Issue No. 01 — Complete
New York.
The first chapter. Two days in Chelsea with estheticians building a serious men’s clientele — the room, the audience, and the work that comes after the treatment.
Day 01 · Sunday, September 27
The Room.
Everything that happened inside the four walls.
Day one was about the client in front of you. How you greet him, how you read him, how you talk about extractions, how you debrief without lecturing, and how you ask for the rebook like a person instead of a script.
“The treatment is the easy part. The room is the work.”
Keynote01
Men’s skin isn’t a niche. It’s a thesis.
The argument the whole weekend hangs on: men’s skincare is a maintenance problem, not a luxury one. And all the science in the world means nothing if you can’t get him in the chair.
Live demo02
Men’s facial + filming demo.
A full men’s facial performed live on a model, start to finish, and filmed on a single phone in front of the cohort. The protocol, the devices — Zemits Verstand HD Pro, Vivalumix LED, Le Mieux back bar — and how to capture the work while you’re doing it.
Session03
The beard area, honestly.
Folliculitis, ingrowns, shave irritation, barrier damage, seborrheic dermatitis. How to get product through to skin, how to exfoliate around hair, and what to do when the product is landing on the beard instead of the face.
04 — Guest faculty
The Manzilian.
with Guido Cuomo — @thebaremangrooming
A two-hour intensive on male intimate waxing, taught by one of the most respected specialists doing it. Protocol, conversation, draping, language, aftercare and the rebook — demonstrated on a model.
Read Guido’s faculty page →Evening05
Cohort dinner at The Smith.
Day one ended off the clock, around one table. Same people, fewer gloves.
Day 02 · Monday, September 28
The Audience.
Everything that happened outside the four walls.
Day two was about getting him through the door in the first place: who he is, where he already spends his time, what your menu, space and site are telling him, and how to film the work without a production budget. The cohort edited their own footage into posts and left with finished avatar workbooks.
Workshop01
The avatar workshop.
A printed workbook and a good pen. Everyone named their ideal male client — where he shops, where he trains, what he wears, what he reads, what he spends on. Marketing to “men” became marketing to one specific guy.
Session02
The audit: menu, website & space.
An audit of the three places he decides whether you’re for him: menu language that’s confident without sounding clinical, a website that signals fit, and a space that welcomes him without alienating everyone else. Quick fixes for this month, bigger decisions planned.
Session03
The partnership map.
Partnership categories, mapped to each attendee’s own city: barbershops, gyms, men’s retail, wellness spaces, LGBTQ+ spaces. What you offer, what you ask for, and why it shouldn’t feel transactional.
04 — Guest faculty
Queen Cup Coffee.
with Alyce Barrick
A guest session from GRAIN's producer, who also happens to run Queen Cup, a third-wave coffee caravan in Los Olivos. How she built it through people, not ads: the neighbor, the parade, and the one nobody expects. The assignment: become the Queen Cup of your own town.
Session05
Content, honestly.
The raw-phone-footage workflow: positioning, light and framing, with the exact gear. No production budget required.
“Content is a skill, like becoming an esthetician. We all suck at the start.”
Presentation06
Video editing, explained.
How a few minutes of raw treatment footage becomes a post: cutting, pacing, captions and sound.
Working session07
Video editing, hands on.
The cohort edited their own footage from the weekend into finished posts, in the room, with help.
Closing08
The conversation.
The last working hour, kept open for real questions from real practices — how to answer the DM, how to go from one male client to ten. The cohort solved it together.
03 — The takeaway
What they left with.
- A complete men’s facial protocol, watched and broken down end to end
- Written intake, extraction and rebook scripts in language you can actually say
- A filled avatar workbook for one specific target client
- A partnership map for their own city, with businesses to contact
- At least one edited, ready-to-post video
- A repeatable content workflow for every treatment after
- Prioritized changes to their menu, space and website
- Six months of complimentary Guild access — recordings, tools, archive
Nobody left inspired. They left with output.
04 — Who it’s 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 they’ve shown the appetite. Solo operators, salon owners, people still in the chair.
Who it isn’t for
- A fully booked practice looking to bolt on a service
- Practitioners with six niches looking for a seventh
- Anyone uncomfortable with men in the room
- Anyone coming to prove what they already know
No. 01 worked because everyone in it was open. No. 02 will too.
The room (literally)
Black windows, white floor, a lot of light.
AMYO Studio, Chelsea — a working space chosen for the work, not a hotel conference room. Catering was built around the cohort’s dietary restrictions: Blackseed Bagels in the morning, Eataly for lunch, Milk Bar for the 3 p.m. slump. A treatment table in the middle of the room with a model on it for ninety minutes. Ten to six both days: hard stop, soft start.
By Monday at noon, everyone knew everyone’s name.
05 — The Founder
Jeff Mendoza.
Founder, GRAIN · Owner, Skin Factory — Pasadena
“Thirteen years in. I opened Skin Factory in 2020 with zero male clients. Now 70% of them are men. I built that on purpose.”
No. 01 was the school I wish had existed when I started. It won’t be the last one.
As featured in TODAY · NBC News · Les Nouvelles Esthétiques
How application works — four steps, no black box
01
Apply
A short application on the site: your practice and what you’re building. About fifteen minutes.
02
We review
Within five business days. We’re looking for the right mix of experience levels, cities and ambitions.
03
Acceptance + payment
An acceptance email with a payment link. Tuition due within three days to hold the seat. First paid, first confirmed.
04
Pre-workshop
Four weeks out: the welcome packet — dates, venue, what to bring, footage to film, an optional reading list.
07 — Frequently asked
Questions, answered plainly.
When is No. 02?
February 7–8, 2027, in Los Angeles. The venue, curriculum and faculty are announced together when they’re locked. The waitlist hears first, before anything is public.
Will No. 02 be the same as No. 01?
Same spine — the room and the audience, two days, a small cohort. Not a rerun. Every workshop gets rebuilt from what the last room taught us.
Do I need to be licensed?
Yes. It’s for practicing licensed estheticians, or students in their final month of school. The protocol portions aren’t appropriate for unlicensed attendees.
Is this for beginners or experienced practitioners?
Best fit is one to five years in. Newer practitioners are welcome if you’ve been actively building. The room is designed for people still shaping their practice.
What if I don’t have male clients yet?
Good — that was most of the No. 01 cohort. You’re not behind, you’re early. The workshop is built for the practitioner who wants a male clientele but hasn’t found the path in yet.
What if I don’t film content yet?
Also fine. The content session is built so a complete beginner and a regular poster both leave with something usable. Bring your phone. We start where you are.
Is the workshop product-agnostic?
The demo uses specific devices and back bar, but the protocol logic is portable. Every device gets paired with what to do if you don’t own it.
No. 01 / New York · Complete
The first room is done. The next one is being built.
No. 02 is set for February 7–8, 2027, in Los Angeles. Venue, curriculum and faculty announced when locked. The list hears first.
Get word of No. 02 first →