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With its clean white walls, warm wood accents, and soft neutral furnishings, Skin Pharm feels more like a Zen friend’s chic beach retreat than a cosmetic dermatology practice. And that’s by design. Founder, CEO, and nurse practitioner Maegan Griffin was looking for a place she could offer aesthetic and medical treatments in the type of setting where she would want to receive them.“I worked in both dermatology and plastic surgery. I didn’t want to go to any of those places to receive treatment,” she says.
“I found that in order to specialize and offer the experiences that I wanted and that I wanted to give my patients, I was going to have to start my own practice. And that’s how Skin Pharm came about.” Griffin says that having seen two different fields helped her figure out what she wanted—and what she didn’t want—in a practice.
“In medical dermatology you see as many patients as possible. The provider might be in the room for only five minutes because they have other clinicians to help them manage those appointments,” she says. “I did not find that reasonable for someone coming in for injectables. It’s nothing that should be rushed.”
On the other end of the spectrum, the plastic surgeon Griffin worked with specialized in reconstructive surgery for cancer repair, tissue transfers, and other medically focused procedures. It was a practice that most definitely did not lend itself to cosmetic treatments. Armed with knowledge from both experiences and a firm plan for what she wanted in a practice, she opened Skin Pharm in 2017.
Griffin and her team focus on promoting skin health, empowering individuals, and building a community around a common interest in looking as good as you feel. And it’s worked. Not only has she amassed a huge celebrity following—including Kelsea Ballerini, Maren Morris, Carly Pearce, and Katie Stevens—she’s expanded into additional markets, with practices in Atlanta and Dallas. The clinics offer a wide range of services from Botox and filers to microneedling and Gold Infusion which is a gentle stamping method that delivers antioxidants, hydrating ingredients, and even Botox beneath the skin.
Notably, Griffin still sees patients herself.
“That’s where I started, and I love it. The positive patient testimonials never get old. The ‘you’ve improved my skin, therefore I’m more confident, therefore my life is just better,’ I love that. That’s what I live for.”In 2018 Griffin launched Skin Pharm’s eponymous skincare line. “It came about in the same organic form [as the practice],” she says. “I was exposed to all of these great medical grade lines, but I never loved just one line to get me everything I needed. I thought, ‘Let’s curate our line based on feedback from our patients.’”
The line began with one product—Papaya Enzyme Cleanser (which is still in the lineup). “With skincare you start small and as you grow you can request more customization,” she says. Now the line has grown to include more than two dozen additional products. But for Griffin, Skin Pharm is more than its clinics, its treatments, and its skincare line. It’s about community and about making women feel their best. That goes for clients and also the women on Griffin’s own team.“It’s so rewarding to see women—we’re predominantly female—have careers where they’re their own providers. We work alongside each other and I’m here to support, but they are their own providers and I love giving women that opportunity,” she says of her employees.
“After four years, I’ve evolved from the doer of all things to strategy, growth, and mentoring. I’m really trying to step back and let other people make decisions the way I would. And thankfully it’s working.” “I try to be a mentor and leader, and I’m just now getting comfortable with that. I feel like I’ve learned enough over the past several years to take this information and pass it along to other people working at Skin Pharm. I’ve found that’s really rewarding, too.”
And there’s no slowing down for Griffin and her team. With the recent announcement that Skin Pharm will expand into Charlotte in 2022 and additional markets after that, the sky is the limit. “Skin Pharm has become a beauty brand,” Griffin says. “We’ve built this community of women and there’s just so much momentum that it gives me the energy to keep going.”
(2416 21st Ave. S, Ste. 201, 615-582-6726; skinpharm.com)