1st Media Consulting Group, Inc. Podcast
Welcome to the Business Chronicles, where we dive deep into the stories behind the businesses that shape our communities. We bring you conversations with inspiring entrepreneurs who share their journeys, challenges, and the unique value they bring to their customers.
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1st Media Consulting Group, Inc. Podcast
Integrating Wellness and Aesthetics: Katie Herrera's Journey with Horizons OBGYN and Aesthetics
Can you imagine a medical practice where you can get your annual exam and touch up your Botox all in one visit? Join us on the latest episode of the Business Chronicles as we chat with Katie Herrera, the powerhouse behind Horizons OBGYN and Aesthetics. Katie takes us through her extraordinary journey from working as a patient care tech to becoming a seasoned nurse practitioner and midwife, and now running a successful practice alongside her husband, an accomplished OBGYN physician. This episode promises insights straight from Katie's experience on merging obstetrics, gynecology, and aesthetics to create a holistic healthcare experience that caters to both medical and cosmetic needs.
Katie shares how Horizons OBGYN and Aesthetics offers a unique blend of services—from hormone replacement therapy and wellness treatments to cutting-edge facial and body aesthetics. Discover how they've integrated advanced technology to ensure procedures are effective, painless, and convenient, enhancing patient care and satisfaction. Aspiring entrepreneurs and seasoned business owners alike will find Katie's insights into the evolving landscape of healthcare and aesthetics both inspiring and informative. Tune in to learn valuable tips on building a comprehensive wellness practice and how to stay ahead in the ever-changing world of healthcare technology.
Welcome to the First Media Consulting Podcast, the Business Chronicles, where we dive deep into the stories of successful business owners. Here's your host, Didi and Nicholas. Thanks for joining today. Let's talk.
Speaker 2:Hello everyone. My name is Didi and Nicholas and I'm your host, and I'm so excited to bring to you Katie, and she's the owner of Horizons OBGYN and Aesthetics. How are you, katie?
Speaker 3:I'm great. Thank you so much, Jadier. Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2:Well, you're very, very welcome. You know, the whole purpose of the show is to kind of learn your background, learn about your business, and kind of let our listeners give some knowledge or some how would you say it? Some tips right on becoming an entrepreneur, if you're looking to do that, or maybe starting your own business, or even if you're a business owner, some of the challenges that you face and how you can overcome that. So, with that being said, let's dive right in. Let's do it.
Speaker 2:Let's talk about your background. I love that. I love that. Go ahead.
Speaker 3:So my name is Katie Herrera. I am a nurse practitioner. I've been a midwife and nurse practitioner for about 12 years. I started as a patient care tech in a hospital. I went to nursing school. I did a dual enrollment program. I then went back to graduate school and got my midwifery license and my nurse practitioner license and I've been practicing since then. My husband's an OBGYN physician. He's been practicing for about 16 years. We worked for a big hospital system and we really wanted to do something for our community. We live here in Winter Garden and Horizon West area and we had a property and we were like you know what, let's do this and let's open up a practice where we can really focus on specific patient care and like really help the community.
Speaker 2:Well, congratulations on that. I think it's exciting. You know, there's a journey. Right For every business owner that I talk to, there's always that journey of how, where you were and how you get to where you're at today. So kudos to you and your husband for that, Thank you. Let's go into talking to us a little bit about your business.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So we, our main core is OB and GYN, so obstetrics and gynecology, that's our core base. About five years ago I started doing aesthetics and like just Botox parties and fillers and facials and chemical peels and during these Botox parties I realized like women, the combination of both women's health and aesthetics really goes well together. As I'm doing Botox or numbing or whatever it is, patients really start asking questions about menopause symptoms or their periods or getting pregnant. What should they do? So we had this idea of let's bring this all together in one practice and it's pretty incredible. We've expanded it even further. So we do wellness, hormone replacement therapy. We even have some men in here that come in for testosterone therapy. We have great wellness devices that help with your core strength and Sculpneo is amazing. Emcella is great for urinary incontinence. So we've kind of combined OBGYN, wellness, anest, aesthetics all together to really help to be a full wellness office.
Speaker 2:I like that so much and I kind of sum it up in three different categories. Right, it's wellness services, it's facial aesthetics as well as body aesthetics, Is that? Where you're going with this.
Speaker 3:That's exactly right. Yeah, it's amazing and patients are super excited about it and you know they can come in and get their annual exam and then we can, you know, touch up their eyebrows or touch up some Botox. So patients are pretty happy with it too.
Speaker 2:And I probably would assume that technology in your business is evolving right Compared to maybe 20 years ago. Would you agree with that and how has it?
Speaker 3:Yeah, 100%. We really spent a lot of time trying to figure out which devices would work best for us, and we partnered with a company called BTL Emsculpt Neo. They by far have the best technology, they do the most studies on this, and so the main thing with all the devices we have is that it really works and it also doesn't hurt and there's no downtime. So that was a big part of our decision in making, you know, buying these, purchasing these devices, because it's an expense and we're a new practice, but it really goes hand in hand with our mission. Our mission is to care for and empower our patients. So we really wanted something that that kind of was aligned with that, and BTL and those, those devices really did that, that for us, and they gave us clinical studies and like. So we really did our research on what devices really work for our patients.
Speaker 2:Very interesting. So what? What inspired you? What made you successful to where you're at today?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so we are both probably workaholics we work really hard, but we really wanted something to serve our community and I've been in Central Florida my whole life. My husband's been here since 2006, and we saw that there is a need in the community specifically for women with needs in Horizon West area. We have great providers there, but our population is growing so much we need more providers, we need more physicians, we need more small practices that really can take the time with the patient and listen to the patient and really care for the root cause of what's going on with the patient's concerns.
Speaker 2:And in terms of trends, are there any trends that are either now that you're dealing with or up and coming?
Speaker 3:There are trends. A lot of times, you know, we really have to pay attention to TikTok and Instagram and social media because those are, you know, really popular. You know, I think that there's different trends for different generations and the younger generations are really getting into the aesthetic side way faster than we were when we were in our early 20s. So I think it's it's pretty incredible how the younger generations are really being more preventative and more proactive. Um, so they're really interested in the technology and just more preventative medicine, which I so they're really interested in the technology and just more preventative medicine, which I think is amazing. So right now, that's the biggest trend I've seen.
Speaker 2:Oh wow. Well, that's great information. Thanks for sharing that. And let's talk about some challenges. You know every business does face some challenges. What about yours?
Speaker 3:Yeah, we, what about yours? Yeah, so we built our practice. We bought a half of an acre just dirt and so we went through the construction process, the engineering, architect, all the things. So there were many challenges along the way. We noticed that as a small business we were kind of pushed aside sometimes when we see a big organization growing and their building is up already and we're still in the first couple of stages of construction.
Speaker 3:So the permitting process was a challenge. The advertising was a big challenge for us. We tried to get our name out there and we tried to advertise in certain schools and some of the big organizations like have them locked down and they're like sorry, you have a contract with us and you can't let anyone else advertise for you or with you, and so that was a big challenge. And then finding an amazing staff. We have an incredible staff here at Horizons, thatGYN and Aesthetics. But finding the amazing staff was a challenge. And I think, as a business owner, a nurse practitioner, I'm the office manager too. So wearing all these different hats is a challenge in itself so many times. My team members and they keep me on track, and my husband Manny and I we keep each other on track too. So it's, it's a, it's a teamwork, a teamwork effort to keep it running and successful.
Speaker 2:Well, again, you know, kudos for you for moving the needle forward, and that's great, that's very inspirational. So let's talk about some. You know there's a lot of business owners or business people that would love to be business owners or aspiring entrepreneurs. Any tips along your journey to kind of give to them?
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely Don't give up, Keep going, keep pushing through it. There are great networking groups in the areas. There's like the chambers, there's different professional groups and really, as a small business owner, those are great support to kind of feed off of each other and, you know, network with each other and promote each other's businesses. That was something that was really amazing. Um have a really good partner, um a business partner that you know you align with as far as like your um business model, I think that's very important.
Speaker 3:Um, and, like I said, don't give up, like, keep going. We need more small businesses out there to help our community and, um you know, buy local and support the local businesses.
Speaker 2:Very well stated and you know it is important when you're starting a business that you actually take a step back, evaluate what you're, what you're going to provide for your customer, and then move forward with it, no matter what kind of challenges. As long as you stick with that process right, it will be rewarding.
Speaker 3:Absolutely.
Speaker 2:So, as we wrap up here, can you provide our listeners with your phone number, as well as your website on how they can get a hold of you?
Speaker 3:Absolutely so. Horizons OBGYN and Aesthetics. Our phone number is 407-696-2496. If it's 407-MY-OBGYN, if you can't remember the numbers, and then the website is Horizons OBGYNFLcom.
Speaker 2:Well, katie, thank you so much for inspiring our listeners and sharing them how your successful journey has been to owning this business and starting this business of Horizons OBGYN and Aesthetics, and we look forward to having you get back again in the near future.
Speaker 3:Absolutely. Thank you so much.
Speaker 2:You're welcome, thank you.
Speaker 1:Thank you for tuning in to First Media Consulting Podcast. If you enjoyed the podcast, subscribe today To nominate a business you would like to recommend to be on our show. Go to firstmediaconsultingcom or call. Thank you for listening.