Today we’d like to introduce you to Mandy Holliday.
Hi, Mandy; we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Growing up, I knew I wanted to find a career in an industry where I could help others. My mind automatically went to nursing, but my heart wasn’t in it. After looking at some options, I started school for dental hygiene. While in school, I was looking for a part-time job and found that a local spa was hiring a receptionist. At this time in my life, I had been experiencing migraines and had cystic acne. I started talking with some of the service providers on staff and became educated on how they could help me decrease the intensity and frequency of my migraines and help boost some self-confidence through some skin care treatments. I immediately started noticing a difference in how I looked and felt, so much so that I pursued it as a career. After completing my massage therapy and esthetics education, I started taking clients and providing that same experience. Coming from an entrepreneurial family, I knew that one day, I wanted to be able to work for myself and provide employment opportunities for others in my industry. I knew I needed to see exactly how that would look by working in a few places, understanding their business model and management styles, and expanding my craft.
Upon COVID, my husband and I found ourselves conversing more and more about what a business would look like, and we were able to plan how we would open and serve our community. We had realized that over the years, in addition to providing services, I was also helping manage things on the back end. I felt confident that I could transfer my knowledge and understanding to our own business. My husband, Ryker, pursued massage therapy as a career through these changes.
After much hard work and dedication, we opened in July 2021. When we opened, it was just the two of us. We were so nervous about taking this leap of faith as we were starting over and building from the ground up. Over the last two and a half years, we have developed our small business to offer more and expand our team. We now have 15 staff members and have outgrown our space. We are so excited to have recently purchased a building that will allow us to continue growing and serving our community!
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
We have had our fair share of trials. In starting a business, there were so many things that we had never had to consider before. Upon opening, we had a hefty personal investment to bring our vision to fruition, and it took a little bit to pay that back. In my previous positions, my primary role was as a service provider. Now, I was wearing all of the hats. I had to develop a marketing and networking plan, understand social media and how to create content, and encourage our team to be patient while we continued to grow. We have been so grateful for the personal and professional growth through these trials. It has given us great opportunities and the reward has outweighed the risk.
We’ve been impressed with Blue Stone Spa, but for folks who might need to be more familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart?
Blue Stone Spa focuses on providing the community with high-standard, professional services. With a love for people and an opportunity to share our craft, we strive to be a relaxing and therapeutic pillar in the community. We offer customized massages, reflexology, assisted stretching, facials, microdermabrasion, chemical peels, hydra facials, lash and brow services, full body waxing, and more! We are set apart from others because of the client experience and core values. Our job is to ensure that our clients know and understand that they are appreciated and that we will go the extra mile to ensure they enjoy their stay with us. We do this by upholding our core values– compassion, integrity, excellence, commitment, education, and community.
- Compassion: We provide listening hearts in our office for those experiencing stress, physical pain, emotional heartbreak, or need a shoulder to lean on. We love and empathize with people on their self-care journey and will be there every step of the way.
- Integrity: We hold tight to our moral, ethical, spiritual, and artistic principles. We work with passion and purpose, even when nobody is looking.
- Excellence: Everything we do at Blue Stone Spa, including treatments, services, products, and experiences, is of the highest standard. We act professionally and are committed to assessing and improving our offerings by seeking regular feedback.
- Commitment: We stand behind the service we promise to deliver, the team we have built and are a part of, and the community we represent.
- Education: We strive to passionately educate our clients on services, home care routines, stretching, and any other necessary recommendations. We continuously grow professionally as a team with continuing education classes to provide additional modalities and techniques to serve our clients further.
- Community: We provide and maintain a welcoming and safe space for everyone in our community. We welcome, nurture, celebrate diversity, and treat all with respect and love.
We are so proud of the team that we have built. We collectively have over 100 years of experience on our team and always learn from and share. We believe in sharing knowledge so that we can do great things together.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success for us starts small. Some might immediately jump to thinking about finances, and while that is important when running a business, there are some things to consider first, and the finances will flow after. For us, it started with having a great team of professionals. Each provider on our team has an excellent education, experience, and a love for people. We have hired based upon individuals meeting our core values—the success branches from here with client experience, education, referrals, etc. Good things start to follow when you have good people doing good things.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.bluestonespa.info
- Instagram: instagram.com/bluestonespa.1
- Facebook: facebook.com/bluestonespa1
