New York.
A two-day cohort for estheticians building a serious men's clientele.
There isn't a school for this work.
Not the version that's in your textbook. Not the version your manufacturer rep is selling. The version where a man you've never met sits in your chair on a Tuesday afternoon, says "I don't know what's wrong with my skin, I just know something is," and you have ninety minutes to make him feel seen, treat what's actually going on, film it for content, and earn the next visit — without ever pressuring him for it.
No. 01 is that workshop. Two days. Twelve estheticians. Built for the practitioners who chose this niche on purpose, and got tired of waiting for the industry to teach them properly.
Everything that happens inside the four walls.
Day 01 is about what happens between you and one client. The protocol, yes — but more than that, the conversation. How to greet him, how to read him, how to talk about extractions in a way that earns a yes, how to debrief without lecturing, how to ask for the rebook without sounding like you're asking. The treatment is the easy part. The room is the work.
The Premise
We open with the argument. Why male clientele isn't a niche — it's a thesis. Why now. What the next generation of male-focused practitioners is being asked to build, and what's at stake if they don't. Everything that follows over the two days sits on top of what gets said in this first hour.
A full men's facial, start to finish, on a male model — performed live and filmed in real time. Then the afternoon breaks down what the demo moves too fast to hold: reading the beard area, and the conversation that earns the next visit.
Live Demo — A 90-Minute Men's Facial
A full treatment, start to finish, on a male model. Performed in front of the cohort and filmed in real time on a single phone — because the point isn't expensive gear, it's knowing how to light and angle what you already own. The protocol, the devices (Zemits Verstand HD Pro, Vivalumix LED, the Le Mieux back bar — when to use what, and what to reach for if you can't afford the same gear), and the content workflow, all in one unbroken take.
The Beard Area, Honestly
Most estheticians treat beard-area concerns like generic acne and get it wrong. We'll work through what's actually happening underneath — folliculitis, ingrown hairs, shave irritation, barrier damage, seborrheic dermatitis — and how to read it without a microscope. Product penetration, exfoliation strategy, and what to do when the product is sitting on hair instead of skin.
Consultation, Selling + Psychology
Extractions are universal. What isn't is how you talk to a man in the chair. The first sixty seconds — the greeting and the small moves that lower his shoulders before you touch his skin. The extraction heads-up that earns a yes. The debrief while he's getting dressed: three products, not twelve, thirty seconds of why each. And the single rebook ask — when to make it, how to phrase it, and why pressuring a man to commit is the fastest way to lose him for good. Trust before treatment. Set the expectation, then deliver.
The Manzilian
with Guido Cuomo — @thebaremangrooming
Day 01 closes with a live, two-hour intensive on male intimate waxing — taught by the East Coast's most respected specialist in the work. Not just the protocol: the conversation that sets a client at ease, the room dynamics, the draping, the language, the aftercare and rebook. The technical heart of the weekend, demonstrated on a model by someone who's done it on hundreds of men.
Read Guido's faculty page
Everything that happens outside the four walls.
Day 02 is about how he finds you in the first place. The avatar, the content, the partnerships, the changes to your menu and your space that signal you can sit down here. You'll bring footage you've already shot and leave with edited content ready to post. You'll fill in an avatar workbook with the man you actually want to attract, by name and by neighborhood. You'll leave with a list of businesses to walk into next week.
The Avatar Workbook
A printed booklet. You fill it out. By the end, you know who your ideal male client is, where he shops, where he works out, what he wears, what he reads, where he spends his money. You stop marketing to "men" and start marketing to this man. The cohort works through it together, with prompts you couldn't have asked yourself.
The Menu, The Space, The Site
You've just named who he is — now audit whether your three surfaces actually speak to him. The three places men make their decision before booking. Menu language that's confident and specific without being clinical or precious. Space decisions that read as welcoming without alienating other clients. Website choices — photography, copy, navigation — that signal this practitioner is for me. We'll cover the cheap, fast changes you can make this month, and the longer-term rebrand decisions to plan for.
Finding Him
Once you know him, you know where he is. We'll map the partnership categories that work — barbershops, gyms (CrossFit, boxing, big-box, depending on the avatar), men's retail, wellness spaces, LGBTQ+ spaces — and walk through what an actual partnership looks like in practice. What you offer, what you ask for, how to make first contact without it feeling transactional.
Content, Honestly
You'll come in with the apps already downloaded and raw footage you shot at home — we'll send the list ahead of time. Then you watch me edit: where I stand, where I put my light source, how I frame a shot, and how I take it from raw clip to finished post entirely on my phone. We'll edit your footage together, not a generic example, so you see the workflow applied to your own material. I'll share the exact equipment I use and where I bought it. You'll realize how simple the setup really is — the gear isn't the secret. Content creation is a skill, like becoming an esthetician: we all suck at the start, and the ones who get good are the ones who stay consistent.
The Conversation Continues
A working hour to bring questions from your own practice — anything from "this DM keeps coming in and I don't know how to respond" to "I have one male client and want ten." Group consultation. The cohort solves it together.
By the time you walk out on Monday evening.
- A complete men's facial protocol you've watched performed and broken down, end to end.
- A written intake script, extraction script, and rebook script — all in language you can actually say out loud.
- An avatar workbook, filled in, for the specific male client you're building toward.
- A partnership map for your own city, with a list of businesses to contact next week.
- At least one edited video, ready to post.
- A content workflow you can repeat for every future treatment.
- Specific changes to make to your menu, your space, and your website — prioritized.
- Six months of complimentary access to The Guild — recordings, tools, the full archive. Continues at the alumni rate after.
You don't leave inspired. You leave with output.
Best suited for licensed estheticians one to five years in, who have a practice and want a defensible niche in men's skincare.
Newer practitioners are welcome if the appetite is there. Solo operators, salon owners, anyone in the chair doing the work.
It's not for the practitioner who already has a full book and just wants to add a service.
It's not for the practitioner who's collected six niches and wants a seventh.
It's not for anyone who isn't comfortable with men in the room. We can teach you a protocol. We can't teach you to be in the room.
And it's not for anyone coming to prove they already know the answers. The cohort works because everyone's open.
New York City. The venue will be shared with the cohort upon acceptance — a private space chosen for the work, not a hotel conference room.
Expect coffee. Expect lunch. Expect to be there from 10 to 6 both days, with a hard stop and a soft beginning.
Expect to know everyone's name by Tuesday at noon.
Jeff Mendoza.
Founder, Grain.
Owner, Skin Factory — Pasadena.
Thirteen years in. 70% of my clients are men. I built that on purpose.
No. 01 is the school I wish existed when I started — built for the practitioners who chose this work and got tired of being talked down to.
$2,500, payable upon acceptance.
- Two full days of instruction (10–6, both days)
- All materials, including the printed avatar workbook
- Demo on a male model with full protocol breakdown
- Content working session with finished video output
- Coffee, lunch, and end-of-day refreshment on both days
- Six months of complimentary access to The Guild — recordings, tools, the full archive
- Lifetime access to the No. 01 alumni channel
- A 30-minute post-workshop one-on-one debrief call within 60 days
Not included: travel, lodging, devices to take home.
Four steps.
No black box.
Apply
Fill out a short application on our site. A few questions about your practice and what you're building. Should take about fifteen minutes.
We Review
Applications are reviewed within five business days. We're looking for the right mix of experience levels, geographies, and ambitions in the room.
Acceptance + Payment
If accepted, you receive an email with a payment link. Tuition is due within seven days to confirm your seat. First paid, first confirmed.
Pre-Workshop Materials
Two weeks out, you'll receive a welcome packet: dates, venue, what to bring, what footage to film, and a short reading list. Optional, not homework.
Questions, honestly answered.
Do I need to be licensed?
Is this for beginners or experienced practitioners?
What if I don't have male clients yet?
What if I don't film content yet?
What footage should I bring?
Is the workshop product-agnostic?
What's the refund policy?
What about travel and lodging?
Will there be future workshops?
Can I bring a colleague or a partner?
Twelve seats.
A practice you can defend.
If this is the workshop you've been waiting for — apply. If you're not sure yet, sit with it. We'll be here.