The Wellx Story…
As many of you know, I co-own Rejuvenation Day Spa in Portland, OR. I love being part of the wellness industry, a big shift from my long-time financial background. I had no idea that having my first massage would lead me to build Rejuvenation Day Spa with my massage therapist, Diana. We often tease each other, especially when the toilet backs up, about our glamorous dream of owning a spa.
When we opened Rejuvenation 12 years ago, we knew we were on a journey to create a special place. Now, we run one of the most successful spas in Portland.
I’ve known my new business partner, Chris Ragot, veteran CEO and close friend, for many years. Last April, Chris and his wife were visiting Portland, so I scheduled them for a visit to Rejuvenation Day Spa. After his massage, Chris commented, “It must be really hard to match supply and demand in this business!” Yes, he really talks like that, even after a massage.
That simple comment kicked off multiple exciting discussions about how to match supply and demand in the spa industry. We named our project Spa Exchange. Chris and I met with web consultants and started putting together a business plan.
On our journey, we found Cynthia, a certified project manager and systems analyst. Cynthia helped design our initial application ideas. She brought a co-worker, James, on board to provide web architecture expertise. I then recruited my daughter, Rebecca, who worked with me at the spa for 10 years, to assist as subject matter expert. Our start-up team was complete.
Before beginning development, Chris and I flew to Scottsdale, AZ to test our Spa Exchange concept in a large target market. We were faced with the reality of an economic slowdown in this resort area. Spa visits were down. Spa owners didn’t really need our product because they lacked clients, not service providers.
Interestingly, we found a renewed sense of purpose from the service providers, as they shared their needs for opportunities:
- Desire for stronger identity than currently provided by professional associations
- Better buying power from group membership: insurance, business products, supplies
- A sense of community and place to share ideas
- Business training
As a spa owner, I had not thought about the industry from that perspective. If Spa Exchange were to move forward, we had to view our new business differently. I realized that improving the work situation for providers would grow the entire industry. A new focus emerged.
Cynthia and James suggested we broaden the scope of our project even further. Why only spa providers? Don’t other wellness professionals face the same challenges? Of course they do. So, Spa Exchange grew into Wellness Exchange.
Our team conducted additional focus groups again in Scottsdale and in other markets. Wellness Exchange quickly became a community with a business application designed by wellness professionals for wellness professionals. We shortened the name to Wellx and branded our unique concept. Check out our blog that documents our development journey of bringing this web site, this community and integrated business application to market.
Shari Jacobson
Wellx.com CEO