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She Built It® Podcast
Welcome to the She Built It® podcast. Join me as I talk to women who have successfully built it - a life and business that they love. We dive into the topic of “how” they built it and talk about everything from having the courage to make career leaps to the details of how to lead effectively, build teams, implement growth strategies, and infuse tech innovation. Magic happens when we focus on the part of ourselves and our business that brings us joy so let’s dive in.
She Built It® Podcast
How ORA Method Is Redefining Wellness with Kimberly Ross
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On She Built It®, Kimberly Ross shares the deeply personal journey behind ORA Method, a New York City wellness practice she built at the intersection of clinical treatment and everyday ritual. Diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at 11 and later struggling with Hashimoto's and digestive issues, Kimberly found life-changing relief through acupuncture and made it her mission to make that experience more approachable for others.
From a single acupuncture practice rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine to a full wellness brand now expanding into at-home devices, Kimberly talks about what it takes to build something that is both luxurious and credible, how to scale a service-based business without losing quality, and why regulating the nervous system is the foundation of everything ORA does.
This conversation is for every founder and woman who has stopped looking for a quick fix and started investing in how they actually feel.
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She Built It® CEO, Melanie Barr Instagram
I'm your host, Melanie Barr. Today's guest is Kim Ross, founder of Aura Method. We're seeing a real shift right now in wellness and beauty. People are moving away from quick fixes and starting to invest in long-term results-driven rituals that actually support how they feel over time. Kim has built Aura Method from our own healing journey, creating a space in New York City that blends clinical treatments with everyday rituals and reflecting where this industry is going, why do you think more consumers are moving away from quick fixes and towards long-term rituals and results-driven wellness?
SPEAKER_01Everyone loves a quick fix, but the reality is that if you feel good for a quick moment in time, but then you go back to feeling the same way, that doesn't feel good. And I saw that with my own health journey into acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine where I had a thyroid condition, Hashimoto, and a lot of digestive issues, and was given a, you know, a prescription pill. And I started feeling good for a week. And then I went back to how I was feeling or had to go up and increase the dose of medication. People in general are trying to feel good. And if you feel good, you look good. A quick fix seems good, but isn't really helping you even feel good on the inside. So a lot of what we do at Aura Method is really focusing on regulating your nervous system because if your whole system is fully thrown off, it's going to impact how you show up in everything that you do and how you feel and how you look. If you can get to that foundation and regulate your nervous system, then you can, there's so much more you can take on from there.
SPEAKER_00I love how you're blending the two. I have started to do five-minute meditations in the morning and stretching, and it changes the course of my entire day. So there really is something to regulating your nervous system.
SPEAKER_01The days are so intense. You're constantly consuming information, consuming content, your emails. It's impossible to take a second and take a pause. So giving yourself a chance to helps then give you the space and energy to focus on what the day is gonna bring. And people are craving that and needing that. It doesn't have to be these huge retreats, but some small things you can do in your daily routine to help you feel better.
SPEAKER_00And someone who's first being introduced to Aura method, tell us about it and share with us a little bit about who you are.
SPEAKER_01When I first opened Aura, it was focused solely on I was in my mid-20s, working in New York City, had a lot of digestive issues and was desperate to feel better. A doctor recommended acupuncture and I went not knowing anything about it. And it was the first time that took up my health and treated it holistically, and I started feeling so much better. And then a year later, I moved to Boston. I stopped going to my regular acupuncture treatments. And when I went to find an acupuncturist in Boston, it was difficult. I found someone because I was determined to, but thought so many more people could benefit from acupuncture if they knew more about it, where to go, who to trust, and had a more approachable experience around it. Acupuncture, and you think needles and clinical at best, but the treatment is as relaxing as it is healing. And I wanted to create an experience and space that did so. And it was at the time when like boutique fitness was really in its era and wellness was slowly entering the scene. And when we first started, it was rooted in acupuncture, and that still is so much at the core of what we do. But seeing what our clients were looking for, we expanded our service offerings and then into products at more ways to reach people to regulate their nervous system and help them feel their best. We expanded with full body massages along with other facials that incorporate Chinese medicine and modalities in them. Recently, we expanded that offering into at-home experience, which is with our LED guasha. We incorporated red light therapy into our acupuncture treatments. It's great for inflammation, for cellular repair.
SPEAKER_00It's smart that you did this because you could have a massage and then also include the acupuncture. And then I coming out of COVID, so many people started to do more in-home treatments and started to take care of the quick fixes went away during that time because we were all at home and we were forced to slow down.
SPEAKER_01Sometimes all of the wellness world can be quite intimidating and overwhelming. And we want to make it more approachable and ways to save time while getting a lot of things at the same time. So our acupuncture and many of our treatments, while you get full-body acupuncture, you get red light therapy along with meditation. And at home, you get a three-in-one device. Instead of doing all your steps, it's one step in one.
SPEAKER_00You have spoken openly about your type one diabetes diagnosis and how it shaped your healing journey. How did that experience influence the way you built your business and the kind of wellness brand that you wanted to create?
SPEAKER_01I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when I was 11. My older sister was diagnosed when she was our health was a focus in our family before we wanted it to be. But I learned at a young age you can't take your health for granted. And I learned it doesn't need to stop you from doing anything. And while did not cure my type 1 diabetes, I wear an insulin pump. I love my endocrinologist, but you know, I had other health-related issues. And I acupuncture helped with a lot of those issues.
SPEAKER_00You have the Laura method at the intersection of clinical treatment and at-home ritual. What can other founders learn from making something that feels both credible and approachable?
SPEAKER_01Finding the team and finding the people that are the credible, amazing healers, and then we found a great manufacturer for our product and making it more approachable because the wellness world can be quite intimidating. And so finding a way is to bring those trusted voices in a way that is also reaching what people's needs are and speaking to them.
SPEAKER_00Having something that you can do at home is definitely more approachable, but the blend of both is what we all really want.
SPEAKER_01It's important so much of what we do is around education.
SPEAKER_00When you look at areas like red light and lymphatic drainage, how do you evaluate what has real staying power versus what is simply having a moment?
SPEAKER_01What is both a quick fix and what are the things that have long-term benefits? There's a lot of things that when you combine two different modalities, you get both the benefit of the quick fix and the long-term benefits of it, which especially you see with their LED guasha, because there is such a quick fix within moments, you really are lifted. One side of your face, you do it looks entirely lifted and depuffed than the other. But the red light benefits you build upon over time. And lymphatic drainage is something that is super beneficial, but is more of a, you know, a quick fix. You feel you, how can you combine different things so you can get both benefits in the same time?
SPEAKER_00Women are taking a longer approach of how can I make this sustainable over time and how can I take care of myself and continue to feel good throughout my days?
SPEAKER_01You have to put in the work, but the work can be part of what makes you feel your best. It's not like you put in the work for the end result, but you're building it each day.
SPEAKER_00The at-home beauty device market is growing quickly. What do business leaders need to understand about trust and education in order to build well in this category?
SPEAKER_01Coming up with a product that you believe in. People's first hand experience and testimonials and aspects of that is so important because at the end of the day, our experience with it that really matters. And if you start with a product that is trusted, that has clinical validation, and then you bring it to people and you see their experience that that builds over time.
SPEAKER_00What has it taken to position or a method as both a luxury experience and a credible wellness brand? And what can other founders learn from that balance?
SPEAKER_01From the beginning, it was important to both focus on the overall experience, but honor traditional Chinese medicine, the luxurious component of all the five senses of our client and the experience they're gonna have from the moment they walk in, the touch of the sheets, the scent in the room, what you're hearing, both greeting in our front of house, but also, you know, we've worked with the meditation expert to create guided breath work and meditation. Then you need to marry it with great trusted practitioners, whether it be our acupuncturist, massage therapist, or aesthetician. So you're getting both the trusted voice and delivering it in a luxurious experience.
SPEAKER_00As someone building and running businesses, as a mom, as a woman leading a busy lifestyle, it's hard to take out that time. And when we do, we want the absolute best experience possible. So I'm sure it's really appreciated all the care that you've put in.
SPEAKER_01People don't have a lot of time. So you have to make it as effective as possible.
SPEAKER_00What have you learned about scaling a service-based business while also expanding into products? And where can founders go wrong with this transition?
SPEAKER_01The true scaling is around the people and the practitioners and the healers. It is hard to fully scale because you need the people to do so. And if you lose sight of the quality of care and focus straight on scaling, then you're letting down your customers and the you don't get that full luxurious experience. As we transition to product, which we we just launched, and what excites me about it is the ability to reach more people outside of New York City and still like maintaining that level of quality. It's smart to have that service and then the product because now your reach is global. We launched with it uh LED Gouacia Facial and incorporate our LED gouache throughout all of our services. So if you are visiting New York or you live in New York, you can experience the device.
SPEAKER_00When you think about the future of wellness, beauty, and recovery, where do you see the biggest opportunities for founders building brands in this space?
SPEAKER_01The importance of taking care of your mind and body isn't in a silo. It impacts the beauty and it impacts everything and goes back to the first question of the quick fix versus long-term holistic integrative approach. Can't be a quick fix and you have to think of your body fully holistically.
SPEAKER_00When we're busy, we can let things slide. It all the little things help you to feel your best. We've talked a lot about business today. How do you make sure that you're finding and living your joy throughout your days?
SPEAKER_01I have two young kids, and the day-to-day can be so chaotic, but helps me to enjoy the chaos versus being more stressed and reactionary to the chaos. I found meditating has helped me feel the joy.
SPEAKER_00Thank you for joining us today and telling us all about Aura Method and your products and encouraging us to be healthy and take care of ourselves. Please share with us how and where we can find you.
SPEAKER_01So you could find us at auramethod.com or on Instagram at Auromethod, and you could see us in our New York City locations in Noho, downtown New York, or on the Upper East Side.