Aesthetic Partners, a leading clinical aesthetics-focused practice management company, has received a minority investment from San Franciso based investment firm Norwest. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Aesthetic Partners specializes in high-end, physician-led and patient-centric practices. Its model works by joining forces with physician-led medical aesthetics, cosmetic dermatology and plastic surgery clinics in suburban markets throughout the U.S., providing growth capital, functional expertise and new location-expansion support.
It has added 20 practices since 2019, expanding throughout California, Florida, North Carolina and Virginia. Florida-based Sanctuary Medical Aesthetic Center, Aesthetic Partners’ first partnership, is preparing to open its newest location in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., early next year.
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As part of the deal, Norwest’s Sonya Brown and Scott Mitchell will join Aesthetic Partners’ board of directors.
“Aesthetic Partners is one of the earliest players in the clinical aesthetics space and has demonstrated an exceptional track record of helping medical aesthetic, dermatology and plastic surgery practices across the country grow their businesses,” said Brown, general partner at Norwest. Last year, Norwest made a majority investment in acne skin care brand Face Reality Skincare for an undisclosed amount.
Of the deal, Courtney Ellenbogen, cofounder and co-chief executive officer of Aesthetic Partners, added: “Norwest has a reputation as a growth partner that invests in forward-thinking brands. Their commitment to partnership and collaboration mirrors our own.”
As previously reported by WWD, investment in the professional space is heating up. In 2021, Millennial med spa Ever/Body, which offers laser facials, Botox, HydraFacial, fillers and laser hair removal, raised a $38 million Series B from a mix of investors including Tiger Global Management, Addition and Fifth Wall and later a $55.5 million Series C funding.
Last year, Upkeep, an app that allows users to find, book and pay for med spa treatments, secured $2 million in seed funding, and most recently, private equity firm KKR took a “notable” minority stake in SkinSpirit, the largest provider of Botox and filler in the country.
Ellenbogen believes the trend has been driven by destigmatization of some of the services offered.
“There has been a profound shift in both patient acceptance and therefore market penetration for our services, which has grown from just 6 percent when we founded Aesthetic Partners to 12 percent today,” she said. “As one of the first entrants to the market, we have seen this growth firsthand. Our clinicians at AP are among the top tier of providers who are showing patients that aesthetics treatments can deliver natural-looking results that help them look and feel their most authentic self. In a category historically limited by fear of unnatural results, these types of patient experiences change our industry for the better.”