Massage Heights Celebrates 10 Year Anniversary

SAN ANTONIO, TX, April 02, 2014 (Press-News.org) It started as a simple dream, a South Texas husband and wife team determined to change the way people looked at living a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Ten years later, Shane and Wayne Evans' dream is touching more than five million lives and it continues to grow strong. Massage Heights, an international membership based massage and facial franchise company, is celebrating its 10 year anniversary this April. This milestone comes on the heels of Shane's recent appearance, as the company's COO, on CBS' reality series, Undercover Boss. The company opened its 100th Retreat in December 2013 and has 30 franchises in development and plans for 75 licenses in 2014.

Shane isn't just a self-proclaimed massage enthusiast; she has always recognized the benefits associated with regular massage therapy, which includes helping to fight off disease and depression, boost immunity, relieve pain, increase alertness and improve sleep quality, but back in 2004 there wasn't an affordable place to go. "We both grew up in homes where the value of the dollar was understood and not taken for granted. Traditional family values were instilled in us our entire lives," she said. When she and Wayne were first introduced to the idea of a membership based therapeutic massage concept, with Wayne's background in the health club industry, and Shane's in sales, they knew that they could make this work. Four months later, they opened their first Massage Heights Retreat (formerly known as a Massage Heights Clinic) in the Alamo Heights neighborhood of San Antonio, Texas, hence the name Massage Heights. "We received an overwhelming response from our Members and Guests who wanted to know when we might expand to bring our concept to their neighborhoods, as many of them were driving across town to take advantage of the value we had to offer," said Wayne.

In January, 2005, the Evans opened their second location in the Stone Oak area of San Antonio, which proved to be even more successful than the first. They awarded their first franchise license to one of their first Massage Therapists in May of that same year, and she went on to successfully own and operate her Massage Heights business. From there, the opportunities just kept coming. Massage Heights grew from a Texas based company to the national level in 2007, with the opening of the first out-of-state Retreat in Des Moines, Iowa then in 2010, came the expansion into Canada. The Evans were well on their way to fulfilling their lifelong dream helping to elevate the lives of others. In 2012, the company launched the body + face concept to offer customized skin therapy services that deliver the skin's best health in partnership with dermalogica , known worldwide as an innovator in skin care. "We took the therapeutic benefits of our services to the next level by partnering with dermalogica and offering Essential Facials. Not unlike massage therapy, skin therapy offers a variety of health benefits. It increases circulation, reverses the signs of aging, hydrates and removes environmental impurities," said Katherine Palmer, LST/Licensed Instructor, Skin Therapy Operations Specialist for Massage Heights. Body + face Retreats now represent more than fifty percent of total locations system wide.

The main ingredient that has fueled their success has never changed; Massage Heights remains a true family business, built on the values that guide both Shane and Wayne in their lives. They have never strayed from their vision of providing affordable, convenient and professional massage services in an upscale environment. That vision is still evident today in the company's culture at the corporate office and in their franchise locations. Shane and Wayne call their employees "Team Members" and consider them an extension of their family; some having been with the organization since its inception ten years ago. "We're a passionate, loyal, authentic and diligent group of people dedicated to the well-being of those we serve, within our franchise community and outside of it," said Wayne.

Today, there are approximately 300,000 to 350,000 Massage Therapists and massage school students as well as more than 360 accredited massage therapy schools and programs in the country (source: AMTA 2014). Massage Heights strives to retain employees and become the employer of choice in the massage industry; in December 2013, Shane went undercover on CBS' reality show "Undercover Boss" to discover what the company needs to do to help elevate the lives of their employees. "The experience was incredible. I was humbled to work alongside some of our Team Members," said Shane. "Work-life balance is something everybody struggles with, yet it's important for everyone to achieve. Massage Heights strives to ensure our employees are happy and that they enjoy their job - not just for the success of the business but because our family believes that people must love their job to be truly happy and healthy."

The next goal: touching lives 32 million times a year by the end of 2018.

Massage Heights offers a variety of custom massage modalities, including Deep Tissue, Swedish, Sports Therapy, Prenatal and Reflexology, as well as custom dermalogica skin treatments, including Anti-Aging, Sensitive Skin, Clear Skin and Brightening. Therapeutic experience-enhancing add-on services called "Elevations" include a Reviving Foot Scrub, Revitalizing Face Massage, Hot Stone Therapy, Active Therapy, Skin Enriching, Skin Refining, Skin Purifying and all-natural aromatherapy.

For more information on Massage Heights please visit http://www.massageheights.com and http://www.facebook.com/MassageHeights, and follow on Twitter @Massage_Hghts.

Founded in San Antonio, Texas, in 2004, Massage Heights is a family owned franchise massage and skin therapy company built on a membership model that makes regular massage and skin therapy affordable, while still providing the level of service available at a five-star resort. The company's mission is to help people incorporate convenient, high-quality, therapeutic massages and facials into their lives so that they can elevate the everyday through a balanced life. In an exploding industry, the company has more than 100 operating franchise locations in the United States and Canada and plans to open a total of 500 U.S. locations within the next five years. The company was featured on the CBS reality series Undercover Boss in December 2013, was ranked 33rd Top Franchise to own in 2013 by Franchise Business Review, ranked 259 in Entrepreneur Magazine's Franchise 500 list for 2014, in Franchise Times' Next 300 list for 2013, in USA Today Top Franchise for Minorities for 2013, recognized in Franchise Times as one of the smartest growing companies in franchising for 2014 and is a member of the International Franchise Association (IFA).