Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nicole Langer. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Nicole, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?
My business partner and I were highly motivated to start a medspa due to our desire to become free from bosses. What we didn’t know is that our employees and our clients would become our true bosses, so we went from one boss having several thousand! To be a leader, you must submit to becoming a great servant. We understood the basic business acumen needed to start, but we had to learn the dirty details as we lived it. A key challenge was that nobody was willing to tell us how to start the business and what to watch out for. There was literally no advice from anyone in the early days of our medspa. It was a big secret and we had to pull it out of our vendors and other medspa owners as we built relationships and trust. Unfortunately, it is still this way today in our industry.
We were smart in not over building our location meaning we didn’t spend the tens to hundreds of thousands on a fancy build out. We opened with another business that already had a customer base to help us obtain exposure and foot traffic. What we learned quickly
and would never do again is spend money on print ads of any sort. We threw away thousands in print ads in our local magazine, local school bulletins, church flyers, wedding/ bridal groups, and sports team coupon cards. What we should have done is joined the
Chamber of Commerce in our area and networking groups. We would have moved up much faster. We found that relationship building is the only way to build a business and that takes time.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
My background is in business development and engineering. Don’t ask how these two are even remotely related, but that is the path I have
been set on. I have much experience with start ups and still consult to this day in supporting them in marketing, accounting, operations, logistics, and contracts. After working with over 20 companies in 5 different countries, I have learned that the problems and solutions are basically the same. Businesses need processes for every single thing they do and they need to be duplicatable and documented so anyone in the organization can understand them. Businesses need to provide quality and memorable customer experiences so that they retain those customers for life. Lastly, the solutions they provide must be lasting and real. Too many companies over promise and under deliver as well as lose heart in the details. The devil really is in the details and business must dig deep
to understand those details.
Our medspa opened in Maple Grove, MN in October of 2016. We literally started with nothing, no clients and no clue how to get people in the door. We started with my business partner Liz as the only nurse and then we quickly added two more to help with managing our empty clinic day in and day out. We figured we needed to have someone available at all times in case someone walks in either to see us specifically or the other business we were attached to. We are glad we did because that is how we started gaining clients. Yes, our payroll was at a high percentage with nurses standing around but it was worth it in the long term. We then added a fourth nurse and eventually had to buy out the chiropractor next door because we needed a reception desk.
As for technology, we built an App that includes a loyalty reward program. When you come to our clinic 4 times for Botox treatments of 20 units or more your 5th time is only $7 per unit. That is a $5 per unit savings as our Botox retails for $12 per unit which is still a very competitive price. We also have a filler reward where after three treatments of any of our fillers, the fourth one is 50% off. We invested in HIPAA compliant software for booking and charting. Many medspa use booking apps that are not HIPAA compliant, while they are more convenient, they do not meet the requirements of the medical boards.
We make sure we educate every client and go over exactly what the treatment plan is as well as the costs involved. We offer two different payment plans should a client not be able to pay by credit card or cash. We accept Care Credit where the client can pay for their treatment with their Care Credit account and pay monthly either 6 months or 12 months no interest. We have a payment plan called With Cherry that will accept up to 24 months no interest depending on the clients pre-approval status. Clients can get pre-approved in 40 seconds or less by going to our payment plan link on our website or we can text them a link that involves a soft credit check.
We reconstitute our Botox 1:1 meaning we dilute it at a ratio of 1:1 while other clinics may reconstitute at a 1:2.5 ratio which makes the Botox less potent and more runny. We only use Botox Cosmetic which is made by Allergan and we only use Juvederm fillers by Allergan because Allergan has the most extensive studies and trials. We know how the product is going to work and what results we
can achieve.
Our clinic offers more than just Botox and dermal fillers. We also offer body contouring, facial contouring, women’s wellness, and radio frequency microneedling. We have invested in InMode devices that provide contouring, skin tightening, women’s wellness and
the ability to repair stretch marks, acne, scares, and more through radio frequency and heat. All of our pricing is listed under treatments on our website
www.beautoxbar.com and we provide a booking link and phone number.
Can you talk to us about how your funded your firm or practice?
We were able to fund the business with as little as $30,000 back in 2016. These funds paid for our lawyers to draw up all the papers, register us with the state, and make us into a legal LLC partnership. We were able to pay the first two months rents, downpayment, and build out with these funds. Again, we didn’t go too fancy in the beginning. We used the funds to purchase the software needed and set up the merchant account, quickbooks, and booking software. We shared the space so we were able to split the cable, internet, phone and our landlord pays for all the utilities. We were very lucky to find the space that we have and to be able to expand in that space.
We could have gotten a bridge loan, but instead we opened up a personal line of credit in both our names. That was helpful when times were lean. We also couldn’t pay ourselves the first 18 months. This meant that we both kept our full-time jobs while working our clinic part-time. It wasn’t easy but we did manage to get through those lean months. There were times we didn’t think we were going to make it and then suddenly we would get a surge of new clients that kept us going.
We also could have gotten outside investors but when you do that, you have to give some of the company shares or equity which we were not willing to do. Don’t give away your business if you can help it. Keep control of it and watch your pennies.
Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?
The best thing you can do as a business owner and especially a new business owner is design a customer experience like no other. Go beyond the extra mile so that your customers can’t stop talking about you. Build up a genuine Google Review line up that will blow your competition away. Make your customer feel extra special, not just special. Give them opportunities to join exclusive VIP clubs in your business. Everyone wants to be a VIP!
Train your staff for weeks on end and take them on a retreat each year to develop the relationship in order to help get them to another
level of service. It is not enough to greet your customers with a smile, they need to know that you are thrilled they are at your place of business and that you are grateful for their support. Once you accomplish this, you will essentially expand your family and may even be invited to weddings, birthday celebrations, and more by your customers. With that comes a ton of referrals to their circle of influence. This is exactly why we are thriving and our so grateful for our staff and customers.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.beautoxbar.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/BeautoxBar
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beautoxbar
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/40927117/admin/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/beautoxbarllc
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCstyjyuN58TxFTOU465yIJw
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/beautox-bar-maple-grove?osq=Beautox+Bar
Image Credits
Krizia Studios