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Meet Hand & Stone Canada - Marlow Metcalf

My Hand & Stone journey began in 2015 when I interviewed with multi-unit owner extraordinaires Mike & Kathy Hendershott for a Spa Manager position in the Chicagoland area. So impressed with their organization and them as owners, I did further research on the company and found the Field Operations Manager position. This was going to include be traveling around the country and directly supporting 25+ spas, not just one. I was ALL for it! I applied and then met with Jarred Fajerski a few days later. He and founder John Marco were in Chicago doing quarterly visits and workshops for the spas, trying to also fill the position. I met with Jarred on Wednesday, John called my references on Thursday, and Sunday I was on a plane to New Jersey for my first week of training! I officially became the fourth Regional Operations Manager in the company.

While living in Chicago, I directly supported spas in Northern California, the Midwest, and Southern Florida. Traveling in winter was definitely interesting, and included a large checked bag with snowshoes AND flip flops. Directly supporting a spa includes many things. Not only do we deliver sales metrics and areas of opportunity to grow within the business, but we’re also the first call a franchisee makes when they have a question (regarding just about ANYTHING in a spa), or when they need someone to chat with because times may be stressful. We’re a 411 and a 911, maybe all in one day! The position is exciting, rarely ever dull, and not a bad way to see so many cities around the country!

Fast forward to 2022, two promotions later, I’m now the Senior Director of Operations for Hand & Stone Canada while residing in North Carolina. I continue to provide direct support to the 33 spas across Canada (most in the Greater Toronto Area), but also work to develop programs, policies, and training material for the spas as well. I work very closely with our General Manager and Marketing Director to ensure our spas have the tools and guidance they need to be successful. Canada has a handful of differences in the spa industry that makes copy & pasting from the US isn’t always possible, so as a team we see how to adapt ideas and initiatives that best feed the needs of the Canadian spas. I look forward to helping the Canadian market grow into more provinces as well as welcoming new franchise owners into our organization!