How Silver Mirror set out to make professional skincare more accessible
Matt Maroone, co-founder and CEO of Silver Mirror Facial Bar, describes a skincare business offering professional facial treatments, personalized care and guidance for clients’ skin concerns. The conversation traces how referrals helped bring in early customers and why small details in the customer experience matter.
Referrals and repeat business depend on giving customers a reason to return, while thoughtful communication about service details helps protect the experience that builds trust.
What’s the short story of how your business started, and what makes it genuinely different from the other options your customers have?
Cindy and I started Silver Mirror because we recognized that there was a better way to help people take care of their skin. Our decision to build the business was largely influenced by personal experiences with skincare challenges and the realization that finding effective solutions wasn’t always as straightforward as it should be. We understood that many people were dealing with similar frustrations and needed more than just another skincare product or occasional facial treatment. We figured creating a place people could receive professional guidance, be educated about ways they could better care for their skin, and access treatments that actually addressed their individual concerns. I believe this is one of the things that genuinely sets Silver Mirror apart. We don’t just want people to come in for a facial and leave; we want them to feel that they are making progress with their skin and have the knowledge and support to maintain those results. For us, it’s about making effective skincare more accessible and helping people feel confident in their own skin.
How did you win your first customers, and where does most of your new business come from today?
The truth is that New York is a tough ground to break into, especially when you’re trying to get people to embrace a different approach to something they are already used to. Fortunately, we had friends who were willing to patronize us and introduce more of their friends to try out our approach. That initial support gave us the oppurtunity to get our name out and let people experience what we are building.
Today, most of our new business come from referrals and repeat customers. We have also realized that while getting people to try something new was important, giving them an experience that made them want to return was just as important. That has remained a big part of how we approach customer relationships and business growth.
What’s one decision that changed the direction of your business, and one mistake that taught you the most?
One decision that really shaped Silver Mirror was choosing to do things differently from the traditional facial spa experience. We wanted to make professional skincare something people could easily fit into their everyday lives, without compromising on the quality of care they received.
On the other hand, a mistake that taught us a lot was not paying enough attention to the little things that matter to customers. We learned that even something as simple as changing a customer’s esthetician without letting them know beforehand could affect their experience. It reminded us that people don’t just care about the treatment they receive; they also care about how they are treated throughout the process.
What has changed in your industry or in what your customers expect over the last couple of years, and how have you adapted?
Today, customers have become more intentional about skincare. Rather than viewing facials as an occasional luxury, more people now want regular, results-driven treatments that address their specific skin concerns. We’ve adapted by investing in advanced skincare technology, including AI-powered skin analysis, improving our treatment techniques and continuing to develop our expertise so we can offer more personalized care.
If you were advising someone starting out in your industry today, what would you tell them to do first, and what would you tell them to ignore?
Aggressive advertising is one thing I would advise anyone starting out in my industry today, to ignore, because you see, the truth is that doing a good job, the kind that earns desired results, is the best form of publicity.
Thank you to Matt Maroone and the team at Silver Mirror Facial Bar for sharing what actually worked with Leaders Perception readers.
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