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How I Made My First Million

Melanie Gleeson turned a tin shed into a spa empire

Like most Australian success stories, this one starts in a shed. After Melanie Gleeson opened her first Endota Spa in a residential house in 2000, her first head office was in an old coolstore in Red Hill on the Mornington Peninsula. โ€œIt was literally a tin shed with a cool room,โ€ explains Gleeson. โ€œWe had twelve or so people working there, without any heat in winter or air-conditioning in summer.โ€

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The first Endota Spa head office was a tin shed โ€“ literally.

Gleeson, who started the business with a $5,000 credit card, says the hardest part wasnโ€™t the absence of heating in the office, but the lack of awareness about the wellness industry. โ€œBack then, we had to explain to people what a spa was,โ€ she says. โ€œItโ€™s not a โ€˜spa bath,โ€™ itโ€™s a place where you come to take time out, reconnect with yourself and feel better.โ€

Nowadays spas need no explanation, unless youโ€™re booking in for a New Age Light Therapy Treatment (itโ€™s an anti-ageing facial FYI). In the past 17 years, Gleeson has seen a movement towards wellbeing and consciousness. She credits part of her success to this culture shift. 

The rest of her success comes down to a whole lot of time and perseverance. Gleeson says she worked โ€œall the timeโ€ in the early days, โ€œBeing 26 and not having a family, I was able to devote every minute to it. I think when you are so passionate and driven about your work; itโ€™s quite easy to get lost in it.โ€

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After 17 years, the hard work has well and truly paid off. Today, Endota is Australiaโ€™s largest network of spas with over 100 locations and 1000 staff. The network is worth somewhere between $60 million and $70 million.

From tin shed to luxe shopfront โ€“ the Endota Spa network has come a long way.

While making her first million was a โ€œsuper exciting milestone,โ€ Gleeson says a bigger moment for her was when a person she didnโ€™t know (and who wasnโ€™t a friend of her mumโ€™s), came in to her spa to buy a product for the first time. โ€œThat moment took it to a whole new level for me. To see someone buying a product because they loved it and not because they knew me, was when it felt real,โ€ she recalls. 

โ€œMaking my first million was a super exciting milestone,โ€ says Melanie Gleeson.
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Now aged 42, Gleeson juggles her role as Founder and CEO with her family commitments and two sons. Since having kids, sheโ€™s had to learn how to say no to things. โ€œI try to spend my time and energy on things I love. When youโ€™re not doing things because you feel obligated, I think you feel more balanced,โ€ she says. 

Unfortunately, Gleeson says the trick to balancing work and life isnโ€™t just having a facial every week. โ€œIt definitely helps, though,โ€ she adds, with a laugh. Here she shares her words of business wisdomโ€ฆ

Secret to success: Listening to my intuition and trusting my gut.

Breakfast of champions: My husband makes an amazing cheese omelette (not every morning, though).

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Best advice: Before I started the business, a friend said to me, โ€œYou can keep dreaming about this, or you can do it.โ€ She was right, so I stopped dreaming and I did it.

Top interview tip: Make sure you understand the values of the company. Do your research and come prepared.

Coffee order: Generally, I have a lemon and ginger tea. But if I need a coffee, itโ€™ll be a flat white with full cream milk.

Wind down: After a long week, I will book in for a massage or a facial, or take a walk on the beach. I also love to play Lego with my boys โ€“ I find it therapeutic.

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