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Hot Off The Stone is Hand & Stone\u2019s monthly franchisee spotlight series. Each month we feature one of our franchisees, sharing the journey behind their ownership, their community and what drives them to show up every day for their teams and clients.<\/em><\/p>\n Our network is made up of some of the most diverse owners in franchising, from veterans and military operators to IT engineers, lawyers, architects, doctors and even massage therapists and estheticians who built a career in wellness and never looked back. What unites them is a commitment to bringing accessible luxury to the communities they serve. Behind every spa, there\u2019s a story.<\/em><\/p>\n Meet Erin Powell, a Hand & Stone multi-unit franchisee in the Nashville, Tennessee market. In November 2025, Erin opened Hand & Stone\u2019s first U.S. location to offer side-by-side facials, a first-of-its-kind service designed for parents, teens and friends to enjoy wellness together. The Nolensville spa launched with more than 400 founding members, and Erin, alongside business partner Dale Goodrich, plans to open a minimum of three locations across Middle Tennessee, with her next spa already under development in Smyrna.<\/p>\n Erin\u2019s path to Hand & Stone took shape across nearly a decade in HR technology and startup development, a juice bar business she built as a single mother, and a major family reinvention that brought her from Virginia to Tennessee after 20 years. A lifelong wellness advocate and former ballet dancer, Erin has always been drawn to movement and health. Below, she talks about that journey, why she bet on Nolensville, and the community-first philosophy behind everything she\u2019s building with Hand & Stone.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Erin:<\/strong> I spent almost ten years at Snagajob, working on hiring solutions for hourly workers, and a lot of our clients were franchise owners. That\u2019s really where I fell in love with the franchise model. I used to describe it as being in business for yourself but not by yourself, and I believe that now more than ever. Alongside that, I built a career across eLearning and startup development, and I\u2019ve mentored more than 40 high-growth startups over the years. During that period, I met Hand & Stone leadership at industry conferences and began to see myself as a spa owner. When the timing was right for me to build something of my own again, Hand & Stone was the natural choice. I already felt comfortable with leadership and how the brand operated.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Erin: <\/strong>My husband passed away in 2013, and I became a single mom. I couldn\u2019t keep traveling heavily for work anymore, so I ended up building my own business, a cold-pressed juice company called Ginger Juice.<\/p>\n We grew it to three locations, and in December 2019 I secured franchising rights for Virginia and 38 other states. Then COVID hit almost immediately after, and Virginia\u2019s regulations were strict enough that we had to shut down. It was a hard stretch, financially and emotionally. Looking back, that season taught me how to rebuild, and that mattered a lot for what came next.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Erin: <\/strong>I became a Hand & Stone member during COVID. Honestly, I was just looking for some stress relief during an incredibly hard year, but fell in love with the brand. In 2023 I reached out to former CEO John Teza to talk about franchising. Around that same time, I met Dale Goodrich, who was looking for the right investment opportunity, and we quickly found we were aligned on the potential in the beauty and wellness industry. I had already built a business once, so I knew what it would take and I was absolutely ready for it, but it needed to be the right brand. This time I wanted a membership model with predictable revenue, strong unit economics and a franchisor that supports you. After everything I\u2019d experienced, I wanted a real partner in this venture.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Erin: <\/strong>Hand & Stone\u2019s development team introduced me to the Nashville market, and I connected with Don Williams, our area developer, who showed me the vast amount of whitespace here. At the time there was room for nearly a dozen locations, but there were only three spas open, so the opportunity was real. What sealed it for me was much more personal. My son had been struggling after COVID with anxiety and was diagnosed with ADHD. Traditional school wasn\u2019t working for him. I found a school called Tennessee Nature Academy in Nolensville that does outdoor-based learning, and it felt like exactly what he needed. Then I realized the school was being built in the same neighborhood as a home we were considering. That was the moment I knew it was right. We picked up and moved after 20 years in Virginia, and it turned out to be the right decision for my family.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Erin: <\/strong>Nolensville is a fast-growing suburb of Nashville that didn\u2019t have a single local spa option, but there\u2019s a strong sense of community here, so it was an easy call. My plan is to open a minimum of three spas, and the next one is already underway in Smyrna, about 10 miles away. It\u2019s close enough that we get real operational efficiencies, shared staff, overlapping clients, but far enough that each location has its own protected market. I think of it as building a strategic foundation for long-term growth with real potential to keep expanding for years to come.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Erin: <\/strong>I wanted to design a couples room that wasn\u2019t just for couples in the traditional sense. So, we built out side-by-side services, facials for moms and daughters starting at 13, massages for teens 14 and up with a parent present. There\u2019s real demand for that. Skincare among teens and young people is exploding right now, and a lot of what they\u2019re learning comes from social media instead of a licensed professional. I wanted to give families a place to get real guidance in the same room. We\u2019re also in a community with a huge youth sports scene, so we built out sports massage and recovery services with those athletes in mind. Relaxation is a critical component of what we do, but we also need to ensure the services we\u2019re providing meet the needs of our clientele \u2013 providing an opportunity to expand our membership base.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Erin:<\/strong> Long before we opened, I was out at farmers markets and local festivals like the Buttercup Festival, just talking to people. Community is what drives me, so I wanted to understand what this community needed, not make assumptions. Those conversations shaped a lot of decisions \u2013 including our hours and which services we prioritized. We had 405 founding members before our grand opening, which tells you the groundwork mattered. We even display the names of our founding members inside the spa. It may seem like a small thing, but it reminds everyone, our team included, that this is about a community, not just building a business.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nFranchisee Erin Powell on Resilience, Community and Redefining Wellness in Middle Tennessee<\/strong><\/h1>\n
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<\/p>\nH&S: Take us back to the beginning. How did you first get into the franchise and wellness industries?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
H&S: You went through a lot before becoming a franchisee, losing your husband, becoming a single mom, building your own business. Can you talk about that chapter?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
H&S: How did you discover Hand & Stone, and what made you choose it over building something independent again?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
H&S: You ended up relocating your family to Tennessee after 20 years in Virginia. What led to that decision?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
H&S: Why Nolensville specifically, and what\u2019s your growth plan from here?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\nH&S: Your Nolensville spa is the first in the Hand & Stone system to offer side-by-side facials. Where did that idea come from?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
H&S: You did a lot of grassroots work before you even opened. What did that look like?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
H&S: What\u2019s your broader philosophy on wellness and why people should invest in it?<\/strong><\/h3>\n