really need a Deep Tissue in certain areas, you only get the Swedish because that’s what you booked. Our therapists will listen and then provide a service best suited to their clients needs.

I’m most proud of how far we have come especially during COVID. Our clients are the absolute best and we are so grateful for their support during the rocky times and because of them we have been able to continue growing. We have big plans for the future and we look forward to seeing what things will look like when we get there.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

In the very beginning I never advertised. I always relied on my ability to give the best massage therapy service possible by listening to my clients and delivering an amazing service. All of my business was generated from word of mouth. I’m a firm believer in giving your customers a 5 star experience and they will always tell someone about it. As we have grown over the years we now spend money on advertising but I still consider word of mouth to be the best. Getting great reviews on Google, Yelp and other social media platforms is key to gaining the trust of new clients.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

When I first started my business, it was out of my home. There was very little over head and everything I made I saved in my business account. I was fortunate because my husband had a good job and we were able to live off his income while I built my little business. We worked together, planned and finally after a year we had enough to be able to move me into my first rental space. It was so good to get out of the house but also felt scary because what if I didn’t get enough business and couldn’t pay rent? I put my fears aside and took the leap and I’m so glad I did!

My plan was simple, just keep putting money back into the business and pay myself when I needed to. I was fortunate to have never taken out a loan because I was always able to pull from the business when I needed to move or buy equipment. My advice to those wanting to open a business is to start small, buy your essentials, put one foot in front of the other and try to save along the way. I also highly recommend setting up a separate business account either with a DBA or an LLC so your accounting process is not a huge pain.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.massagetherapybykrissy
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mtbkrissy/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MassageTherapyByKrissy/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/massage-therapy-by-krissy-san-antonio

Image Credits
Darkroom Foto