Keep What You Earn

Thinking about private equity? Don't wait until you're burned out and ready to hand over the keys. A partner may want you involved for years after the deal.   I sit down with Andrew Goldfein of Alpha Aesthetics Partners to talk about what makes a practice partner-ready, what buyers look at, and why expanding just to get bigger can hurt your numbers. Another Location Doesn't Automatically Add Value...

Payment processing feels like back-office admin—until fees creep up or your account gets flagged.   In this episode, I sit down with Adam Castillo to talk about merchant services, hidden fees, high-risk rules, and what can put a med spa on the MATCH list. We also cover telehealth, weight loss, website language, and how to protect your ability to get paid.   Know Your Effective Rate   Don't just sc...

A packed office  doesn't  automatically mean a successful event. If  you're   spending  on staff, marketing, and extras without a clear revenue goal or follow-up plan, you may be hosting a nice party instead of a profitable campaign.   In this episode, I sit down with Tami Vileta, founder of Pinpoint, to talk about event marketing for aesthetics practices. We cover patient appreciation events, VIP...

Hiring is already expensive. Weak contracts, unclear roles, or the wrong worker classification can make it a lot more expensive later.   In this episode, I sit down with Sarah, a healthcare attorney and former med spa owner, to talk about the legal and financial gaps that show up as practices grow. We cover partnership agreements, W-2 vs. 1099 classification, job descriptions, expansion risk, and...

Per-unit pricing for neuromodulators feels logical because  that's  how you buy the product. But it can create billing anxiety, invite negotiation, and keep patients focused on units instead of results.   In this solo episode, I break down how per-area pricing can improve  the patient  experience and make revenue more predictable.  We'll  look at margins, EMR data, and how to  price around  outcom...

People are one of the hardest parts of a practice . Even with careful hiring and a great culture,  you'll  still deal with turnover, performance issues, and the occasional wrong fit.   In this episode, I sit down with Amy Anderson of ACG Practice Partners to talk about when  people  problems are actually process problems. We cover retention, compensation, hiring, transparency, and the operational...

This week,  I'm  turning the mic over to Audrey Neff, host of True to Form, and replaying the conversation she originally shared with her audience. Audrey put me in the hot seat with the financial questions medical spa owners need to be asking as they grow.   A full schedule can still produce weak cash  flow,  a second location can magnify problems that already exist, and a practice that depends o...

Marketing gets exhausting when every platform, conference, and industry trend comes with the message that your practice should be doing more. More posts, more videos, more channels, more events. But a high volume of marketing activity does not automatically lead to better clients or more profitable growth.   In this episode, I sit down with Robin Dimond, founder and CEO of Fifth & Cor, to talk abo...

Being booked feels like proof that the business is working. But if most of that schedule is filled with injectables, the revenue can look much stronger than the profit underneath it. Product costs, provider compensation, commissions, memberships, and discounting can leave  very little  behind—even when the calendar is full.   In this solo episode, I break down why injectables need to be evaluated...

Medical aesthetics is one of the few areas of healthcare where practice owners have real control over pricing. Because most services are cash pay, med spas are not waiting on insurance reimbursements or negotiating with carriers. Yet many practices give away that advantage by running constant promotions and training patients to shop for the lowest Botox price.   In this solo episode, I explain how...

A profitable med spa can still be hard to scale, and even harder to sell. When the owner  is responsible for  every major decision, key patient relationships, team oversight, and day-to-day problem solving, the business carries more risk than the financials may initially show.   In this episode, I sit down with Annie Robertson Hockey, president of  Skytale  Group, to talk about what makes a medica...

When cash flow gets tight, most practice owners look at revenue first. But one of the biggest drains on your cash may already be sitting on your shelves. Excess inventory  doesn't  just take up space—it ties up working capital, increases  expiration  risk, and quietly chips away at your margins.   In this episode, I break down why inventory management deserves more attention in your financial stra...

It's  easy to assume slow growth means you need more leads.  In reality, many  practices already have the patients, technology, and team needed to increase revenue—they just  aren't  using those resources consistently.   In this episode, I connect with Andrea Watkins, VP of Practice Growth at Studio 3 Marketing, to discuss how stronger systems, better follow-up strategies, and a more intentional p...

When growth slows down, the default response for many  med spa  owners is to spend more on marketing. The problem is that marketing rarely fixes operational issues, weak conversion rates, or poor retention. In many cases, it simply amplifies them.   Today, I walk through the ten metrics, systems, and financial strategies every practice should understand before investing another dollar into adverti...

Many med spas spend heavily on attracting new patients while overlooking one of the biggest growth opportunities already inside the practice: the existing patient base. Sustainable esthetic practice growth  doesn't  come from  acquiring  more patients alone—it comes from creating an experience that keeps them coming back.   In this episode, I sit down with Abby Honaker, President of Partner Succes...

Patient financing has become increasingly popular in medical aesthetics, especially during economic slowdowns and seasonal dips in demand. The problem is that many practices treat financing as a solution to slow sales when it should be treated as a financial tool.   In this episode, I talk about where financing fits into a healthy  med spa  growth strategy, when it makes sense to offer financing o...

There are three big ways profit can distort reality: inaccurate revenue tracking, blended service margins, and poor cash flow visibility. Understanding these numbers helps you make better financial decisions as your practice grows.   In my conversation with Jared Rohrer on his podcast The Patient Magnet, we get into why a positive net profit on your financial reports  doesn't  always mean your bus...

Hip programs are often used to create predictable cash flow, but recurring revenue alone does not guarantee profitability.   Too often, practices focus on recurring revenue while overlooking the impact on margins,  utilization , redemption behavior, and patient lifetime value.   A strong membership program should increase profitability and patient value—not simply create discounts.   Where Most Me...

Compensation is one of the hardest operational systems to get right in a med spa. If the structure feels unclear or unfair, it quickly creates tension between providers, leadership, and the overall goals of the business. In this episode, I break down how to design compensation in a way that supports profitability, collaboration, and long-term practice growth—not just short-term production.   The g...

Most med spas focus heavily on the procedure itself, but patient experience is shaped just as much by what happens before and after treatment. In this episode, I sit down with Lars Hegelson, founder of Easy Aftercare, to discuss how poor aftercare communication creates operational strain, financial risk, and preventable patient issues—and why practices that modernize patient education are creating...

For a long time, I avoided narrowing my focus because it felt like the fastest way to limit my opportunities. I built my business by saying yes to a wide range of clients, thinking that was the best way to grow. But over time, it became clear that being too broad was  actually making  everything harder—my marketing, my referrals, and the consistency of my results.   When Your Business Is Too Broad...

If  you're  building a business without thinking about ownership structure, equity, and long-term strategy,  you're  taking on more risk than you realize. The way your company is set up from day one—your cap table, vesting terms, and legal structure—directly  impacts  your ability to raise capital, scale, and eventually exit.   In my conversation with Bob Gillespie, we break down the financial dec...

If  you're  saying yes to every patient request,  you're  not delivering better service— you're  creating inconsistency in your results, your operations, and your revenue. That "do whatever the patient asks" mindset might feel like good customer service, but it  actually limits  your ability to grow a profitable, scalable aesthetics practice.   Today, I break down the shift from transactional, a l...

If your med spa is still operating transaction by transaction,  you're  capping your revenue, your retention, and your enterprise value. Selling individual services might generate short-term cash—but it  doesn't  create predictable growth or strong patient relationships. In this episode, I break down how shifting to comprehensive treatment plans transforms your med spa revenue, increases patient l...

If your med spa is growing but you feel buried in dashboards, reports, and disconnected data, you  don't  have a data problem—you have a focus problem. Growth without clarity leads to slower decisions, missed opportunities, and lower profitability.   In this episode, Illume Founder & CEO Ben Wolber and I dig into how to move from tracking everything to tracking what  actually drives  med spa profi...