No looking back for rookie franchise owner, despite self-doubts.
About to sign documents giving her ownership of a Caci clinic franchise, former Auckland corporate executive Krista Coningham, experienced a moment of rare trepidation.
“It was the day before (the signing),” she says. “I had only known the corporate world; I’d never run a business myself and I had this sudden sensation of self-doubt.
“But it was only fleeting; I said to myself ‘you’ve just got to get over it’ because after all I was about to embark on a venture with a brand I’d had a love affair with for over 20 years and one that had always been a holy grail to me.”
Coningham is relating the story of how, in 2021, she took ownership of the Caci Blenheim skincare clinic franchise and in the process completed a journey from being “an Auckland girl” living in an upmarket Ponsonby apartment to a business owner, wife and mum of two young boys in a South Island provincial town.
Despite her momentary misgivings, Coningham has never looked back, quickly building an award-winning operation.
Last year she was named the 2022 Westpac Supreme Franchisee of the Year while her clinic picked up Caci’s top Gold Clinic Award in 2022, receiving the award ahead of the more than 80 Caci clinics operating throughout the country.
Coningham’s success comes as Caci is seeking new franchisees for clinics in Oamaru, Timaru, Coromandel and Hawera, roles the company says would suit not just seasoned business owners but beauty therapists, registered nurses and those looking to own their own business.
Caci’s 83 clinics offer customers a wide range of services including cosmetic anti-wrinkle injectables, skin rejuvenation treatments, laser hair removal and body shaping using fat freezing technology. The brand was launched in 1994.
“I’m so proud I took the plunge,” Coningham says. “Although I had a great lifestyle in Auckland in corporate sales, I never felt I was in my true career. I always wished I could be a part of the Caci brand, but thought it would never be possible.
Her “great love” of the brand started over 20 years ago. Coningham’s apartment was upstairs from the Caci Ponsonby clinic and “every day I walked past on my way to work, always allured by the brand; it had a huge appeal for me.”
Her opportunity came after Coningham and her husband Richard - who worked in the fast-paced Telco industry in Auckland - moved to Blenheim seven years ago with their two sons (now aged seven and nine) for a better lifestyle.
While Richard scored a management role at the Blenheim District Council, Krista spent the first few years as a stay-at-home mum. “It was difficult for a start; I loved the hustle and bustle of Auckland and being in a small town where I initially knew no one was challenging.”
But her love of the Caci brand was never far away and in 2019 she ended up with a job at the Blenheim clinic. When the owner decided to sell, he offered Coningham first refusal.
“I bought in the middle of the pandemic, but because I had confidence in the Caci support system and brand I knew I could ride it out,” she says. “You can go into this without any business experience or Caci knowledge and still be successful; if you have passion and a love of what you do, the support from Caci is there.
“They have an incredibly passionate team of experts; their systems are world class, have stood the test of time and provide a great framework to run a business,” she says. “But I lead and run my clinic; I develop the team culture and am supported to run my own marketing locally.
“I have an amazing team. I always get choked up when I think of them and I just wished I’d done this 20 years ago. It is the most rewarding and fulfilling experience - I am living my dream.”
Coningham, who has eight on her staff and is currently looking to hire two more, experienced rapid growth after taking over, her business gaining 150 new members in six months, the fastest of any clinic in New Zealand.
Her immediate goal is to get the clinic up to full capacity by having all four treatment rooms being used 9am-6pm and late nights, six days-a-week.
Caci general manager, Penny Chapman, says 18 clinics were opened in New Zealand last year and despite Covid the brand has grown revenue by 16 per cent in the last three years.
Behind the scenes Caci operates a diverse ecosystem including a clinical advisory board which focuses on safety and treatment delivery, a training academy (everyone working in a clinic receives training there in the ‘Caci way’) business support and marketing to optimise clinic performance, a technology and engineering team and product development, including Skinsmiths skincare.
For more information on franchising with Caci go to: caci.co.nz/franchising