Business Energetics
Mixing Energy & Strategy for exponential results in your business, with your host Claudia Comtois. For all your marketing needs, visit :www.alchemimedia.com // Instagram : @xoclaudiaking
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Business Energetics
How a Young Entrepreneur Took Over Montreal’s Wellness Scene - Maren Al Jendi & Sabbya Spa
The Sabbya Spa Success Story: How a Young Entrepreneur Took Over Montreal’s Wellness Scene
In this inspiring episode of Business Energetics, we sit down with Maren Al Jendi, the visionary founder of Sabbya Spa in Montreal. At just 20-something, Maren has carved out a unique space in the competitive wellness industry, turning his dream into a thriving business. From his humble beginnings in Syria to building a warm, welcoming, and successful spa in Montreal, Maren shares his entrepreneurial journey like never before.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
- How Maren navigated challenges as a young, inexperienced entrepreneur in a competitive market.
- The strategies he used to hire and mobilize a team that creates an exceptional client experience.
- Maren’s personal daily routine for success and how it keeps him focused and motivated.
- His top tips for aspiring entrepreneurs looking to make their mark.
Whether you’re an entrepreneur, a wellness enthusiast, or someone looking for actionable inspiration, this episode is packed with value you won’t want to miss!
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Welcome back to the Business Energetics Podcast. I am here with Ma Ren himself, the one, the only, the founder and owner of Sabia in Montreal. You might have seen them. They're taking the entire street. This is a revolutionary medical aesthetic slash, spa, slash everything you could even imagine. You'll be needing to feel beautiful, healthy and well, so welcome to the podcast thank you.
Maren Al Jendi:That's too many flowers. I appreciate it. I'm blushing already, but, uh, thank you. Thank you for taking the time to do this. My pleasure. Um, yeah, welcome to savia as well thank you so much.
Claudia Comtois:um so, Maren, you are telling me that I'm giving you too many flowers, but can we talk about how it is to build this amazing facility at such a young age?
Claudia Comtois:What got you into the entrepreneurship journey?
Claudia Comtois:I've always been, I think I would say, a bit creative or out of the box, but what I think makes me an entrepreneur is my interest in so many different fields, so many different aspects.
Claudia Comtois:So it was a combination of opportunity and kind of need to get out and do something different that brought the first idea to my head that I would like to take my first step at innovating. I would like to start this by saying that I I'm lucky unfortunate I have a very loving and supportive father and family who have given me this opportunity to go and pursue this and, with their support, that I'm able to capitalize on uh and capitalize on their opportunity, capitalize on whatever creativity, innovation that I do think I have. So, yeah, I have a good role model to look up to is a father, a friend, a mentor, boss in many different ways, but yeah, so there is an opportunity here that was to innovate. I think it was a lot of people's stories start in COVID these days and you know I wanted to do. There's there been a gap in my opinion in this industry where medical aesthetics lacked wellness, lacked hospitality, and I wanted to go in that direction and explore it.
Claudia Comtois:I love it. So what would you say to someone who you know they want to launch themselves into entrepreneurship but they don't necessarily have the family support? How would you tell them to navigate when we don't have the support of our friends or family or everything? How do you get yourself to do things that are quote unquote impossible or unachievable or unattainable?
Maren Al Jendi:It's a tough question because I mean, my answer might come from a place of a little bit of privilege, but in my past I grew up in Syria, a war-torn country, unfortunate circumstances. So there is the up and down of the fortune and the misfortune that I've experienced and what I would answer your question with is just to, like you were telling me earlier, to ask and try again and keep knocking the door and knock again, and knock again and knock at and knock so many different doors. I mean, yes, I have opportunity, but a lot of people look at me with the external shell that I have, which is my age. I mean, I like the business acumen, I like the experience in the eyes of people who are well-established in their 40s, 50s or companies that have been around for a long time, and when I'm going to knock their door to try to collaborate with them, it's a question mark that they always put on top. So what I end up doing is I keep knocking the door and knocking the door.
Maren Al Jendi:So an example that I could bring to you is the Four Seasons or all the hotels that we've been working with. They didn't know who I am. They were wondering there is this place, new place in Montreal that keeps knocking their door and they're generally always very much solicited, until I was able to break into one of the other smaller hotels, place d'Armes. I think. They're a newer hotel they renovated recently and through a relationship that I built with their team, I was welcomed to kind of speak at the Golden Key Society, le Clé d'Or, where it's kind of the association for all the concierge.
Maren Al Jendi:Here, of course, it's the Montreal chapter, but there are so many around the world and I was able to go in and speak to do different, so many like I think there were 40, 50 different hotels there at the same time. Okay, so I was able to speak to them, et cetera. And to answer your question in a long story it's to keep knocking, keep asking that question, keep trying, keep going, and I guess you and I like see similarly on this, keep going and I guess you and I like see similarly on this. I think your story you shared with me earlier is very and it resonates very well with me of like keep asking for what you want to achieve and until you get it, no matter the opportunity you have.
Claudia Comtois:So yeah, and where is the line. So sometimes in the entrepreneur journey we have roller coasters. We have moments where it's a high a little bit lower. How do you know if it's an opportunity to keep going or if it's a sign to give up? A lot of people are kind of mitigated between the two.
Maren Al Jendi:I mean, what I have is some sort of a little bit of an intuitive feeling on the extent of the return on investment for something like this, so it's not really give up. I wouldn't. I wouldn't position it as give up as much as is it worth it, or is it taking away time from another opportunity that I could be investing myself in? I have an employee I don't know if she wants me to say her name, but she's incredible and before, towards the last days before we opened Sabia so let's say June of 2023, we were still hiring for our reception team we're still trying to build a team together and she sent her CV, sent it twice, sent it to my colleagues, sent it to the head office, came and knocked at this door. We were closed. We were in the middle of like cleaning up towards the end and came and knocked at this door and kept knocking and she kept asking like hi?
Claudia Comtois:Interrupting your incredible podcast. Are you inspired by Myron's incredible journey so far? He went from dreamer to successful spa owner and at alchemy media, that's exactly what we do. We help entrepreneurs like you turn your bold ideas into thriving businesses with expert marketing strategies. Whether you're just starting or ready to scale, we're here to make your visions a reality. So visit Alchemy Media today to get started. Now back to the show.
Maren Al Jendi:I would like to be considered for your receptionist job and I would like an interview right now. What do you have going on? Right now? I'd like an interview and it doesn't matter whatever opportunities or not, or privileges that she may or may not have. This is the perseverance of somebody wanting to do something. They walked, knocked the door and kept knocking the door until they got the end and she's with us since we.
Maren Al Jendi:We opened basically around that time she's still here today yeah, I love that and I want to touch a little bit more on that. I want to circle back on what you just said and I want to take you back to the moment where you had the idea let's open in Montreal and let's do this here. What were the feelings you were feeling? What was the energy brewing from bringing an idea into life?
Maren Al Jendi:Bringing an idea into life. I don't know if I can pinpoint a moment per se that I can associate a feeling to. Of course, there's a moment that we sat back down you know we're closing a meeting. We stood up and then, if you will, there's a eureka moment or like what about medical aesthetics mixed with a spa? And all of us in the meeting sat back down and were like, ok, let's discuss this. The meeting was coming to a conclusion. It was like 9.30 pm, we're chatting, we're done. It was like, ok, this idea that we've had before was not, you know, was not going to go in the direction that's, you know, interesting for us. He came up with the idea and we sat back down and that was the moment. Of course, I was in the conversation, in the discussion. If I sit back and I reflect on how I felt then is I felt like a I would say it's like a rush all over my body of like excitement.
Maren Al Jendi:Okay, another breath in, let's do it, let's take a stab at this, and this is the easiest part of innovation in the moment, like something clicked, because there is a book by I believe it's elizabeth gilbert, which is the big magic and she has the concept that ideas are living beings a little bit like fairies and they go to the people that can give them life okay so what you're feeling right now.
Maren Al Jendi:It reminds me of this book where it came out of nowhere at a moment where everybody was leaving and it felt home yeah, it felt.
Maren Al Jendi:It felt like a new breath, felt like, okay, let's try this again, let's take a stab at this concept. And we sat down. The concept was like all over the place at the the beginning and you had to shape it and you had to like kind of hone in on exactly what is best and how we can really mix hospitality with medical aesthetics in a way that's not done before it has never been done, honestly.
Claudia Comtois:Um, you guys have to google the company. If you're in the montreal area, you have to try it out, because I've never seen anything like it. Um, it's everything you'd imagine it to be thank you I remember because, um, we have katherine, who's going to be in another episode, who hosted an event here yeah and, first of all, I've never seen events hosted into a spa yeah that in of itself is amazing.
Claudia Comtois:So there's like two things I want to touch on, but also when we were welcomed, it's the best welcome I've ever felt. In any event, Thank you.
Claudia Comtois:I honestly, I honestly, really, really, I want to press that down, because you got to give the flowers to those who deserve it and the moment I passed this door, I was greeted. Somebody gave me a number, they took my coat, they made sure that it was secured, and then we had a private visit and, mind you, there were like at least 25, 30 people at this event, like it was moving, and there wasn't 50 staff members. They were busy, but every time we passed one there was a smile, there was a greeting, there was warmth. So how do you, as a I mean, syria is very warm- the people.
Claudia Comtois:I mean, it's the spices, it's the culture, it's the family. How do you train a team to have that warmth?
Maren Al Jendi:There is a you, thank you again. I'm going to leave with a massive bouquet of figurative flowers that you're giving to Sabia and myself. And you pointed correctly it's the team and I think you asked a question about training, but I would start even before training. I think you asked a question about training, but I would start even before training. And I think I mean energy is a big component for you and I take the time to kind of get to know people before they come onto the team, get to know them personally and what they stand for and how they present things and how they do it. So what we've noticed, what I've noticed when I was looking into the medical aesthetics field and to clarify, medical aesthetics and a spa under the same roof. It's kind of this unique standpoint we have. But when I was looking at people in the medical aesthetics field and the experiences that they had, what I saw is two things. Usually I kind of cold, alienated experience that's just dealing with. You know skin on a surface level.
Maren Al Jendi:you know, a little bit. I mean removed from the person, if you will, and and the the. The second component is that it wasn't welcoming per se. They were expecting a certain type of client that would walk in who was just another person it's not me that was expecting the clientele. When I went and I visited different kind of existing establishments here. They're expecting a typical clientele. They weren't really. They were surprised to see kind of a Middle Eastern guy come in. It's not usually the typical clientele they would see.
Maren Al Jendi:So I noticed these two kind of deficits in the experience of the client in the industry and then, whenever I remembered that, when I was, you know, building the team and continuously ongoing. So the training for me which you asked about, for me starts from the hiring and what kind of energy that people convey to you while you're hiring them. Are they? Are they welcoming? Are they them? Are they welcoming? Are they loving? Are they passionate? Are they interested in the human behind the concern that's coming forward? Or are they just solely interested in selling and just, you know, looking at the concern, the skin concern, from an external perspective rather than involving themselves in getting to know the person?
Maren Al Jendi:So that's step one. Step two is I personally like to take the time to be very involved and warm and caring towards my team and I do believe it's one of my strongest belief that if the team is well taken care of, this will automatically convey to the guest. It will automatically convey if the team is comfortable, if they're welcome, if they're within friends at work, if they're within kind of. They know they can go to their leadership and they see warmth from them and they see welcoming from them. I think this will immediately convey toward the guest experience. And I think this is what you felt, because when people were passing by you and giving you smiles, even though they were not giving you your tour, it's because they're happy to see you, they're genuinely happy to see you I do.
Maren Al Jendi:I do believe it wasn't forced at all exactly so.
Maren Al Jendi:I think there's an element of this that, of course, we can train and we can work, and the team works hard at evolving, developing themselves, but there's a component of this that you can't train. It.
Maren Al Jendi:You can't train love for people and welcoming a way that you know, takes care of the human behind and beyond the concern that they come in facing it's so interesting because we're in a period of time when this is filmed, where employers are having trouble to hire people, and to hire good staff and people that actually want to work. I keep hearing that nobody wants to work these days, to quote some people. But to see here that people come with joy and warmth and the persistence that, for example, the person that was giving you their CV over and over and over again.
Maren Al Jendi:it shows a willingness, and so do you feel there's a false narrative right now being pushed?
Maren Al Jendi:I do, I don't think. I think when somebody says people don't want to work, I think there needs to be a little bit of reflection whether people don't want to work or people don't want to work in the environment that's being presented, or people don't want to work in the environment that's being presented. I, our team, I do believe that they enjoy their work. They love their work, they're working with something that they're passionate about and they love their work environment. They love their team and they're working together and supporting each other. So they do want to work. It's everything indicates that they do want to work. It's everything indicates that they do want to work. And you know, I was talking I was talking about this, uh, uh, with a friend of mine, um, and I get get asked this question a lot of like how do you do a work life balance? And interesting.
Maren Al Jendi:And to me, I don't. I don't see that like dichotomy. It's not a work-life balance. I think work is part of life and life overall is balanced when, when you love what you're doing, when you're doing something, you know again, I'm fortunate, I'm lucky, I'm doing something that I want to do and I'm passionate about um, it's not work, I'm not working, I'm just living that's, that's honestly.
Claudia Comtois:There's so many quotable moments there's because you bring such a fresh perspective and at such a young age you have so much wisdom, and it's just honestly, it's mesmerizing thank you, thank you, but I want, I want to know you have mentioned and I know that people don't really like to talk about what they're doing behind the scenes to give back, but we had a conversation around you giving back to some foundations in Montreal in.
Claudia Comtois:Quebec and I want to know where does that will for philanthropy and giving back comes from? You know, at such a young age you could, you know. Let's be honest. You could be like, oh, this business is working well, I can buy myself the car I want, I can do whatever, I can be on vacation every single day, but you decide no, I want to make sure my staff is good, I want to make sure I give back to society, especially in the during the holidays. Where does that come from?
Maren Al Jendi:I think it would circle back to the same narrative as, like work, life balance, and I will link it for you. I believe life is a community and we are a part of a community. We're all here together, we're doing all living our separate lives together and everything intersects together. So I don't see it as giving back, as an action of, oh, I have to give back. I see it as I'm living as a part of a community and I'm sharing my experience, sharing whatever I have access to with others, to the extent that I can. So, you know, recently we sponsored the gala for Fondation Emergence. Fondation Emergence, it's a leading foundation in the LGBTQ community for rewarding a kind of social action that's in the LGBTQ world and they're giving, you know, awards and recognizing people who are fighting for causes that they believe in. That we event in. Just I was a guest.
Maren Al Jendi:Sabia is kind of a year and a few months old, so we're not necessarily in a position to give massive financial gifts, but what we are offering for people is a moment to come and experience taking care of themselves, and that's what we were gifting. Care of themselves and that's what we were gifting, even if there is no check that will be written today. But and eventually, of course, checks will be written, but what we can always offer is hey, sabia is a space for you to take time for yourself, take care of yourself and reward yourself, for you know living as part of this living, that you're doing this kind of allow somebody to take care of you, allow yourself to take care of yourself. And we gifted a lot of the guests experiences at Sabia to come and have a conversation with a medical professional, see whatever concerns they have. Have a conversation with a medical professional, see whatever concerns they have, to have a massage and relax a little bit, get off their feet that they're working on a daily basis, spend some time at the thermal area here in a little bit of quiet and a calm.
Maren Al Jendi:And so, yes, I don't see it particularly as giving back as much as I am sharing whatever experience I've built with the community that I'm surrounded with. I mean, we were at the heart of the village. People worked very hard, much harder than I have, to build this community and I, you know, want to take pride in being in the community. That's you. You know the village, the Montreal, the Canadian was given an opportunity to come to Canada and leave an unfortunate circumstance in Syria and I want to be part of this community and I am you are definitely, and you're spreading the warmth and the self-care, so thank you for that.
Claudia Comtois:I love that.
Claudia Comtois:I want to know, before we we wrap everything up, I want to know do you have a special routine, morning routine, before bed routine, something that puts you into the entrepreneurial spirit but also keeps you grounded, because your energy is very grounded, it's very um at ease, which I'm pretty sure aids in your decision making. Probably, um, what, what is your unfair advantage? Or your little routine that you're doing, or your je ne sais quoi that you add in your day to stay grounded?
Maren Al Jendi:um, so, uh, until very recently I mean very, I would say, maybe a year or so ago uh, I wasn't as uh kind of grounded or as tame, if you will, uh, but uh, and because you know, energy was pulling me in so many different directions, I wanted to do this, this, that and the other, and of course, there, there are still sometimes that this comes up, and it's not at all a negative thing, I wouldn't think of it as such, but the groundedness I think I've started to be able to develop is associated with a routine that I've developed and for me, I wake up at 6 am, naturally, usually between 6, and you know my alarms at 6. But sometimes, you know, I wake up between 6.15, 6.30. I wake up, you know, wash my face, get dressed and go to the gym immediately. Ok, yeah, the gym is my best friend lately.
Maren Al Jendi:Uh, the gym is my, uh, my best friend lately. Um, it's time for myself, with my music and some weight, sometimes heavy, sometimes light, um and uh, you know, enjoy, that's the time for myself. Finish, go back home, shower, eat, get dressed and go to whatever work I have. And I think the moments that I have at the gym and the moment that I have in the car are at the gym is to ground my body in the car is usually to ground my mind, see what the day ahead of me is and get in the zone, and usually my days run like this until, say, 9, 10 pm, whenever I get back home and cycle begins again wow, so that's, that's so nothing, nothing out of the ordinary, nothing unique.
Maren Al Jendi:You know, I don't. Uh, I do consider gym, my meditation. I do consider gym, my meditation. It's, uh, usually a a body experience kind of to ease the mind and then driving usually my mind experience to ease the body.
Claudia Comtois:Vice versa do you have a go-to uh training like you do, more hiit or weight lifting or cardio? Is there a thing you like to?
Maren Al Jendi:um. So I, uh, I went through a a a journey of weight loss and, yeah, to kind of gain back control of my body. I was at around 300, 300 plus pounds and through a long journey I lost quite a bit of that weight and, you know, I'm comfortable in my body now. I'm even gaining back my functions. I know my back doesn't hurt anymore, like I feel good, I'm active, I'm energetic, uh. So right now my training has shifted towards more, uh, weight lifting and strength training, towards being able to, uh, you know, build for a healthier future and, you know, maintain my organs. Try to do the best I can, uh for myself. It's, it's a form of self-care. So, mostly, mostly, weight training, I do some boxing, play some basketball. I'm bad at all of them but, uh, I think the enjoyment I get is from, from doing the activity itself. I think this is where the fun comes from and do you have anything you want to tell?
Claudia Comtois:It could be a younger version of yourself that had aspirations or that was in a moment of uncertainty. They had a dream and they felt like, am I dreaming too big? What would you tell that person that has an idea that has visited them and they want to execute? What do you wish you heard in these moments?
Maren Al Jendi:I mean it's a cliche, but I would have liked to hear that you know towards if I'm dreaming too big. If I ask myself that question, the answer to it would be you're not dreaming big enough. I love that. I do believe that things are defined by their opposites, so, and there's joy that comes from success, there's joy that comes from failure, there's joy that comes from opportunity, there's joy that comes from lack thereof and, uh, I think to cherish those moments, uh, both equally, to appreciate those moments both equally, um, is is very insightful, and I've learned that recently. And uh, uh, I, I think this is something that I always like to remind myself of in moments that are down that this is what makes moments that are up as, uh, as substantial as they are. I don't know.
Claudia Comtois:A little bit of a cliche no, it's okay, we need these reminders. My question is a cliche in and of itself, but it's because I believe we have to be reminded over and, over, and, over and over again, especially in these moments of doubt. To have that repetition overpower the the forces that are trying to stray us away from our paths, is the best thing we can do. So definitely encourage you guys to listen over and over and over again to that, maren. Thank you so muchène thank you so much.
Maren Al Jendi:Thank you so many large bouquet of flowers. Thank you, I appreciate it. I appreciate you having me. Good luck.
Claudia Comtois:Thank you.
