Cristin Smith, the CEO and founder of Saffron & Sage in San Diego, California, had a major health crisis at the peak of her career, which led to a very costly and confusing journey. From her experience, she wanted to create a space for those like her: people who needed access to holistic healthcare.
This resulted in her designing Saffron & Sage, a luxurious space where people can connect with a team of practitioners who provide a variety of therapeutic services rooted in evidence-based research.
Saffron & Sage is the wellness hub for San Diego’s professionals. “We work with top leaders and influencers throughout the city on everything from stress reduction to meditation practices in order to achieve peak performance,” said Smith. “We are supporting our clients with a range of diagnoses, from cancer to chronic conditions like IBS and PCOS. Our multi-disciplinary approach to bio-individualistic holistic healthcare makes us an industry leader in San Diego and beyond.”
Two of the club’s biggest challenges have been finding the right employees and financing their concept. “Our commitment to the highest quality holistic healthcare demands we hire the best practitioners based upon their education, experience, maturity and integrity,” said Smith. “Finding these individuals can be like finding a needle in a haystack.”
Additionally, since they are a first-of-its-kind holistic health club, there are no direct competitors, and therefore market analysis was difficult to illustrate to financial institutions.
“This led us to work with smaller, community-based lenders and private investors who understood our triple bottom line and how we are disrupting the healthcare industry,” said Smith. “This perceived setback has allowed us to maintain the integrity of our mission, while giving way to further innovation.”
Smith explained Saffron & Sage has overcome its challenges by staying focused on a vision of providing affordable access to holistic healthcare through connecting the community to a curated team of practitioners, products and practices.
“Additionally, I really believe our success is due in part to my story and how Saffron & Sage came to be,” explained Smith. “I always say I selfishly created Saffron & Sage for myself, and it’s true. Everything we offer stems from what I did to get better and my pursuit of emotional, physical and spiritual well-being. I believe our members identify with my journey, and together we are in pursuit of a therapeutic and sustainable lifestyle.”
Above all, Saffron & Sage is focused on making the club a personal space. Every member is assigned a concierge to guide them, help schedule appointments or classes, and navigate product recommendations. The staff knows each member by name, and works to support them in every way they can.
Another area the club makes personal is through soliciting feedback and co-creating with members. The team initiates these conversations with members by inviting them to participate in their “Saffron Score” — their take on the Net Promoter Score. Afterwards, they invite members to share their experience on Yelp, Google and Facebook. They also offer complimentary social and educational events for members on a monthly basis.
Ultimately, Saffron & Sage is dedicated to keeping members healthy and happy by taking a holistic approach.
