Beauty and wellness professionals often face challenges their peers in corporate America never experience, like finding a job with full health benefits, a competitive salary, or a career they can grow in–even as their goals and aspirations change.
Professionals at LifeSpa, located inside Life Time Athletic Country Clubs, have a different reality.
LifeSpa offers a workplace setting unlike any other to salon and spa professionals, with full health and dental benefits, paid education, a built-in clientele, growth opportunities, the ability to move locations (there are 150+ LifeSpa locations across North America), and much more.
We talked to three LifeSpa employees to learn more about how they have built their careers.
Fully Focused, Fully Booked
Francisco Furtado, Elite Stylist
Francisco Furtado’s career as a stylist has taken a few twists and turns. The Elite Stylist at LifeSpa in Green Valley, Nevada, has been a hairdresser for more than 20 years, and was an owner for seven of those years.
He worked in several different states before landing in the Las Vegas area in 2016 and starting at LifeSpa in 2017.
Building a clientele: “I started with zero clientele and had to build a base,” Furtado says. “Now, I’m booked two to three weeks out.”
With a constant flow of Life Time members walking through the door, Furtado was quickly able to build a solid clientele.
“I got a lot of walk-ins, and word-of-mouth from my clients helped build me further,” he says. “We have more than 3,000 people walking into my club daily. They see the salon and spa and love it for its convenience.”
Within three years, Furtado moved from stylist to senior to master, and finally to elite.
“Building a client book at LifeSpa was easier than other times I had to rebuild due to the constant flow of members coming in,” he says.
He also credits the Life Time team members in other departments for shoutouts and referrals.
“The team is truly a family—it’s not a competitive environment like I’ve experienced before,” Furtado says. “We’re always collaborating, and employees in other departments cross-promote each other.”
Thriving on Education: Before landing at LifeSpa, Furtado prioritized advanced education in his career, so he was thrilled to find education was a priority LifeSpa shared.
“When I joined LifeSpa, I got a lot of training through our product partners–Wella, Kérastase and Oribe,” he says.
Furtado’s passion for advanced education eventually led him to realize one of his professional dreams: working at New York Fashion Week.
“I’ve represented LifeSpa at Fashion Week three times, working with the Wella team,” he says. “Working at New York Fashion Week was something I have always dreamed of, but never thought I’d have the opportunity,” Furtado says.
“It was an unbelievable experience to be behind the scenes and work alongside stylists from all over the country,” he says. “The trips were all expenses paid, and I got training pay while working.”
He has also earned the opportunity to attend classes at the Wella Academy in California.
“I’ve basically got a masters in color now,” he says. “I’ve had so many opportunities and am still learning and taking classes on current trends. Education is a boost of energy for me and keeps me in the momentum of the industry.”
When Furtado and his fellow stylists are interested in a new trend–they just let their leader know.
“If we need a class, we tell our leader, and she contacts a rep to schedule it,” he says. “Leadership is very open to sourcing classes.”
Advanced education is just part of Furtado’s compensation package at LifeSpa. The sliding commission scale goes up to 70 percent—a competitive number.
“The more you bring in, the more you make,” Furtado says. “LifeSpa provides everything, and I just show up. Why would I open my own salon when I don’t have to worry about anything here? I have a complimentary membership to the club, health insurance, dental, vision, 401(k), and a discounted rate at the club for my partner or spouse.”.
Hitting Career Goals: Last year, Furtado had his biggest year ever and made over $204k in sales.
“And I hit that $204k working four days per week, Tuesday through Friday.”
A flexible schedule allows Furtado to make up days if he’s taking vacation or a day or two, so clients can still get in to see their favorite stylist. His skill set, drive to learn and client relationships have made him an MVP at LifeSpa and given him the life work balance he desires.
Working in Her Happy Place
Roza Juncaj, Esthetician
After entering the spa world as a receptionist, Roza Juncaj studied business and then moved into spa leadership. But she found that wasn’t her passion, so she went back to school to become an Esthetician. For the past 23 years, she has spent her career as an Esthetician and skin care expert at the LifeSpa in Rochester Hills, Michigan.
“Work is literally my happy place,” Juncaj says. “If I have anything going on in my personal world, I can’t wait to get to work where I zone out and focus on helping people.”
Why She Loves LifeSpa: “It boils down to the people,” Juncaj says. “I’m results-driven, and approach skin care from the inside out. LifeSpa guests and members of Life Time prioritize wellness and self-care—they want a healthy lifestyle.”
Because of the health-forward clientele, Juncaj doesn’t have to convince them to start the basics like drinking water or having a skin cleansing routine. Her guests are already there.
“We have a sophisticated clientele who take vitamins, exercise, drink water and live a healthy lifestyle with wellness at front-of-mind,” she says. “And all our team members are the same way.”
Juncaj has also found her guests are open to new and different services.
“Clients already have some type of routine going and they want to elevate it,” she says. “They’re ready to get into more pharmaceutical-grade products. I’m their problem solver. I ask all the questions about sleep, eating, etc. It’s my passion, and I love every second.”
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: “Anything I have accomplished comes with a whole network of people,” says Juncaj. “The support staff makes appointments, and takes care of customers, and other team members help cross-promote.”
From the workers in the LifeCafe, Life Time’s onsite cafe for all guests and team members, to fitness instructors and hair stylists, everyone promotes each other at Life Time and LifeSpa.
“Then we have the people at corporate who help with our career growth,” Juncaj says. “And if I wanted, I could move anywhere–I could transfer to another LifeSpa anytime.”
All the people surrounding Juncaj have helped her build a successful career, but it’s her client relationships she values most.
“I’m a people person,” she says. “I have long-lasting relationships with guests that mean so much. I started off helping them with acne issues as teens and now I’m doing their wedding makeup. I’m seeing moms become grandmothers–it’s truly special.”
The Whole Package: “Our compensation package is unbelievable,” Juncaj says. “I’m at a stable, well-respected company with health care, PTO, 401 (k), free Life Time membership, discounts in every department, and endless opportunities for growth. I could go into education, take a regional role, go into leadership—growth from within is encouraged. All of this is very rare in our industry.”
Juncaj says her access to premium products, machines and education have helped her stay on top of trends and offer her clients the best possible services and treatments.
“For example, when Hydrafacials were new, we asked our leadership about the machine,” she says. “They did their research and purchased it—they ask for our feedback and value it.”
Through advanced training, Juncaj became an Elite provider, for which she has received additional perks, including an all-expenses paid trip to Budapest with Éminence, LifeSpa’s skin care brand.
“LifeSpa also brings in brand educators to do advanced training in house,” she says. “Anybody who is passionate about their esthetic business can build a long-lasting career at LifeSpa.”
A Bright Future: Juncaj isn’t interested in a leadership role but has taken on various mentorship roles such as supporting new technicians, on-boarding, and new product education for staff.
“At some point, I can see myself getting involved with the Life Time Foundation–it focuses on youth health, fitness and nutrition,” she says. “And maybe a regional education role–who knows? It’s just good to know if I feel I need something more, the opportunities are there.”
A Life-Changing Career Move
Tania Caban, Massage Therapist
Tania Caban had many jobs before she became a massage therapist—court stenographer, waitress, laser hair-removal tech—to name a few.
When she decided to become a massage therapist, it was not a linear path. She went to massage school in two different places a few years apart, and worked in a few different spas, from hotels to high-end spa chains, before finding the spa that was just right for her in 2014—LifeSpa.
Support System: Caban says her experience at LifeSpa in Westchester, New York, versus other places she worked has been night and day.
“Our commission rate started much higher at LifeSpa,” she says. “And it goes as high as 70 percent.”
With flexibility in scheduling and her outgoing personality, Caban has had no problem building a client base and keeping them.
“You have to build your own client base, but the traffic is here—I have a four-page long waitlist,” she says. “I built my base by being present with intention. I started by giving my cards out and spending time at the club socializing, mingling, working with personal trainers and Pilates instructors. We are a natural fit–they are building clients and I’m recovering them.”
Life At The Top: Caban has thrived in the LifeSpa environment and was named a top performer.
“I could never leave this place,” she says. “I love to work out and spend so much time here taking classes, working, connecting with my co-workers and clients.”
Financially, Caban has never been better off, and she credits some of that to her team.
“My leader and lead general are so supportive—we all help each other,” she says.
Travel Perks: In 2023, Caban was awarded an educational trip with Zents as a top performer and headed to Boulder, Colorado. The next year, she went to Aspen with Zents, and this year to Tabernash, Colorado.
“The trips came at the right time for me,” she says. “I had started drinking during Covid, which caused me to gain weight and experience other health problems.”
The trip to Boulder was filled with training, but also meditation and periods of sharing and reflection.
“It was a spiritual and supportive environment,” she says. “I came home from that trip, quit drinking and cut down on sugar. I’m still alcohol free, and lost 40 pounds.”
The next year, on the trip to Aspen, Caban focused on her mental health.
“We meditated, let go of the things we were holding onto, and focused on the mind-body connection,” she says. “The trips have transformed me in ways I never could’ve predicted.”
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