Good Neighbor Podcast: Fort Collins
Bringing together local businesses and neighbors of Fort Collins. Good Neighbor Podcast hosted by Nick George helps residents discover and connect with your local business owners in and around Fort Collins, Colorado.
Is your business serving the residents of Fort Collins? Then, we need to talk! Visit gnpFortCollins.com to schedule your free interview.
Good Neighbor Podcast: Fort Collins
E45: Redefining Med Spa Culture: It's Not What You Think
Ever wondered what happens behind the elegant doors of a med spa? Turns out, it's not just about luxury treatments for the elite—it's a wellness journey accessible to everyone, including your neighbors.
Mark Koepsell, owner of Xanadu Med Spa, reveals the surprising breadth of modern med spa offerings that extend far beyond what most people imagine. With over 150 services spanning traditional day spa treatments, medical aesthetic procedures, and body contouring, Xanadu represents a comprehensive approach to wellness where science meets self-care.
What makes Mark's story particularly compelling is his unexpected path to spa ownership. After spending 260+ nights a year in hotel beds as a nonprofit management CEO, he sought a dramatic lifestyle change. Ten years later, he's still passionate about the business, continuously educating himself on the science, medicine, and physics behind effective treatments. This dedication to knowledge translates directly to better client outcomes.
Perhaps the most valuable takeaway from our conversation is Mark's candid assessment of treatment reality: "A treatment might be 25% of the process, but 75% is what you're doing at home." This honest approach demystifies the journey to wellness and beauty, emphasizing that real results require partnership between provider and client. As Mark puts it, "The med spa client is your neighbor and the neighbor next to them"—everyday people seeking to look and feel their best.
Want to learn more about what a med spa can offer you? Visit https://www.xanadumedspa.com/ or call 970-482-1889 for a complimentary, no-obligation consultation with Mark's team of 24 dedicated professionals who care "about the client at the deepest core of who they are."
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Nick George.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of a med spa that combines five-star elegance with warm, down-to-earth vibes, where every guest feels like a VIP among friends? One might be closer than you think. Today I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, mark Kepsel, with Xanadu Med Spa. Mark, how are you doing?
Speaker 3:I'm doing great. Thanks so much for having me.
Speaker 2:No problem, we're excited to learn all about you and your business. Tell us about your practice.
Speaker 3:Well, I'm going to try to expedite this because I could go on and on, but, in short, xanadu Med Spa. We've got a fully functioning day spa, so think massage, facials, hydrafacials, body wraps a fully functioning med spa, so things like Botox, fillers, lasers and things like that. And then we've got a body contouring center where we literally can sculpt and contour your body, so all three come together under one roof. We've got over 150 services. We've got 24 staff, a medical director, everything from nurses to estheticians, massage therapists, and that's it in a nutshell.
Speaker 2:How did you get into this business?
Speaker 3:I kind of just fell into it. To be very honest, I came out of a whole life in higher education and nonprofit management and I was the CEO of a nonprofit management company. We had 18 different organizations, I was working with 18 different boards and I was on the road across North America nonstop. That last year I slept in a hotel bed more than 260 nights of the year and I thought I've got to change this. And what sounds better than a spa, right? So when I saw Xanadu for sale, it came to me, via a friend actually, who said you should think about this. I thought, okay, that sounds great. How hard could it be? I may have been a little naive, but that was, you know, a little more than 10 years ago. And the rest is history. And here we are.
Speaker 2:What are some myths or misconceptions in your industry?
Speaker 3:I think a big misconception is that you can come in, you can get a treatment and it's going to fix everything overnight. The reality is the treatment protocol process it's a journey, it's a path, and so it works best if you start proactively and then keep up with it. But even if you haven't, we certainly can catch up with you. But it's not all just going to happen overnight. And even more than that, I think you have to understand that a treatment might be 25% of the process, but 75% is what you're doing at home, and the two come together and you know, it's kind of like people that go to Weight Watchers but then they go to McDonald's. It doesn't work so well. The same thing might be true here.
Speaker 2:A lot of people think that they know who the average customer for an anesthetician is or an esthetician. But who are your target customers today and how do you attract them?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think in reality, our target clients are people between the ages of 30 and 65. And 65. In reality, it's primarily women, although the male market is growing exponentially year over year. And how do we attract them? I do a lot of work within the local networks and really the best advertising are your own clients, and so if you can get your own clients to talk about the fabulous experience that they had, that's the best marketing you can get.
Speaker 2:Have you ever thought about doing your own podcast with your own clients?
Speaker 3:I have not, but maybe I should.
Speaker 2:Outside of work. What do you do for fun?
Speaker 3:Well, I love to travel, but here in town, maybe not staying in hotel rooms 260 nights of the year, but I love to travel. But I spend a lot of time in my garden in the summertime. Um, it's kind of the place to start the morning and the place to end the evening. Um, it's more of like, um, a surrounding flower garden. I've turned the entire backyard into a garden, so that's just the place that gives me peace and a little tranquility.
Speaker 2:Yeah, more of that inner work wisdom that you're giving us tips on that leads to good outer visibility. Right exactly, let's switch gears. Can you name or describe a hardship or life challenge that you overcame and how it made you stronger? What comes to mind?
Speaker 3:Oh wow, I think well shoot.
Speaker 2:You may have already answered that question taking over this business? Was there something else that was more challenging, that resulted in Okay, that's a good way to say it.
Speaker 3:Yes, so you come in and you can understand how to run a business. Okay, but every business has a widget, and so getting to know and understand your widget is a big part of the process, and this one certainly has a lot of nuances, especially when you've got the broad spectrum that that we use and provide within the service, and so I think certainly just being able to talk the talk, walk the walk, understand there's a lot of science involved, there's a lot of medicine involved, there's a lot of physics involved, and so the learning curve was probably a little higher than I originally anticipated. But I'll go back to my background in higher education. That's when you dive in and you just do a lot of education, and whether that's going to conferences, conventions, getting certifications. I love everything that we have available to us online through like YouTube, but I bet you I'm registering for two and three Zoom education seminars weekly.
Speaker 2:Wow, Mark. Please tell our listeners one thing they should absolutely remember about Xanadu Med Spa.
Speaker 3:I think one thing to remember is the staff cares about the client at the deepest core of who they are. Every single staff member really does and they care about that journey. I think a lot of people that when they think about med spas, they think it's a place like for glam and they put it into this like box and really box, and really it's for every person, every average person, because we all have those things we want to work on, right, maybe it's a laser hair removal, maybe it's a tattoo. We got that. We regret that. The list goes on and on. But the biggest mistake people make is that they have this perception of what a med spa client is and in reality, if you were to sit in our lobby, you'd see the med spa client is your neighbor and the neighbor next to them and everybody who looks just like them.
Speaker 2:Mark, how can our listeners learn more about Xanadu Med Spa listeners learn more about Xanadu.
Speaker 3:Med Spa Yep. Our website is full of information. That's wwwxanadumedspacom. And certainly consultations here are always free. So if there's just something you're interested in and want to learn more, just call us up at 970-482-1889. Us up at 970-482-1889. And we'd love to get you set up with a complimentary consultation no obligation, just to learn more.
Speaker 2:Well, Mark, I really appreciate you being on the show and we wish you and your practice the best moving forward.
Speaker 3:Well, I appreciate it. Thanks so much for the opportunity.