FACE FOUNDRIÉ founder and CEO Michele Henry joins us to share how her personal struggles with hormonal acne fueled her path to skincare entrepreneurship. We explore what it takes to deliver an unforgettable client experience, how to carve out a clear point of difference in a saturated market, and why accessibility and consistency are her non-negotiables. Michelle also opens up about her path to franchising and the ambitious vision driving FACE FOUNDRIÉ’s national and international expansion. If you’re building a brand or dreaming about it, don’t miss this episode.
00:00 (MICHELE) - Consistency is key, especially in franchising. And that was probably the biggest detail I wanted to make sure we touched on when we launched franchising because that consistent experience, whether you're getting a facial in Sioux Falls or Sarasota, it has to be the same. So we really honed in on our client journey.
00:23 (DANIEL) - Today's guest is Michele Henry, founder and CEO of FACE FOUNDRIÉ, Savant Aesthetics Institute, and Lasery, three beauty and wellness brands transforming the industry. A self-funded, debt-free powerhouse, Michelle has built an empire generating over $75 million in revenue.
00:39 (DANIEL) She launched FACE FOUNDRIÉ in 2019, now the largest focused facial bar in the U.S., with 57-plus locations, over 100 in development, and more than a million clients served. Named a 40 Under 40 Honoree, Entrepreneur of the Year, and somehow she balances it all as a mom of four. We're thrilled to welcome the bold, brilliant Michele Henry to the show.
1:02 (JOZLYN) We work in the beauty industry, so clunky software is not the vibe. Boulevard is sleek, made for beauty pros, and you get compliments, not complaints from your client. Podcast listeners can get 10% off free guided setup, so head over to joinblvd.com/podcast to claim your special offer.
1:25 (JOZLYN) Hi Michele, thank you so much for joining us today.
01:27 (MICHELE) Thank you for having me.
1:29 (JOZLYN) Thank You. Thank you. You are literally a powerhouse. I just want to point that out and let all of the listeners know. You have such an amazing and impressive career. I would love for you to share your background story and how you got into this industry.
01:44 (MICHELE) Well, thank you. I actually was an apparel design major. So long ago, I loved doing apparel design, merchandising, business, and art. So I had a whole lot of majors, which is a fancy way of saying I never wanted to leave college. Finally, I was forced to and started right out of college, my own boutique—women's clothing. It was a really novel idea back in 2009, 2010.
2:14 (MICHELE) From there, we had kind of explosive growth and it was really fun. I was learning fast and furious, just trying to figure out and navigate what a business looked like. Fast forward, I had my third child and I loved what I was doing, but I was struggling so badly with my hormonal acne. And this was in 2017. I just could not get it under control. And I was looking for solutions and ways to solve this. And I kept going to our medspa and trying to figure out, okay, I couldn't book in. It was very inconvenient. Nine to five were the hours. It was super expensive. That's really where it sparked this idea for FACE FOUNDRIÉ. Why isn't there an accessible option for facials? And if I am struggling with this, there's no way—I can't be the only one.
3:07 (MICHELE) So that's really where it started. And this journey has been wild and fun. And of course I sat on the idea for FACE FOUNDRIÉ for almost a year before I decided I'm going to sell my apparel company and I'm going to go full-bore into facials.
03:28 (JOZLYN) - Yeah, absolutely. I mean, starting off in apparel, I know we were talking about it earlier, like you have to have that customer type of experience that you've worked behind the scenes, whether it be food and beverage in some kind, mall or apparel, or something of that sort to have that well-rounded understanding of the full experience of even opening your own location. So I'm really excited to really dive into that as well ‘cause I have a couple of questions around that also.
03:56 (DANIEL) - That is a fascinating inspiration story for FACE FOUNDRIÉ. What gave you the confidence that this was the right idea? Because so many businesses or business ideas fail very early on in their stages. What was it that made this so compelling to you?
04:11 (MICHELE) - You know, it's funny. I couldn't stop thinking about it. And the more I pursued it and the more I was looking for just education in skincare, it didn't exist. So like TikTok with these skin influencers, that wasn't around in 2017. And for me, I would stay up all night writing down business ideas. I couldn't stop thinking about it.
4:34 (MICHELE) So for me, that's always kind of been my North Star. If that obsession is there, then I know I'm onto something. And then my second kind of pinpoint is, if someone is telling me not to do it, then I'm really onto something. So the second my family voiced concerns about me selling my business, I was like, "No, I'm totally doing it now."
4:56 (JOZLYN) You're like, "This is it."
4:57 (MICHELE) It's making you nervous? "Okay, I'm gonna do it."
4:59 (JOZLYN) I love that. You're like a rebel, like, "I'm gonna go against anything you say.”
5:02 (MICHELE) A little bit, yes. But I just, I love the idea. Business translates, and so I learned a ton about customer service, obviously working in retail. And, I worked for my parents starting at age 13. I learned a ton from them from a customer service angle. And so being able to carry that through, that was a big part of what gave me confidence to start FACE FOUNDRIÉ, because a lot of the business basics and that foundation I had picked up with my earlier career in the retail clothing world.
05:38 (JOZLYN) Exactly, yeah. Very similar story for me as well. Starting off in the retail world and working my way up to something that was more spa luxury, you know, aesthetics. And I do think it's the core for that understanding of how to approach other situations in that world, in the industry.
05:56 (MICHELE) One hundred percent.
05:56 ( JOZLYN) Yeah. Yeah. Right now, if you look up medspa, like on Google, and within a, you know, radius of, I don't know, five miles, you'll see a ton. It's very, a business that's right now sprouting up pretty much everywhere. I'm curious of what makes you think FACE FOUNDRIÉ is set apart from others? What are you all doing differently that is making you successful and setting you apart from just someone that's in the store on the corner doing pretty much the same type of concept?
06:25 (MICHELE) I'm gonna use the analogy of the iron triangle. Have you heard of this? They use it a lot in restaurants, right? You can have fast, cheap, or good. You pick two of the three. And I always thought that was an interesting way of looking at things because in my opinion, why would we only pick two for FACE FOUNDRIÉ?
6:47(MICHELE) So we've got an efficient focused facial bar where you're in and out within an hour and you're getting a really effective treatment. You've got an approachable price point and it's not just good, it's great. So it's on the same playing level as the top spas in the country.
So that was really important, making sure that we could encompass all three of those and making sure that our clients are delighted and walk out feeling really confident in their own skin. I think that's really important. I will say though, going back you asked, why did it work? Or, why did it click? I want to paint the picture of, when we launched, we had a juice bar in our space.
7:32 (MICHELE) So we were all about wellness, right? And I think it's really important what you put in your body, also how you treat your skin, like it all works together. It's an ecosystem. We realized so very quickly that juice has a really short shelf life and our core competency was facials. So, I think it's important to call out [that] you might not know exactly your path, but it's important to be able to spot when you need to pivot. And within about 10 days, we spotted, we need to drop the juice bar and we need to do just facials. I do want to call that out. That was an early learn.
08:08 ( JOZLYN) I'm just curious on the story. Like, did you have a ton and they all spoiled?
8:12 (MICHELE) Oh my gosh, yes!
8:13 ( JOZLYN) What was the quick pivot for? Because of the shelf life?
8:16 (MICHELE) Yes. And we were doing juice shots and that was fantastic. I had this idea though that our front cash wrap would be a bar where people would want to hang out and chill before or after their facials. And that was not the case. People loved the luxury of being able to get in and out. And that's what they wanted, right? That convenience. So we actually had to close down for about 24 hours. We redesigned the store. So I had just spent a fortune designing the version 1.0, and then 10 days in we had to lay out 2.0 and get more stations, more beds in, and then get rid of the juice.
08:56 (JOZLYN) Yeah, I love that you made a point that it's okay to pivot. Like you won't always get it perfect that very first time. And that's part of the growing. As you grow, you continue to find things that are working or that aren't working that you can redefine and even start over if you need to. But I think the main goal is to not give up.
09:17 (MICHELE) Yeah, for sure. And listen to what your clients want, right? Because they possess all the answers. You just have to be willing to listen. They were showing us where they wanted to spend their money and where they wanted to spend their time. It was truly on facial services.
09:32 (JOZLYN) Yeah. And you found that out quickly, also. I love that.
9:36 (MICHELE) Very quick.
09:37 (DANIEL) That's amazing. That ability to adapt so fast is, I think is probably pretty unique to you. A lot of people wouldn't decide to do that so quickly and make the right choice.
09:49 (MICHELE) Thank you. Always learning.
09:52 (JOZLYN) Right?
09:53 (DANIEL) I think there's also something in that, a through line that I'm getting, which is, somebody telling you that you can't do something and you want to do it, like with your family or with that iron triangle. If somebody tells you this is not possible, you seem to find a way, which is very inspiring.
10:11 (MICHELE) Thank you.
10:12 (JOZLYN) You can use that in anything. I love it.
10:16 (DANIEL) You kind of touched on this with: listen to your clients. The client experience at FACE FOUNDRIÉ is consistent and elevated across all locations, which is very difficult to achieve. So congratulations on that. What are some of the intentional choices that you made to ensure that?
10:32 (MICHELE) - That is a great question. And I think that consistency is key, especially in franchising. And that was probably the biggest detail I wanted to make sure we touched on when we launched franchising, because that consistent experience, whether you're getting a facial in Sioux Falls or Sarasota, it has to be the same protocol, all of that.
10:56 (MICHELE) So we really honed in on our client journey. We have 10 steps through that process and we make sure that our estheticians, and the managers, and franchisees are all super thoroughly trained on that client journey. I'm a big picture person, but I'm a really detailed person and one treatment that I had was a massage when I was super duper pregnant. And I'll never forget this lady talked the entire time as I was trying to relax. I was like man, I just wish I could sit here and have this moment. And that always stuck with me. And so now we make sure that every single client has that option. Do you want to sit and relax and take this time for you? Or do you want me to walk you through the steps? And I think that again, just drives home the consistency in making sure that the client experience is the same across the board.
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12:25 (JOZLYN) I would love to know what advice would you give someone that is looking to be in the early stages of building a service-based business? We're going to talk about franchise also because I feel like that's a really good topic for us to focus in on for people that are looking to franchise. But let's start at the beginning. What advice you would give someone that's looking to start any type of spa, medspa, even a salon if they wanted to go in that route?
12:46 (MICHELE) I think this is really basic, but it needs to be called out: you have to be passionate. There's no replacement for passion and what really excites you. What do you feel you're really good at? I'm a firm believer that every single person on this earth is the best at something. So pinpoint what that is first and foremost.
13:10 (MICHELE) And then back into maybe what you're not so good at. And so finding a really good accountant [or] finding really good legal to offer great advice. It's okay to make sure that you recognize the things that you don't love doing. And, if it's marketing or if it's ops, you have to be able to backfill those positions with people that can do it not just good, but exceptionally well. So I think those would be the call-outs I would make for anyone, whether it's service-based or if they're just starting a business. I think, again, those foundations translate.
13:46 (JOZLYN) Yeah. So find what you're really good at. And for the things that you don't necessarily love, find someone who can do it equally as good as you with your passion, but in that different avenue or field. That makes sense. Absolutely.
14:00 (DANIEL) You kind of touched on this with the client journey, but looking back on the early days of FACE FOUNDRIÉ, what were some of those most critical decisions that informed the client experience?
14:10 (MICHELE) Working in the store. I think that there's kind of no replacement for being in the store. I was working front bar. Every day, all day, and you hear it firsthand. And I think that's so important. There's no way we would have gotten to this point in time and not had that face-to-face interaction with our clients. And I think that's something that you forget.
You know, it's a slow building. And hearing it firsthand is so important. I still sit in on all of our manager meetings. I connect with all of our franchisees. We send out client and member surveys constantly because I think feedback is a gift and that is the fastest way to pivot or make a change or make something better.
14:56 (JOZLYN) Now, are you usually looking for something that's a trend within the customer feedback or is it something that when you see it you're like, I'm just gonna do it. It could be one person asking but [you say] this is exactly the path I want to go down. How do you decide exactly what route to take, depending on that customer feedback, because customers are giving feedback about every single appointment? So how are you determining that?
15:19 (MICHELE) Totally. Yeah. It's definitely deciphering what that information is. Early on, we'd get, why don't you do some back facials? And it just didn't work with our concept. The name is FACE FOUNDRIÉ, and we do all things face. And I think there's always a place for a service like that, but just not for us. I think to your question, it's kind of both because there are certain times where a client will say something and it just clicks. Or I’ll shadow franchisees and if I hear it multiple times, it's like, let's make this change. This is easy enough. Or if we hear it from our managers, that surround sound always kind of forces a change. Probably more quickly, but it's just being open to listening to what those changes should be.
16:08 (JOZLYN) Absolutely. Yeah, I completely agree with that. I think that when you are getting that customer feedback, those are the ones that are going to become loyal.
We have the perfect example, like with Boulevard, the majority of our enhancements will come directly from our customers and what they are experiencing and what they want to enhance within the platform. And I feel like once that happens and once they see it implemented, it's like, okay, you guys are listening. I feel like I'm going to become loyal. And I think that's the same within our industry.
16:44 (MICHELE) Yeah. And I think it's important to make sure that you're recognizing people that do give that feedback, whether it's our members and saying, you asked and we answered, this is what we're doing. Or our franchisees, we shout them out all the time in our all system meetings or we'll post about it to make sure that throughout our system, everybody knows who gets credit for it. Because it doesn't need to just be our team. Let's make sure that anyone contributing gets credit.
17:12 (JOZLYN) Shifting gears a little bit, I wanted to talk about growth. And at what point did you realize FACE FOUNDRIÉ could actually become something scalable like a franchise? I feel like a lot of people want to franchise, but they have no idea. I would love to know your story on how it even began, but I feel like a majority of people might think it's easy. Or, a simple one, two, three step, but I'm sure there was a full path and a journey for you. So I would love to hear that story.
17:39 (MICHELE) So I mentioned we had a women's retail chain. I actually tried to franchise that concept back in 2015, and I learned a ton. You learn a lot about when you get down a path and then you don't end up going that route. It wasn't the best business model for that business. Too many SKUs, too many variations. It just didn't work. I learned a lot about franchising though in that process and I fell in love with that idea.
18:10 (MICHELE) I loved that we could bring other people in that have this entrepreneurial spark and we can provide this blueprint and give them a lot of the foundational pieces and tools. So before I ever launched FACE FOUNDRIÉ, I knew the next business I'm going to pursue is actually going to be a franchise. And that is the goal. So that's really where it started. So day one, when we launched and we saw the reception, we started to write down all of our process, all of our procedures, like how we could replicate it. We launched into our second store within, I think I had the lease signed within two months of us opening the first. Yes, it was quick. And because the important part with franchising is to get data and show what a year's worth of sales look like. So we were going to launch our franchising program March 1st, 2020, which I'm sure everybody remembers that timing was impeccable. And so then obviously we paused with COVID, but that was initially the whole goal was to launch as a franchise.
19:21 (JOZLYN) Let's talk a little bit about launching a franchise during COVID. So you said that two months in, you were able to then go to that second location. Did you have to pause at any time to roll out the new locations? And how long was that process for you?
19:42 (MICHELLE) At that point, we had a really good team that understood what was going on. Keep in mind, build-outs take a bit. So we were definitely checking in. We had a trusted contractor. We were checking in, but we weren't just stepping away from our first location. By the time we rolled out franchising, we had disclosed that we were closed for about four months. Because we were state mandated to. It was such a blessing in disguise because we were able to sit back and say, what are the actual ways we would train someone, whether we could do it in person or from afar. I look back and I'm like, it was such a weird time, but I'm so thankful for it because we were able to really pivot and again, figure out the ways to best welcome franchisees and their managers then into our system.
20:37 (JOZLYN) Yeah, it's necessary to sit and have that information. And then it probably made you even more successful because you had that extra four months to marinate on it and figure out the best path going forward for all of the other locations that were being franchised. So that's amazing.
20:53 (MICHELE) And we would have never had just four months to dedicate to developing all of these training manuals. We really wouldn't have. I think it would have actually taken us a lot longer to launch franchising had we not had that time to just sit down, put our heads down and focus.
21:07 (JOZLYN) Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. I love that. I love that. I mean, there's always a silver lining in some kind of way. So even though COVID was very horrible, you have that silver lining that it helped you become more successful with that pause.
21:23 (MICHELLE) 100%. You don't know it in the moment. Trust me. If you would have asked me in the moment, I would have said, ‘my gosh, this is the worst.’ So it's definitely hindsight.
21:31 (DANIEL) It sounds like you had some exposure to franchising or the idea of franchising and FACE FOUNDRIÉ maybe was purpose-built for franchising. But was there any lessons that you learned once you actually started the rollout and things maybe you didn't expect?
21:50 (MICHELE) Gosh. Yeah. And I think that there's always lessons. I mean, I'm learning every day still. And anyone that's not is probably either lying or maybe not doing it right. I would say, again, going back to the team. And your first five hires are so important and your first 10 franchisees are so important and we got so lucky. Our franchisees are perfectly aligned with our mission. I think we really did a good job vetting and again. Hindsight is everything. Looking back we got really lucky that we have such strong franchisees starting out because they can really set the tone and make or break a brand new business. I just feel so fortunate that they've been able to step in and really help us build this system together. So I'd say team is so important. Franchisees coming in, equally important. And again, we had really great legal counsel. We're still with them and they were instrumental in how we build out our process and our FDD.
22:59 (JOZLYN) Now with, of course, you are using Boulevard at your franchises (shout out to Boulevard). And I think just technology right now is really a game-changer for any self-care business. I'm curious to know what tools and systems outside of Boulevard and maybe even talking a little bit about your experience with the different tools that you're using within Boulevard that help with streamlining your day-to-day operations and just making your day easier within your locations.
23:29 (MICHELE) I know I touched on this, consistency is so crucial with a franchise model. We use a few different SaaS platforms where we can make sure that consistency is housed in one spot. So we do have a portal where all of our franchisees have access to it. We also have an educational platform that we use quite frequently when we roll out new process. And then we have similar to Canva, only it's a design platform where they can actually go in, they can use a lot of our design manual and create a lot of their own marketing and graphics. So those are just a few tools that we've been able to pull in and adapt and make sure that there's consistency, but still a little bit of freedom for our franchisees.
24:14 (JOZLYN) Definitely. And are you using anything, let's say, that is more newer and I'm thinking more like AI. Are you using anything in that world to help with your day-to-day or just even the client experience?
24:25 (MICHELE) Yes, we are testing a few different AI tools. I'm very excited. Both in-store and then from a client-facing standpoint. So more to come there, but we are very much trying to utilize that in some capacity.
24:41 (JOZLYN) Yeah. It's making lives easier for sure. So, you gotta get with it.
24:45 (MICHELE) Yes. I mean, you have to. Otherwise, you'll just fall behind. So there's a lot of ways to implement it and even take baby steps. You know, it's not just a full-blown out rollout, but we are really trying to utilize it from an HQ level.
24:57 (DANIEL) How would you say you balance supporting your franchisees and maybe allowing them autonomy while also maintaining the brand standards and ensuring their success?
25:08 (MICHELE) Definitely. I think it goes back to some of the tools we've helped create to make sure from a marketing and brand perspective, it's consistent. From a build-out and design process, what's interesting is we always view FACE FOUNDRIÉ as it's a little bit atypical for a franchise model, but we view the stores as sisters, not twins. So, there's a little bit more identity that they can pull out in each local area, which I love. And I think that's really fun to have the owner feel like there's a little bit more autonomy in there or in it for them, but also making sure that then it fits in with our design guides. So I do think that we offer a little bit more flexibility than most systems would.
25:58 (JOZLYN) As a CEO, I would love to know how you're staying focused for the overall bigger picture, because we talked about bigger picture earlier. I would love to know how you're staying focused because from your bio, and just talking to you, you're constantly growing. Like it's not stopping, which is really exciting. So I would love to know how you're focusing on that and looking at the bigger picture while also maintaining that consistency with your franchisees and making sure that their day-to-day operations are still running smoothly. Like it's two different conversations, it's two different thought processes, but I'm curious about how you're continuing that and like still making it grow for you.
26:38 (MICHELE) For sure. It's looking for the white space within our current model, and I think that's something we're really excited about. We're partnering with Face Reality and we are launching a new menu on August 1st, which is really exciting for us because all of our estheticians will be fully trained. We've got a Face Reality protocol and a new facial that we're launching. And so, what's great is that Face Reality really specializes in acne. And for us, that was a huge white space that we do tap into, but not to the extent that Face Reality does. And their level of education is just instrumental and it's so powerful.
27:21 (MICHELE) So, excited to launch with them and it's discovering and tapping into that white space consistently, but still being true to our roots, which is, again, a facial bar. We're not trying to get into hair or nails. There's always a place for that, but it's just not our core competency and really owning that. And for us, we believe that we can sell out of the United States within the next two years. And we've got some good international plans that we've already started to chart into and figure out exactly where it will be on our roadmap. We are very excited though. I think that ultimately the big picture is nationwide, yes, but then how do we look at this at more of a international strategy and ultimately spread our mission and build confidence.
28:09 (JOZLYN) That is amazing because, that's why I called you a powerhouse earlier, because you were literally a powerhouse. Going out of the country, being able to expand there. You're also a mother of four? Four children. That is amazing. And just your background in general is just absolutely just amazing. It's very inspirational.
28:31 (DANIEL)
You've had some incredible success and some very fast growth. What would you say are some of the growing pains you've encountered when you scale so fast?
28:41 (MICHELE) I would say the thing that comes to my mind immediately would be being able to forecast that growth. And then hire and train and make sure that you're appropriately growing your support team and our HQ team in accordance with all of the stores that are coming into play. So it's making sure you don't get too far ahead of yourself, right? And being able to pace yourself with that growth and identify what milestones will trigger new hires and new support. I think that's probably the most challenging. We've been fortunate, though, in the last year, we've welcomed a lot of new hires from outside systems that have been in franchising.
So they've been really able to help with a lot of maybe those questionable items that we kind of had to dance around early on and feel our way through.
29:36 (DANIEL) I think one of the very unique things to FACE FOUNDRIÉ is that your franchisees are finding you organically. Can you talk about that a little bit?
29:45 (MICHELE) Yes. We have not put a ton into franchise development up until this year. Actually, Q1 of this year, we awarded the most franchise units we've ever had and that was 31 units. All of which did find us. All of which the franchisees did find us organically, which is pretty special. Again, it goes back to aligning with our mission. They feel compelled to make people feel confident and really surprised and delighted. And I think that's really important is that our franchisees love what they do. And I think that's an important call out and, yeah, we're very lucky that they found us that way.
30:28 (JOZLYN) Are all of the franchises that reach out organically, are they all from the industry or do they all have some type of background or understanding of the self-care industry?
30:38 (MICHELE) That's a great question. We actually have a lot of franchisees from other really large systems. We also have executives that are leaving their corporate jobs or they've been stay-at-home moms. A very small percentage of our franchisees are actually trained estheticians or from the industry. So I think it just speaks to, again, the self-care industry right now and the wellness industry that people are recognizing how important it is.
31:07 (JOZLYN)
Absolutely. I love that. And that means anybody can do it, guys. All of us can do it if we wanted to. I'm thinking about it now. Thank you again so much for your time today. It was a pleasure speaking with you. If any of our listeners want to get to know you more, get to know, you know, FACE FOUNDRIÉ, where can they find you? How can they contact you?
31:26 (MICHELE) Well, thank you for having me. I really appreciate it. They can find us at facefoundrie.com and foundry is spelled with an I-E. Of course, we're on TikTok, Instagram, basically any platform you can find us there.
31:41 (JOZLYN) Absolutely. Thank you so much again.
31:44 (MICHELE) Thank you.
31:48 (JOZLYN)
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