"Why would they choose me?" Starting your own aesthetics clinic
A Q&A with Cerys Underhill, founder of Phoenix Aesthetics
There's a lot to think about when you're starting out in aesthetics.
You've done the training. You're ready to treat. And then comes the part that can feel much harder to prepare for: actually building a business.
How do you find your first patients? How do you build trust? What should your brand look like? And, when there are already so many practitioners out there, why would someone choose you?
It's a question Cerys Underhill, founder of Phoenix Aesthetics, remembers asking herself when she started.
We sat down with Cerys to talk about those early days, what helped her build confidence and the advice she'd give to practitioners starting their own clinic today.
What was the hardest part about starting your clinic?
"The hardest thing about starting a business is wondering why anybody would choose me as their injector when the industry is so unregulated and so saturated. Why would they choose me?"
It's a feeling we hear from new practitioners a lot.
When you're starting from scratch, it can be difficult not to look at established clinics and wonder how you'll compete.
But building a successful clinic isn't about trying to be everyone else's clinic.
It's about gradually giving patients reasons to trust you, through how you communicate, how you present your business and, most importantly, how you care for them.
That confidence doesn't necessarily arrive on day one. It's something you build.
How did Glowday help you?
"Glowday definitely helped build me up so I could have confidence in myself, and then confidence in my business.
"I knew from the get-go that I wanted to be very selective about what I associated with my business. Whatever it was, it needed to be professional, clean, modern, slick.
"Glowday caught my eye initially because of its beautiful branding and how it looked. The visuals just really kind of matched my energy and my vibe, and that kind of vibe that I wanted to give to patients.
"These tiny details actually really do mean so much when you're being so selective about who and what will represent your business."
Cerys makes an important point here.
When you're building a new clinic, the little things don't feel little.
Your website. Your booking experience. Your photography. Your communication. The platforms you choose to use.
Together, they tell patients what kind of practitioner you are before they've even walked through your door.
Being thoughtful about those decisions isn't about making everything perfect. It's about creating a business that feels professional, considered and true to you.
What did you find most useful?
"The template posts were super helpful — especially when first starting out, because it gives you ideas on what to post, how to post, what to set it out like.
"But I would say the biggest asset to Glowday is Hannah. She is so supportive and passionate about her Glowday gang, and it really, really shows through.
"She has really helpful information and snippets on her Instagram, which basically is like the Bible for you to just hit the ground running. Which is super, super helpful, especially when you're first starting out."
Knowing what to post was something Cerys found difficult when she was getting started and she's certainly not alone.
When you're treating patients, learning, managing your diary and trying to build a business at the same time, marketing can quickly become another job on an already long list.
Having practical resources to start from can make that blank page feel a lot less daunting.
But there's something else in Cerys's answer that matters to us: support.
Glowday Pro was never intended to be software that we simply hand over and leave practitioners to figure out.
We want practitioners to feel that there's a team of real people behind the platform who understand the challenges of building an aesthetics business and genuinely want to help.
What advice would you give to new practitioners?
"Invest your time and invest your money in people and platforms and organisations that will help support you too.
"Being a new practitioner and being solo can be absolutely terrifying and scary, and you don't really know which direction to go in.
"But choosing a platform like Glowday will help put you on the right track to help support and grow your business."
There's a temptation when you're starting out to think you need to figure everything out yourself.
You don't.
Finding the right people, systems and support around you can make those first months feel a lot less daunting.
You won't know everything when you open your diary.
You don't need to.
Keep learning. Ask questions. Build good habits early. And give yourself time to grow into the business owner you want to become.
Starting out? We're here to help.
If you're in your first year of practice, you can currently get six months of Glowday Pro free, with access to every feature and no card required to sign up.