About Kristen

I've spent over 20 years in the spa and beauty industry. And what I've learned is that the work that matters most often happens behind the scenes.

I began hands-on as a licensed massage therapist and cosmetologist — working closely with guests, experiencing firsthand the physical and emotional demands of the work. Over time, I stepped into leadership as a Spa Director. That shift changed everything.

I began to see how often burnout wasn't about the work itself, but about what was happening around it. Lack of clarity. Inconsistent expectations. Emotional labor without support.

I also saw what was possible when those things were done well — teams that felt grounded, providers who felt confident, and experiences that felt seamless rather than reactive. That perspective, along with my training as a certified life coach, continues to shape how I lead and how I work with others today.

What I Believe

A Different Way Forward

The spa industry is built on care. But behind the treatment rooms, many teams are navigating environments that feel unclear, reactive, and unsustainable — where providers are giving so much, often without the structure or support to sustain it.
I created Kristen Brown Studio to support a different way forward.

It started with my hands.

I came into this industry the way most people do — through the work itself. As a licensed massage therapist and cosmetologist, I spent my early years close to guests, learning what it actually feels like to give care for a living. The physical weight of the work. The emotional labor that nobody warns you about. The quiet pride of sending someone home feeling genuinely restored.
I loved it. And I also learned very quickly how much the environment around that work either supports you or slowly wears you down.

My first real taste of leadership came at Euphoria Salon & Spa, where I moved from the treatment room into management while still practicing as a massage therapist. I was doing both leading a team and working hands-on with guests and that dual perspective shaped how I think about spa operations to this day. I never stopped seeing both sides of the door.

Then came Joseph Anthony Hair Salon in Springfield, PA, and seven years that changed everything.
For seven years I ran the salon and spa operation hiring, training, coaching, building culture, managing financials, driving retail strategy, and doing the work of keeping a team not just employed but genuinely engaged. Those years taught me that a spa is not just a collection of services. It's a living environment, and it either feels good to work in or it doesn't. I became obsessed with making it feel good not just for guests, but for the people doing the work every single day.
I also saw up close how often talented providers burned out not because the work was too hard, but because the structure around them was unclear, reactive, or simply not built with people in mind. That realization never left me.

In 2021, I made a decision that quietly reshaped everything: I enrolled in the Health Coach Institute and became a certified life coach.
It wasn't a pivot. It was a deepening. Coaching gave me a language and a framework for what I had always been doing intuitively meeting people where they are, asking the right questions, helping them see what they couldn't see on their own. I brought that approach back into my leadership, and the difference was immediate. I stopped managing performance and started developing people.

Today I lead spa operations at Excuria Salon & Spa in Williamsville, NY a multi-department luxury environment where I get to put everything I've learned into practice every single day. My role lives at the intersection of culture, systems, and strategy. I design the guest journey, develop the team, partner with ownership on growth, and work every day to prove that a high-performing spa and a people-centered one are not opposites. They are the same thing, done right.

Kristen Brown Studio grew out of all of it, twenty years of being in the rooms, behind the scenes, and at the table. I built it because I know there are spa leaders out there doing incredible work in environments that don't yet support them the way they deserve. And I believe that with the right structure, the right coaching, and a little clarity, that can change.