Television personality and AZfoothills.com columnist Nadine Toren is scouring the area, finding savvy Valley features, bringing readers “on the scene.” Every day she’ll introduce you to celebrities, athletes, and give you an inside look into local events and hot spots. She'll touch on topical issues, and keep AZ fans posted on all the big talkers around town.

Craving some TLC?  Want to look picture perfect for your Valentine?  Meet the mastermind behind AZ's neighborhood spa, and find out her treatment pick for every Valley vixen!

She’s the owner of Hand and Stone & Facial Spa in Scottsdale, but Maggie Brown didn’t really come from a background in beauty.  As a child, her mom instilled in her the grooming Golden Rule: always wash your face before bedtime…and don’t forget to moisturize!  Apparently those wise words stuck with Maggie over the years, and it ultimately drove her to pursue her passion: running a unique Valley spa. 

All her life, Maggie’s had an entrepreneurial spirit; however, she spent the earlier of her career working a traditional nine to five.  She spent 15 years with IBM, holding multiple management positions in sales and marketing.  After realizing the massage and facial niche has quite a draw, Maggie decided to ditch the tech world and become the Arizona Regional Developer for the Hand and Stone Massage and Facial Spa franchise.

Maggie was the first franchisee and first regional developer for the Hand and Stone franchise, and she says there’s no better place to run such a biz, than in AZ.  She constantly works with franchise brokers, coaches, transition advisors, technical schools, college programs, and local networking groups to showcase the proven business model behind Hand and Stone ownership. And even though the recession has hit high-end spas pretty hard, Maggie’s confident the resort-quality “neighborhood” spa is seeing rapid expansion.

In fact, she says the demand for massage, facials and waxing in North America has never been greater.

Maggie says Hand & Stone is unique because it offers services priced about 30-40% less than the average spa.  (The five Arizona locations are also open 7 days a week.) 

Fittingly, Hand & Stone is known for their hot stone massages, especially soothing for athletes.  Of course, the spa offers typical services like waxing, and all aestheticians are experts on an array of facial treatments.  However, Maggie says her personal spa pick is their microdermabrasion.  The popular non-invasive procedure gently removes dead skin and buffs your face’s surface.  (It also helps trigger collagen production making your skin look more youthful.)  Microdermabrasions also aid in removing fine lines and wrinkles, and it speeds up the natural rate of skin cell renewal which improves your overall appearance.

Even though Hand & Stone’s microdermabrasions cost $125, Maggie says committing to a series of 10 habitual treatments is still less than the traditional cosmetic surgery.  However, you can join Hand & Stone’s Lifestyle Program, and opt for spa services at a discounted rate. 

As a female entrepreneur and business owner, Maggie says the key to success is loving what you do, and if you do, good things will quickly follow.  She also says Hand & Stone expects to have over 100 spas open in 2012.  Maggie’s currently working on Chandler, Mesa, and Gilbert locations, so if you’re interested in joining this beautifying bandwagon, shoot her an e-mail.

For more information, visit www.handandstone.com

 

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