Franchisee Spotlight: Rafael Marquez, Sugar Land, Texas

Rafael Marquez, 39, was born and raised in Mexico. “And then, I met a girl from Fargo, North Dakota,” he recalled, laughing. The girl, an exchange student studying psychology and Spanish, would eventually become his wife. The couple lived in Mexico for a few years before moving to Minneapolis, where Marquez began working toward his MBA at the University of Minnesota. Upon graduation, he started working for Best Buy, primarily in the development of new business concepts and helping with Best Buy Mobile and Best Buy Express. He stayed with the brand for five years before joining United Health Group where he worked with Optum new businesses.

“After working for them for a couple of years , I was given the opportunity to live anywhere in the country, and I settled on Houston,” he said., After telecommuting from his home in The Woodlands for a year Marquez began to feel more and more of a desire to tap into his entrepreneurial spirit. “I’ve always had the ambition and passion to start my own business,” Marquez said. His wife Heather Meier, will help out with the new Hand & Stone.  When not prepping for this new venture, the two enjoy spending time with their children, who are ten, seven and four years old, as well as, with various family members and friends they have in the Sugar Land area.

How did you learn about the brand?

I used several franchise consultants, and I looked at all different businesses from cell phone retailers to vitamin retailers. And the membership business model appealed to me, as well as, this wellness industry. I learned that Hand & Stone can differentiate from the competitors with their larger array of services and customer service.

Why did you choose an opportunity with Hand & Stone?

I realized that the massage industry has a good business model. I have a lot of experience in analyzing, understanding and implementing business models, and I found this was the best model for me to start. I saw the growth and that the market was ready. From there, I looked at the different brands but I believe Hand & Stone is ahead of the competition because we offer massages, facials, hair removal, which is a lot more than the average competitor. The ability to offer those three services gives us an edge in the market. Also, when I spoke with Hand & Stone corporate staff, I saw that they were all very experienced. And the support of this professional staff is very important to me.

What are your expansion or development plans?

We signed an agreement to open four spas. We hope to open our second in November, which will be in the Galleria area of Houston. If everything else goes well, the third and fourth locations will open next year.

What are some of your passions?

I would say that my family is very important - my children and wife. I come from a large family, and I get great support from all of them. My wife has the biggest job out of both of us: managing the house and caring for the children. But she will be helping us out with the business as well, so that is exciting.