TikTok-viral beauty products are a dime a dozen.
A viral facial massage, though — let alone one that creates a bustling business — is much rarer.
“I started Instagram advertisements, and I started collaborating with influencers. One collaboration went so well that the video got 1 million views in one night, and I got booked six months in advance,” said Katya Durova, founder of Katya Young Studios. “I have a team now, but it’s still very limited availability.”
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To rewind, Durova started massage school in 2014 in her native Russia, and then went to aesthetician school. “I met a woman who was probably 40 years old and looked amazing, and everything she did was about facial massage,” Durova said. Durova took many different jobs after moving to New York in 2020, and “I gained more experience with facial massages, and everything pulled together. I rented a room in a coworking space, and eventually, I opened the whole floor and the spa.”
Durova acknowledged that it’s become a major trend, but she noted the practice has been around for decades and she thinks they’re here to stay. “They help depuff the face, it releases muscle tension, and buccal massage helps release extra tension in our masseters,” she said.
She’s since upped her rates, with a 45-minute facial massage starting at $160 at her studio, located at 226 Fifth Avenue in New York. “I got more confidence and raised my prices,” Durova said. “I built my own standards of running the business, and running the studio, so clients aren’t just getting a facial massage. I want them to experience our service, I want them to be seen and taken care of.”
