How Two Oil & Gas Professionals Found a Lucrative Second Career with Hand & Stone Massage

Five years ago, Leah and Danny Kilpatrick had never even heard of Hand & Stone Massage. The massage and facial spa franchise was less than a decade old then, and the two career oil & gas professionals had little time or interest in monitoring the world of emerging businesses. But both Danny and Leah were frequent spa visitors, and when the couple decided to leave their jobs in oil & gas to start a business together, it didn’t take long for them to discover and settle on Hand & Stone.

Danny Kilpatrick worked for more than 20 years as a lead production operator for an oil company, supervising satellite platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. Leah was a project manager and HR professional in the same industry, but despite their professional proximity, Leah and Danny’s work demanded a wide geographic gap. Leah was stationed in Angola and Nigeria for five years, during which time she and Danny strategized a career move that would facilitate their reunion.

Leah and Danny decided that the best way to find work that would bring them together would be to start a business together, so they started working with a business broker to help them find a concept that would work. Leah says it didn’t take them long to decide on a field.

“Danny and I love getting massages and facials,” Leah said. “So we told our broker that we thought health and wellness might be a good match for us, and he set to work finding something in that industry that would work for us.”

While the Kilpatrick’s were searching for potential businesses matches, they were also looking at colleges for their son, who was nearing his high school graduation. When the family went out to visit a school in Austin, Leah and Danny treated themselves to a spa day that would change the course of their lives.

“Danny and I found out about Hand & Stone Avery Ranch, and we decided to stop in for a service. We had such a wonderful time,” she said. “I remember telling Danny, ‘I wish we could open a spa just like this one.’”

When just a few days later the Kilpatrick’s broker got in touch to let them know of a growing spa franchise called Hand & Stone that was looking for owners in Texas, Leah says they jumped on the opportunity.

“It felt like a sign,” she said. “But more importantly, we loved the experience we had Austin, and we were excited to find out that we could own a business just like that.”

Leah and Danny opened their Hand & Stone in San Antonio in 2015. Since then, the business’s active membership has grown exponentially and Leah says she and Danny are focused more on working on the business than in it.

“The business has grown fast, so we spend most of our time growing and preparing our team to handle the customer base,” she said. “We interview candidates and train staff, and we’ve been very focused on the development of our people. We’ve promoted several employees to lead roles recently, and we’ve got a great manager who makes sure the day-to-day operations are running smoothly and efficiently.”

Leah says the growth of their business has been facilitated in large part by the support the Kilpatricks have received, both from Hand & Stone’s corporate team and the growing network of franchisees.

“One thing Hand & Stone really excels at is their support for owners,” Leah said. “The training we received was top notch, and they have always been available to help with any issue we may encounter. And the other owners have been just as helpful. There is a wonderful culture at Hand & Stone that encourages all of us to share experiences and help one another with any challenge that may occur. All of that support has made it easy for us to grow this business.”

Of course, Leah and Danny have been open to receiving that support, and Leah says that is the key to success in their system.

“You have to keep an open mind and be willing to listen and learn,” she said. “Hand & Stone has an amazing business model. It’s proven, and it just works. If you follow the model and lean on the knowledge and experience of the people who built it and are still working to improve it, you are going to succeed.”

Three years after signing on with Hand & Stone, Leah says she and Danny have found the perfect fit for both their personal and professional lives.

“When we decided to open a business, we just wanted to find something we could do together,” Leah said. “We never dreamed that we would find something that we enjoyed so much on a personal level, but that’s what we got with Hand & Stone.”