Mother and daughter team up for Branson spa venture

With nearly 30 years of combined experience in massage therapy, a mother and daughter are collaborating on a new spa in Branson.

Birch & Willow Spa LLC, co-owned by Jami Kysar and Jodi Lilly, has a May 1 targeted opening at 4562 Gretna Road, Ste. 4524, in The Shoppes at Branson Meadows.

Kysar said the spa will mark her first business ownership venture, although Lilly previously owned Sparta-based Body Oasis Massage Therapy from 2007-11. The women are no strangers to working together, as both have over a decade of experience as co-workers. Kysar worked with her mother for four years as a massage therapist at Chateau on the Lake, followed by eight years at Big Cedar Lodge.

“We’ve worked together for so long and we work pretty well together,” Kysar said. “We have the same kind of work ethic.”

The owners estimate $120,000 in startup costs for the eight-employee Birch & Willow Spa and have signed a three-year lease for an undisclosed rate with Maples Properties LLC.

The 3,200-square-foot spa will offer a menu of spa services including massages, facials and body treatments, as well as salon options such as haircuts, manicures, pedicures and eyelash extensions. Kysar said they hope to have close to a 50/50 split in business between spa and salon services. Massages range from $50 for 30 minutes to $150 for 90 minutes. Haircuts start at $25 for children, $30 for men and $50 for women, according to the spa’s website.

Memberships also are offered, ranging from $85-$140 per month. Kysar said the memberships include discounts and free services for clients during their birthday month.

“Our main focus is going to be getting people in with the memberships on a monthly basis,” Lilly said. “We want to just see them on a regular basis, be their regular self-care.”

Kysar said resort spa work can be exhausting because it’s frequently new faces every day and the benefits they provide clients on a regular basis is largely unknown.

“For both of us, we want to have a place where we can see regulars and actually see how we’re helping people,” she said, noting treatments at Birch & Willow Spa also provide co-ed locker rooms, a lounge and dry sauna.