Treating today’s clients so they can look younger tomorrow is the focus for Luminiere Skin Clinics.

A recent addition to the skincare business in the franchise space, Luminiere is the brainchild of managing director Cameron Fancourt.  Fancourt has clocked up experience in the spa and beauty sector including a mobile massage business and day spa chain Beauty Spa International.

As the name suggests however, his most recent concept is not just about the feel-good factor, it picks up on the trend for results-driven services that target our desire for a more youthful appearance.

Says Fancourt, “For the best part of the last four to five years I’ve been a consultant to day spa retailers and hotel groups, working on an anti-ageing platform. There are enough to stats to show the anti-ageing space is fast growing.

“We’re dealing more on results based services and return on investment; if we sell a series [of treatments] it’s better for client return. Clients want to come back to the therapist. In day spas its harder to get loyalty.”

HIGHER PRICED SERVICES

On the menu are technical treatments such as anti-wrinkle injections, cosmeceutical facials, dermal fillers, intense pulsed light (IPL) hair reduction, laser treatments, microdermabrasion and peels. Equipment includes advanced cosmetic lasers and IPL systems from Palomar and Omnilux Light Therapy.

There’s a bigger cost component to the set up with these specialised machines but this is reflected in the higher prices a clinic can charge for its services.

“There’s certainly an appetite for this, there are low overheads outside the equipment costs,” says Fancourt.

Brand consistency is important in any franchise, and at Luminiere this will extend to the product lines: Aspect, Skinceuticals, Gatineau Paris and Priori. “There is a diverse range of skin needs and we are price point specific; associated with high end we can provide our clients with high end results.”

Fancourt believes the experience garnered in day spas and consultancy puts the Luminiere team ahead of standard operators. “We ensure our services are superior and we provide outstanding results.” 

TRIED AND TESTED

The spacious flagship skin clinic in Sydney’s affluent Eastern Suburbs was an existing business acquired by Luminiere, and has kept much of its client base, and grown it, in the months since re-branding. It opened its doors in autumn 2013 and has generated new customers through word of mouth referral, local marketing and social media.

Above: the Double Bay Luminiere Skin Clinic

To give the clients confidence the clinic needs to employ experienced, qualified therapists and clinicians. “We have to ensure our services are superior. We have to provide the results and a quality service.”

The Double Bay premises on two floors with a picture window profile at the front and back of the building, is designed to be on the softer side of clinical. “The environment is comfortable and warm, image is a really big part of our business, and we have a professional image,” says Fancourt.

GROWING THE CLINIC NETWORK

The business goal is to grow the network over five years to reach at least 50 clinics in Australia. Further international expansion is part of the plan too. 

Fancourt has a number of options to help develop the brand at a variety of levels. Another clinic in Noosa, with a 60 sq m footprint, has proved its worth as a smaller model and shows the concept can be adapted to different environments.

Fancourt also sees potential in business partnerships with medical professionals such as doctors, dentists and podiatrists who can add the clinic’s anti-wrinkle injections to their suite of treatments. One or two rooms as add-ons or a small stand-alone clinic are viable options, he believes: the medical link will work well because professional integrity and indemnity is a strong part of the equation.

Existing salon owners who want the benefits of branding and support that a franchise brings can rebadge their business; senior therapists looking for the next level in their career can step up to franchisee status.

For those franchisees from within the beauty industry business acumen is valued too though the franchisor provides some business support. 

But beauty therapy experience isn’t essential; the clinic could also be an investment for a business or professional group looking to develop multiple units.

Images: Luminiere Skin Clinics