After Philipp Sitter launched Houston-based VIPInsiders, a mobile rewards platform for restaurant customers, in 2019, he was approached by an unexpected potential customer: Butterfly MedSpa & Wellness.
The med spa's operator believed VIPInsider's white-label rewards program for restaurants could be applied to the aesthetics and wellness space to bring in more customers.
Although Sitter was unfamiliar with med spas and wasn't going to redevelop the VIPInsider platform to serve a single client, he was intrigued by the doctor's proposition and felt the young tech company really had nothing to lose. Thus, Butterfly MedSpa & Wellness was added to the platform.
Meanwhile, VIPInsiders continued to focus on food and restaurants as the industry faced historic challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic. The company was giving out free QR codes to restaurants in the fall of 2020 when Butterfly MedSpa reached back out. The rewards platform had been a success.
Sales generated through the rewards program had helped the med spa pay off pieces of capital equipment ahead of schedule, drove patients to new treatment options and ultimately helped increase the company's bottom line, Sitter said.
"He was just … raving, and I couldn't really wrap my head around it. We talked to kind of figure out what was going on," Sitter said. "From that time, from about October [2020] to January [2021], we were creating what is RepeatMD."
The team took a deep dive into the aesthetics and wellness space to understand medical spas, plastic surgeons and dermatologists in the aesthetic industry. Then, they identified applications for the VIPInsiders technology. Instead of a free margarita reward, what about a free wellness treatment reward? If a customer comes in for a Botox treatment, could a free reward for IV therapy drive awareness and growth in that revenue stream? Beyond one-off treatments, could custom memberships and packages help spas, plastic surgeons and the like drive even greater monthly recurring revenue?
"Easily defined, what we do is sell more of their high-margin services, and the way that we do that is building [something like] Starbucks rewards for the aesthetics industry," Sitter said.
After developing a separate technology stack for the new company, RepeatMD was launched in February 2021. A year later, the company is working with a little under 1,000 practices in the aesthetics space nationwide and is taking on around 100 new practices each month.
The team has also grown to 48 employees, with around 80% working in the Houston area. RepeatMD also has some members of its executive team and developers who work remotely.
The company plans to add more employees to its development team as it works to add a virtual consultation feature and other offerings for users. RepeatMD also plans to hire for its marketing team to expand with more aesthetics practices, both in the U.S. and internationally, Sitter said.
RepeatMD also is launching a new aesthetic marketplace, which is built exclusively for practices and allows customers to browse, book and pay for treatments in a single platform. Think of a restaurant-style menu of options for customers before they have to enter the spa or plastic surgeon's office, Sitter said.
The company plans to raise capital in order to scale its ability to offer buy-now, pay-later options to customers. Some of these treatments aren't cheap — memberships can go for between $99 and $400 per month, while packages can range between $200 and $2,000 a month. The company wants to partner with investors or organizations proven in the financial technology space to expand RepeatMD's ability to lend money to consumers in a BNPL format.
Prior to founding VIPInsiders and RepeatMD, Sitter co-founded King’s Biergarten in 2011.
