Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Kay Overley, Co-Founder of Body Contouring Academy, located in San Antonio, TX, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We are two medical spa entrepreneurs (Shannon Schimmel & Kay Overley) who have owned and operated successful medical spas since 2006. We brought the Body Contouring Academy (a digital education business) into being in 2019 upon learning there were so many business owners and providers who were struggling with success with non-invasive body contouring.
We knew we could help other business owners and providers find the success we achieved with body contouring. So we created the Body Contouring Academy to assist others in growing (or starting) a profitable non-invasive body contouring practice by sharing our experience and knowledge via the systems, processes, techniques, protocols, and tools we’ve developed over a span of twenty-plus years.
Tell us about yourself
We are an Aesthetician (Shannon) and an RN/Attorney (Kay) who, after combined twenty-plus years in the medspa industry, partnered to form a boutique medical spa. In less than 18 months, we grew our niche concept, Sculpt Away, into a million-dollar-plus business. And because of the finely tuned systems, processes, and protocols we developed, Sculpt Away continues to operate at that level today.
We are recognized as experts in non-invasive body shaping and published a book to share our knowledge, Body Contouring 101, Your guide to getting the body you want without surgery, to benefit providers and consumers alike. And we host a podcast called Proven Profits to assist aesthetic professionals in building and growing their businesses.
Building and growing aesthetic businesses are our things. After reaching our goals, we now get gratification in helping others achieve their dreams and build and grow their own successful aesthetic businesses.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
To date, our crowning achievement is our medical spa, Sculpt Away. In less than eighteen months, we grew Sculpt Away into a million-dollar-plus body contouring business that continues to grow and operate at that level today. We did it by developing fine-tuned systems, checklists, scripts, emails, techniques, protocols, and all kinds of other tools.
Bringing all that we’d learned as business owners in the aesthetics industry since 2006, it was in the creating, operating, and growing Sculpt Away where we finetuned our secrets to growing a successful aesthetics business. And though our new business, the Body Contouring Academy, is a completely different business model, we have used all that we learned since 2006 and while building and growing Sculpt Away to mold the Academy into the successful digital education business that it is today.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
One of the hardest things that come with being a business owner is making the tough decisions that you know might affect or hurt others. And being kind to others and acting with grace while taking action.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
You must have a strong USP in today’s marketplace to start, run and grow a business…and to build a business with stay power. It’s tempting and easy to follow the trends or want to bring on the exciting ‘new thing,’ but we believe you’ll find long-term success only if you follow these three steps:
- Find your niche.
- Be unique.
- Stay the course in all you do.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://bodycontouringacademy.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bodycontouringacademy/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bodycontouring.academy/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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