In this captivating episode of Eye On Franchising, I am thrilled to introduce our esteemed guest, Stacey Laricchia, the co-founder of The Birthday Suit franchise. Stacey takes us on a remarkable journey through her career in the beauty industry, starting as a talented makeup artist and evolving into a skilled esthetician. Her passion for skincare shines through as she shares her experience working with prestigious brands like Christian Dior. After leaving Dior, Stacey found herself drawn back to the world of waxing, recognizing the rising demand for Brazilian waxes influenced by popular shows like Sex and the City. When faced with adversity after being fired from a competitor, Stacey and her husband took a leap of faith and started their own salon. And thus, The Birthday Suit was born, with ideas scribbled on the back of a sushi restaurant menu. Throughout this insightful podcast episode, Stacey delves into the secrets behind the franchise's success, which has been thriving for over twelve years. The Birthday Suit specializes in a wide range of waxing services, from eyebrow to toe, excluding waxing a man's head due to the discomfort involved. What sets them apart is their exceptional team of experienced estheticians who are masters in the art of waxing. Stacey emphasizes the significance of fostering a positive company culture, where employees are treated with utmost respect and care. Flexibility is a key component in their work environment, especially for those juggling parenthood. Building trust with their clients is a top priority for The Birthday Suit, allowing them to provide personalized advice and recommendations without any pressure to upsell. The podcast episode also delves into the journey of The Birthday Suit's venture into franchising and the decision-making process they underwent. Stacey candidly shares the challenges they faced and the lessons they learned along the way. From being approached by interested companies to encountering obstacles with potential franchise development partners, their path was not without its fair share of hurdles. However, with determination and resilience, they built a boutique team and successfully sold six units in their inaugural year, including locations in Texas, Columbus (Ohio), and Vegas. Stacey also opens up about the importance of self-care for busy parents and how it influenced the inclusion of a children's lounge in their salons. She reflects on the initial challenges they encountered when starting their business and the growing demand for waxing services. Stacey's frustration with complicated industry jargon and her mission to normalize franchising as a viable option for small business ownership are palpable. The Birthday Suit franchise offers a unique and luxurious experience in the body waxing industry. They prioritize accessibility and open communication with franchisees and those involved in construction to ensure a stress-free experience. A strong marketing strategy, including the power of PR and micro-influencers, plays a pivotal role in their success. Stacey emphasizes the need for creativity, recognizing that what works in one community may not work in another. - Introduction of Stacey Laricia, co-founder of The Birthday Suit franchise - Stacey's journey in the beauty industry - The creative process behind naming the franchise - Success of The Birthday Suit waxing franchise - Challenges and success in franchising and business ownership --- Ready to watch these great conversations? Come check out a few videos have have and give me a follow! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwoAdrkPZmveJt5AQRDk8WA --- Lance Graulich Franchise Consulting Services from ION Franchising Eye On Franchising
In this captivating episode of Eye On Franchising, I am thrilled to introduce our esteemed guest, Stacey Laricchia, the co-founder of The Birthday Suit franchise. Stacey takes us on a remarkable journey through her career in the beauty industry, starting as a talented makeup artist and evolving into a skilled esthetician. Her passion for skincare shines through as she shares her experience working with prestigious brands like Christian Dior.
After leaving Dior, Stacey found herself drawn back to the world of waxing, recognizing the rising demand for Brazilian waxes influenced by popular shows like Sex and the City. When faced with adversity after being fired from a competitor, Stacey and her husband took a leap of faith and started their own salon. And thus, The Birthday Suit was born, with ideas scribbled on the back of a sushi restaurant menu.
Throughout this insightful podcast episode, Stacey delves into the secrets behind the franchise's success, which has been thriving for over twelve years. The Birthday Suit specializes in a wide range of waxing services, from eyebrow to toe, excluding waxing a man's head due to the discomfort involved. What sets them apart is their exceptional team of experienced estheticians who are masters in the art of waxing.
Stacey emphasizes the significance of fostering a positive company culture, where employees are treated with utmost respect and care. Flexibility is a key component in their work environment, especially for those juggling parenthood. Building trust with their clients is a top priority for The Birthday Suit, allowing them to provide personalized advice and recommendations without any pressure to upsell.
The podcast episode also delves into the journey of The Birthday Suit's venture into franchising and the decision-making process they underwent. Stacey candidly shares the challenges they faced and the lessons they learned along the way. From being approached by interested companies to encountering obstacles with potential franchise development partners, their path was not without its fair share of hurdles. However, with determination and resilience, they built a boutique team and successfully sold six units in their inaugural year, including locations in Texas, Columbus (Ohio), and Vegas.
Stacey also opens up about the importance of self-care for busy parents and how it influenced the inclusion of a children's lounge in their salons. She reflects on the initial challenges they encountered when starting their business and the growing demand for waxing services. Stacey's frustration with complicated industry jargon and her mission to normalize franchising as a viable option for small business ownership are palpable.
The Birthday Suit franchise offers a unique and luxurious experience in the body waxing industry. They prioritize accessibility and open communication with franchisees and those involved in construction to ensure a stress-free experience. A strong marketing strategy, including the power of PR and micro-influencers, plays a pivotal role in their success. Stacey emphasizes the need for creativity, recognizing that what works in one community may not work in another.
- Introduction of Stacey Laricia, co-founder of The Birthday Suit franchise
- Stacey's journey in the beauty industry
- The creative process behind naming the franchise
- Success of The Birthday Suit waxing franchise
- Challenges and success in franchising and business ownership
---
Ready to watch these great conversations? Come check out a few videos have have and give me a follow!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwoAdrkPZmveJt5AQRDk8WA
---
Franchise Consulting Services from ION Franchising
Stacey 00:00:00
Lance Graulich 00:00:02 Welcome to Eye on Franchising. Are you looking for business opportunities? Well, you are in the right place. We represent over 650 franchises and business opportunities. We will help you find your perfect franchise for free. We even have a free assessment on our website that will help us determine what the best businesses for you based on your investment level mindset, skill set, and life experiences. This is Eye on Franchising, where we share our vision for your franchise future. I'm your host, Lance Graulich. Each week we will speak to fascinating folks from the world of franchising, franchisors and founders, franchise funders and franchisees. Are you looking to find your perfect franchise? Or perhaps you are an independent business owner looking to grow and scale your business by setting up a franchise. Either way, our team can help you, Eye on Franchising, where you will learn the A to Z's of franchise. Hello and welcome back to another fabulous episode of Eye on Franchising. I'm your host, Lance Graulich. And, well, so look, today I'm just going to cut to the chase. She's a makeup artist, esthetician, I heard 200 years in this type of business dealing with people's skin, and she loves it. Maybe not 200 years. She's only 22. But imagine a franchise where you're taking your pants off. People are taking their pants off in this franchise and thankfully not getting arrested. So the co founder of, this fabulous brand, the Birthday Suit, hailing from Las Vegas, like me, Miss Stacey Laricchia. Welcome to the show, Stacey.
Stacey 00:01:53 Thank you for having me. I'm so excited to be here.
Lance Graulich 00:01:56 I am so excited to have you. So how did the birthday suit come about? I know you were way into skin. Let's talk a little bit about did that where did that start? People always wonder, how do people get these interests? Like how'd you get so into skin in the first place? You want to even be an esthetician.
Stacey 00:02:15 I've been a makeup artist for longer than I can remember. See? Good skincare. I'm only 22. I've been doing this for 200 years.
Lance Graulich 00:02:21 Love it.
Stacey 00:02:22 In college, I would do people's makeup before we'd go out for the club. They would come over, I would do their eyes, $50 out the door. And so it was kind of like the entrepreneur kick started back then. But I love the creativity of the makeup. And then years and years and years. And then I eventually got a job as an artist with Christian Dior, which moved me to Las Vegas. I was an artist for Dior, and eventually I became an educator for them, running facial events and skincare events and things like that. And then I got a promotion and then I was behind a desk. Can I miss the artistry of it all? So I went back to waxing. And thank goodness for Sex in the City because they really normalized, the Brazilian wax. Honestly, back in the day, I'm from Boston. The Brazilian wax was very much like don't talk about it kind of service. And then Sex in the City, and then everybody was getting like, I want that. So people had their pants off and it was okay to talk about which, but, went to do the artistry for a while and then came back to it after I left Dior. And I was working for a competitor. Competitor. And then I was fired from that competitor. And then my husband looked.
Lance Graulich 00:03:36 That's how the best ideas are born.
Stacey 00:03:39 This is exactly how it was born. And I was actually fired because I negated my manager's ability to have authority over the rest of the staff because they listened to me more than her. Okay? So he looked at me and he was like, if you're this good at waxing vaginas, let's just open our own place. And so I was like, bam. And then four months later, the birthday suit was open and we literally on the back of a sushi restaurant menu, came up with all the ideas back and forth with everything. He wanted to name it Wax On, Wax Off and with the girls with the white scrubs. Yeah, exactly.
Lance Graulich 00:04:16 Mr. Miyagi son?
Stacey 00:04:17 Absolutely. So in the middle of the night, I'm aging myself here, but Weekend at Bernie's, like, I sat up while I was sleeping and I just said, the birthday suit and the girl jumping out of the cake and she has to be brunette. And that's how it was born. And so here we are a little over twelve years later. Open, thriving, multiplying. Just killing it and having the most fun.
Lance Graulich 00:04:40 Open, thriving, and multiplying. That's the way we like our franchises. Give all the listeners an indication of the services. we already talked about the Brazilian mhm. What are the services? Are you doing eyebrows? You're doing other stuff.
Stacey 00:04:57 We got you from the forehead to your toes. The one service we actually will not do is a man's head because it's brutally painful. So we have you forehead down.
Lance Graulich 00:05:07 All thank you for that.
Stacey 00:05:08 Yes, it was a dare for a fundraiser once and we did one strip right here on the guy's head and this giant man broke down in tears. So we're like, no more, no more. So we specialize in one thing, in waxing. And, we are so good at it. And, we bring on new estheticians. They have to have a couple of years of training, of work already under their belt because we're not going to go into a full training. We're going to fine tune your skills, but we want to know that you know how to wax. And so we get the most amazing waxers to come work with us. And my team is just seamless and stellar and they're just great waxers. And it has made us number one for twelve years. And I love it.
Lance Graulich 00:05:52 That is absolutely fabulous. So talk a little bit about your company. Culture. I know you're like the mama bear there and maybe mama bear isn't the right term, but you create a great company culture. It's what I hear. That's the word on the street. You've got a tremendous business in Vegas and spreading. So how do you build that company mean? Because there's an old expression, people don't leave companies, they leave people. So you've created something where you can actually hold on to your staff. What are your secrets? Reveal, please.
Stacey 00:06:26 When I left my competitor, I wanted to open a place. I wanted to be the boss I would want to work for. Meaning I have kids, so I get when my kids are sick, I need to be home with them. And so it's not this demand like, no, you have to show up, you have to show up, you have to show up. And we are not a sales driven model. We are not a membership driven model. So my waxer's job is to be the best waxer they can be, to build that relationship with that guest that in return, that guest is going to trust them with their advice, their suggestions, because they don't feel pressured, which is how we do multiple streams of revenue and ticket add ons and things like that. Because the client trusts the waxer when she says, I think we should try this next time. And they go, you know what, you're right, maybe we should. And it doesn't feel like a hard sell. And I respect my estheticians so very much. I really think they are the best of the best and I make sure they know that whether they're paid well and better than the industry standard by far and just little things like they all have all the swag and the gear and paid time off and this and that, we just really try to make sure they know we appreciate them. And it starts with my general manager down and essentially she is the queen of my ship and she creates the tone for all of my locations in Las Vegas. And she has commanded a level of respect from the rest of the waxers there and she sets the tone. And in any business I think your management is essential. And I have the best general manager I think I could have ever even created in a fairy tale. She's where my ideas go to and she says yes or no. And then she helps implement them and she helps maintain the calm and the cool in the space, making sure everybody's happy because she's on the ground and she's in there. So she's like, this is happening, this is happening. We figure out how to fix it.
Lance Graulich 00:08:21 I love it.
Stacey 00:08:22 In turn keeps my staff happy. Longevity teamwork. Love it.
Lance Graulich 00:08:27 Fantastic. So where did the idea of franchising come in? So you launched the first location twelve years ago. When did the word franchise enter the phrase, so to speak?
Stacey 00:08:38 About eleven years ago, a company approached us and we were curious about it. So we went all in and paid for everything. And then at the 11th hour, my husband had gone to the IFA and had somehow ended up in some very big circles with some very important people. And they started talking to him, and he realized, we have no idea what we're doing, and we are so not ready. So he came home and talked to our franchise team and was like, what about this? What about this? What about this? And they said, we'll figure it out as we go along. And we said, no, we won't. And they said, okay, you're fired then. And so that was that. And then we're like, okay, well, then we're not ready, so we take that as a loss. Okay, then the next thing we do is we start looking. People start approaching us about this EV 500 stuff. And we had consultants coming in and people coming in to talk to us about that. And it was very overwhelming because I wasn't 100% confident in the concept. Didn't understand it, didn't know how to explain it, didn't know how to talk about it.
Lance Graulich 00:09:37 And for those listening that don't know, it's basically money coming over from overseas, from China, et cetera. US. Investments from overseas?
Stacey 00:09:46 Yeah. And, um, then we had another company that was coming in to help us build a franchise in a box. And we were having meetings with them on a regular basis. And then all of a sudden, it's these two partners. I see one partner posting on Facebook that she has excited to join another team. So these two had separated, and we were still paying the money. And we're like, okay, we need to step back for a while because this is like three for three. We need a break. And then it was about 18 months ago, we said we're ready because we wanted to just start expanding. We have a great brand. We're so proud of it. It works. It's been replicated. Duplicated. The industry is thriving and booming. So we were like, you know what? It's time we built a really small boutique team. I've had a great mentor who I never actually did business with in this industry. And he's been very handholding kind of with me and guiding me and giving me information and things like that. And he was like, you're ready. It's time. So he put us in touch with the right people, who in turn, built this boutique team. So our first year, we sold six units.
Lance Graulich 00:10:50 We wanted to make sure we sold six already.
Stacey 00:10:53 Yeah.
Lance Graulich 00:10:54 And where are they going to be? I think, I heard Texas.
Stacey 00:10:57 We have Texas. Columbus, Ohio. And then we have someone developing an additional four units in the market.
Lance Graulich 00:11:03 Oh. Ah, Vegas. Expansion in Vegas is awesome. Columbus, where Ohio State is.
Stacey 00:11:09 Yes.
Lance Graulich 00:11:10 My niece is there.
Stacey 00:11:11 She can come get waxed.
Lance Graulich 00:11:13 I love it. Yeah, she's probably pretty hairy.
Stacey 00:11:17 Seven, bacon, seven degrees.
Lance Graulich 00:11:20 I love it. No, so this is fantastic. So right now you have four locations.
Stacey 00:11:26
Lance Graulich 00:11:29 and where are the four locations? How many open in Vegas, and where are the four locations together?
Stacey 00:11:36 Two in Vegas, Texas, and Minnesota.
Lance Graulich 00:11:39 Okay, so there's one open in Texas, one open in Minnesota, and they're two separate franchisees.
Stacey 00:11:44 Yeah.
Lance Graulich 00:11:44 Okay, awesome. So you're still new and young. You're an emerging brand, and who's on the team talk about that? I know there's a co founder that might be related to you.
Stacey 00:11:55 Yeah. His name's Jason. He's this know, pops in and out once in a while. But again, it was his idea, because after I left my old know, it was his thing. Like, if you're so good at waxing vaginas, let's do it ourselves. And believe it or not, all of our units, including the franchise units in the FDD, we have a children's lounge. Because I'm a mom, I get it. And finding that self care time is so difficult sometimes. So he was like, we need a children's, you know, streaming services, whatever. We need this. And so all of our places have a children's lounge. And that was his idea.
Lance Graulich 00:12:32 I love that you have a children's.
Stacey 00:12:34 me, the Dodgers thing, I was like, oh, he's a Dodgers fan, too.
Lance Graulich 00:12:38 No, I had something falling behind me while I'm recording, so my guys might not even edit it out. They like my quirky, you know? I love that you have a family lounge that's part of this process and part of this ambiance, or part of the culture, because it is a family business. So that segues into who are you looking for? Like, these first two franchisees, if you and Jason had to think of what they have in common, you're looking for families, aren't?
Stacey 00:13:08 you know, we the first few months we had launched, we got so many inquiries. We were overwhelmed with them, and it was crazy. And people were asking all these questions and challenging us on the process and the industry and really, could you make money waxing? And is it really a big thing? I'm like 87% of us women get at least one service every four to six months, so that's an average of four to six weeks. And that's a lot of women. And 72% of men get at least one service. So, yes, it's a booming industry, and we would get people like, well, what if I want to add lashes? No. What if I want to add tanning? No. So I was getting frustrated. And then from above, Courtney, our first franchisee, came, and I have never wanted to hug someone through a computer monitor more in my life. I love like, I wanted to just hug her and love on her, and she's just I've never seen someone more amway about a brand than I am about the birthday. Huh. Mean, it's again, like I was saying, it's Tom Cruise on the couch with Oprah. Kind of it's. She's just, you know, we have other franchisees doing discovery days at her location in Texas. And they call her and they talk to her. And our publicist has been able to get her interviews about being the first franchisee for an emerging brand. And once we met her, it was like, it renewed my faith in the industry. And I was like, I'm ready. Let's do that. And then our M next franchise, he signed on a four unit deal, love Her Again, super into the beauty industry, so curious about waxing, and was like, I want to do this. I want to be in it.
Lance Graulich 00:14:50 And then I was just going to say, a four unit deal. So she really loved you?
Stacey 00:14:55 Yes. What's not to love?
Lance Graulich 00:14:58 Come on.
Stacey 00:14:59 And then our most recent purchase again, a ah mom. And she was just like, you know, she's like, I got a wax somewhere else. I realized it was terrible. I started looking online about waxing places, and all of a sudden I found the birthday suit. And I started reading your reviews and looking at your pictures and your social media. She's like, and I love you. She's like, so I need to open one. And that's how it started. And then we had another guest, another we're in the pipeline, I guess you want to call know someone went to the Texas location, and she lives in Dallas and she's curious about opening one. And it's just all of a sudden, I have this awesome momentum going again. And I feel great about, you know, seeing women really break the mold of who a franchisee is. And I'm trying to disrupt this industry because I feel intimidated by the way people talk. The words they use don't actually make sense. Sometimes I feel like it's a competition of who can use the most big words at once. And so I'm really here just to be like, normalize. It normalize, this industry, that a franchise is the future of the small business owner. You want to be an entrepreneur, be a franchise owner of, something that you're passionate about, because I have the setup, I have the proven method, I have the training, I have the support, I have everything you need, so I can't let you fail.
Lance Graulich 00:16:22 Right? So let's talk about those points of differentiation. You were kind of alluding to the fact that maybe other competitors or other people in the industry are using all kinds of jargon that maybe don't even matter. But what is so special? It's hard to explain in a situation like this where, people haven't been to the birthday suit. So what is so special about the birthday suit?
Stacey 00:16:51 Again, this is where I get so passionate because this is my just we have managed to maintain the best of the best as far as our wax. We use the best in the world. It comes from Spain. It is the best. You can't buy it on Amazon. You can't buy the local beauty. Have but as prices went, up, we've maintained our price point because we know that everybody is a little tight on their budgets right now. So we never wanted someone to have to decide, do I wax this month? And we've watched our competitors go up, uh, 20, $30 over the last twelve years. We've gone up nine in twelve years. And because we want to keep it in an affordable luxury, because it's not a necessity, it's a luxury. So we're not a sales driven model, we're not a membership model. Everything is top of the line. We're family friendly. We really want people just to walk in and feel comfortable. Like, you'll see your neighbor, you'll see the person at the grocery store, you'll see a teacher, you'll see a coworker. Just that family friendly atmosphere, and at an affordable price, which makes it everything. We've kept our, uh, franchise fee incredibly low so that it's accessible to anyone that wants to be a franchise owner in this wheelhouse of body waxing.
Lance Graulich 00:18:03 Perfect. So let's talk a little bit about the process. So you described some of the great franchisees you currently have in the system. So after obviously the first phone call might be with you, jason team members describe the process. Talk about the validation that you have, the few franchisees you have. There's going to be conversations where new franchisees or new candidates will have an opportunity to speak to existing franchisees. Now, for those listening, if you don't know what a franchise disclosure document is, yes, all franchise brands like the Birthday Suit have a franchise disclosure document. And guess what? There is an item 19. There is an earnings claim. You actually can make money in a franchise. So here's another great emerging brand that you should consider. So talk a little bit about that process.
Stacey 00:18:56 So it starts with, they end up with our sales team, and they do all the vetting and the talking, and they find out where they're really looking to open territories, their financials, things like that and then once they've shown significant interest, then we have an executive call where that's where myself or Jason comes in. And then after we talk, if they're super interested, we give them the opportunity. You want to come out to Vegas and do a Discovery Day without signing anything? Come on out, observe for a few hours, see how it works, meet our staff, meet our management, kind of see who would be training with you. And then if you want to go from there, we're prepared for you to sign on the spot there. If not, you want to think about it. Awesome. We'll go back to it. And then once it's signed, then we schedule them, um, to come back for about three to four days in Vegas with up to three of their staff for some in depth manager training, front of the house training. And then about three weeks before they open, we go to them for five days. Our team does for waxer training, manager training, front of the house training, making sure they're fully set up, their stockrooms are set up, their products are set up, their products educated. But in between that executive call and the time they sign, they can call us or email us with any question anytime they want. Like, it's not just we hang up. I won't talk to you. Taking me your check. You got more questions? I'm right here. You can get a hold of me. I'm so easy to find. And so we really want to make ourselves accessible from the beginning until the end to the end of time. We're constantly in communication with our franchisees and our ones that are in construction right now. We're constantly checking in on them, things like that, because we want to make sure, what can we help you do to take any stress or anxiety away? Like, what can we answer for you got it.
Lance Graulich 00:20:49 So we have the right franchisee. Now we train the franchisee. You talked a little bit about that. What about the marketing side of things? What is so special, uh, about your marketing that you make it so magnetic that you find customers right away? What's that secret sauce?
Stacey 00:21:07 Honestly, my publicist, I will say any emerging brand, any brand, really, but any emerging brand should for sure have a great PR team because they're able to.
Lance Graulich 00:21:16 And they're the bomb, aren't they?
Stacey 00:21:18 They are the brand bomb. I, uh, am so grateful for that team. You have no idea. I mean the US. Sun hello. I am in a publication almost every two weeks. Since picking up with them, they've gotten me bananas exposure. But they're able to get micro influencers from those communities. They're able to get press and media and radio, and mostly in exchange for services or products, as opposed to cash, which is great, because then you're not spending that money. You're not spending your marketing spend. And we have a very creative way to spend it. You don't have to put it into press. You don't have to put it into magazines. You want to make it into little swag bags and deliver to local businesses. Spend it that and because Vegas is such a transient community, we have people from everywhere. And our social media, we're so present on social media all the time that we're easy to find. We have a huge, you know, marketing has to be creative, because what works in Vegas may not work in Ohio, may not work in Texas, may not work know, Kansas. So marketing is a very niche thing, and we really want to make sure that people have the ability to be creative in their own community.
Lance Graulich 00:22:29 I love the idea that you're using those influencers, because obviously that's the wave of the future.
Stacey 00:22:36 Yeah, and we're all with a micro influencer, too. I don't want just, like, a 21 year old, because, believe it or not, our core client is the 35. And to 62 year old woman every three week is spending roughly $110 every three weeks. That's my core client. So that 21 year old, she doesn't relate to her. It's someone that looks like me. She's going to relate to that 40 something who says, I thought you were 22. We're friends now. I can tell you the truth. Can tell you like, they relate to me. I'm a mom, I'm working. They understand the different things about being this age and life and everything. So being a, micro influencer of a middle aged woman is going to relate to that woman. But that 21, 22 year old college student cocktail waitress is going to relate to those same girls in that market, too. So you just have to think of a very broad audience.
Lance Graulich 00:23:32 Right. Got it. So what about the men? What percentage of the clientele is men?
Stacey 00:23:39 We love our men, believe it or not. Everyone thinks it's so weird. First of all, men get far more than just intimate waxing. The push of males getting waxed in the last five years has almost tripled it's. Something like 64% of males in the US. Receive at least one body hair removal service a month. And don't get me wrong, male intimate waxing is a real thing, and it's a popular thing. It's a big portion of our client base, and it's not people think, oh, is it like the Chippendales? Is it this? No, it's the construction worker you passed on your way to work this morning. It's the bartender. It's the garbage man. It's this guy.
Lance Graulich 00:24:19 Intimate secrets revealed. Construction workers get waxed in their if.
Stacey 00:24:26 Those walls could talk.
Lance Graulich 00:24:29 Is that a it's?
Stacey 00:24:31 We call it a I mean, there's a million different things to call, so but, yeah, we have a huge male clientele, and again, especially in the coastal communities, the men that get their chest, their backs, their legs. But again, my husband worked in the nightclub industry in Vegas, and he's over 6ft tall. So when I look, I look up, at him. So nose hair waxing is a huge thing for the men, especially in the nightclub industry in Vegas, because they're holding a flashlight like this. So you're looking up their you know, we have tons of guys that get that nose a their know, things like that is a huge service.
Lance Graulich 00:25:09 So what do you do for the first time? Person, male, or female? It's probably more the men that are wimps than the women. If a guy comes to you for the first time for a service, how do you avoid that movie? What was that? The virgin movie.
Stacey 00:25:26 First of all, we don't use garbage wax like that.
Lance Graulich 00:25:29 That's why I'm asking you. I would imagine the Spanish wax is better.
Stacey 00:25:33 Yeah, we use a gorgeous hard wax so there's none of that ripping, pulling, bleeding, screaming. I try to do like a happy dance. A few high kicks, little chacha, break the ice, make sure they feel comfortable. Make sure they feel that we're relatable and we're not just being weird waxers under bright lights. But you just talk to them. Just talk. Keep the conversation flowing. No matter if it's an eyebrow or an intimate wax, you just talk and make them feel confident, comfortable. And a lot of times they just burt out the weirdest things and you're just mommy. Yeah, I have four pennies in my pocket. You're like, okay, but just whatever they need to say to keep themselves calm, we just go with it and be like, oh really? Where did you find your pennies? Kind of thing.
Lance Graulich 00:26:19 Oh my gosh. So let's talk about staffing a little bit and uh, what that sort of labor model looks like. We didn't even talk about the investment. So how big are the locations? What is that investment and what is the staffing like on a daily basis?
Stacey 00:26:37 We say to have four treatment rooms, a children's lounge, reception area, coffee area, um, and a small office closet. You need about 1400 sqft is the smallest you can go. One of our locations in Las Vegas is about 2500, has five rooms. It's humongous. Um, your investment can be anywhere from 113 to 447. That's where we are.
Lance Graulich 00:27:01 Item seven is obviously depending on construction costs and what building you inherit.
Stacey 00:27:06 Exactly. Like our Henderson location was the doctor's office. So it was all cosmetic. And it cost us under $50,000 to open because it was just floors and m paint and a really good deep clean and that was it. So if you find something that's a pre owned, like a pre done office setting, you're golden. And you just have to do cosmetic and whatever the Board of cosmetology their regulations are. But usually it's really minimal. And then if you're doing a full build out, obviously that's more because now you're doing structural and architecture and stuff like that. But honestly, you can get it done for minimal money. And we're constantly running great promos. Like if you sign in this time frame, we're going to give you your opening retail order as a gift from us so you can do it for very little. Our staff, we run about i, um, want to say there's like 14 girls at each location between twelve and 14. But you don't need that when you're first starting. You can run with a skeleton crew and build as you go. So your staff is staying busy because the last thing you want is them sitting around. So you want them to be busy and you want them to feel like they're part of the process and that's awesome when they can look back. And it was a joke when we first opened our very first location. The first few days, we were so slow, and my staff was like, you wait. You're going to look back and wish for these days because we're going to be so busy that you don't have time to pee. And sure enough, before the summer was over, we opened in June before Labor Day. We were wall to wall every day. And I was just like, remember when? And I just look back and I just think about how far we've come since then, and it's so awesome.
Lance Graulich 00:28:43 Yeah, that's amazing. And that's the exciting part about building a know. You're not going to open the doors and just knock the doors off with people waiting in line. Maybe by the new locations in Texas, you start to build that following know Vegas. I'm sure every location is going to start growing. And look, I love the information that you've shared. Your personality is just big, just like this opportunity. share with us today and the audience. Final thoughts, your final tips, final words of wisdom for people looking into entrepreneurship and maybe a franchise.
Stacey 00:29:23 I need people to normalize one our industry. Like, people are afraid of the body waxing industry, and you need to normalize it. Don't be afraid to talk about it, and don't be afraid to have fun with it. This is your business. This is your livelihood. Love what you do. Wake up and love what you're going to do that day and just have fun. And don't be afraid. If you don't know what someone's talking about it's okay. Ask questions, because I certainly do, because again, some of the words people use are so big and they don't make sense to me, and it could have been said so much simpler, but I feel like they're trying to outsmart me. And the best advice I got very early on from a female attorney who is a powerhouse in Nevada, she's like, think like a man because men will talk to you like a woman because women are emotional. She's like, think like a man. She said it more of a think with know, because the second you take the emotion out of the equation, people will take you seriously. So have fun with it and be passionate but understand. Like, you need to make yourself heard and seen and be big and have fun and just love what you do. And that's me. I'm passionate, which is why I'm hard to talk to you sometimes because I go off on these trails and I'm just so passionate about my business, and I just love it so much. But you know what? That's why I'm doing what I'm doing is because I want other people to be as excited and as passionate about this. You know what? And I want the whole world to be hairless. So there we go.
Lance Graulich 00:30:47 I love it. The whole world should be hair. Happy. Stacey, you are awesome. The birthday suit is your brand. Thank you so much for being here with us, and I will definitely see you soon.
Stacey 00:31:00 Have a great day. Thanks for having me.
Lance Graulich 00:31:02 My pleasure. Thank you very much for listening today. Please, like, follow and subscribe. This is Lance Graulich. Until next time.