All mystery shop reviews completed by Beaute Industrie are for the purpose of enhancing the beauty industry on a level of service and excellence. We look at three main components of the shop being; the customer experience, the performed treatment and the therapist’s ability to prescribe and rebook. Together these provide a successful measure of the level of professionalism for the client and stability for the industry.
THE CLINIC:
April Brodie Integrated Facialist
Professional Tower, Suite 2001, Level 2, 619 Doncaster Rd, Doncaster VIC 3108
THE SERVICE:
The Sculptural Lifting Facial – Beginning with the Buccal Facial, discover a skin experience like no other. Known as a ‘natural face lift’, April’s Buccal rhythm sculpts and awakens your complexion by improving blood flow, stimulating natural collagen production, softening deep lines, and sagging whilst easing muscle tension.
THE THERAPIST
April Brodie
THE EXPERIENCE
When we at Beaute Industrie approached the one and only integrated facialist herself about experiencing this Instagram-worthy facial, we had no idea what to expect! After seeing it being talked about all over the industry, the community, and of course, recommended by THE Megan Markle herself, we had to see for ourselves what the hype was all about!
April Brodie and her team welcomed us with open arms, and after a few emails back and forth, I was booked in for the Sculptural Lifting Facial. However, Melbourne had other plans!
With Melbourne experiencing Lockdown 4.0, their receptionist Amelia was so fabulous at calling, rescheduling me, and keeping me up to date on when she could get me in next. She was such a delight to talk to on the phone that we caught ourselves having a little chin wag! She was so professional and made the whole “annoyance” of rescheduling an appointment a delight.
Finally, the week of my appointment arrives and I am emailed my consultation forms the day before and I am also called to confirm my appointment. Amelia comes completely prepared with directions as the clinic is tucked away in the “business” section of Westfield shopping center, and I 1000% would have gotten lost without them! (clearly, she has had some practice!)
THE APPOINTMENT
Before heading out to my appointment, I jump into my powder room and take a quick few snaps of my face. A picture says a thousand words, I want to see what this treatment can do for me!
I arrive at my appointment a few minutes early and am ushered in straight away by Amelia. She is dressed beautifully in a gorgeously pressed grey uniform, her hair tied perfectly back, and soft makeup around the eyes (which is all I could see because of her mask).
She shows me straight to my treatment room which is divine! It is perfectly pink, dimly lit, and perfectly decorated. There is a small basket atop the bench seat for me to put my things in before I sit down. I let Amelia know that I was unable to fill my forms in before coming (yay for moving house!), however, this is no trouble as she is prepared with physical copies for me. She graciously serves me some herbal tea and water as I sit at the small table and fill out my forms.
Shortly after as I scribble away, April comes into the room and introduces herself. She asks how I am, re-iterates how she would like me to get changed, and says she will see me soon and to take my time.
Once I am changed and lying on the bed, April knocks and comes back in.
April gently sits my bed up and takes a seat next to me on the stool. She is armed with muscle charts, a warm smile, and an incredible knowledge of facial anatomy.
She explains today’s treatment in-depth, explaining how this facial aims to release blockages and improve the skin’s performance, remove facial tension, as well as lift and sculpt the face. She uses her muscle chart to explain how different muscles can affect the face structure and influence the aging process.
I tell her how excited I am, as I have noticed my face starting to look slightly “bull-dogish” as I creep higher into my 30’s, and suspect it may also be migration of lip filler or possibly receiving chin botox which has made everything a bit lazy. She explains that can absolutely be the case and advises we can work on it today.
We talk about my current skin concerns, bearing in mind this is not a “skin-focused” facial. However, April explains how blood flow, or lack thereof, can impact, cause or exacerbate most unwanted skin conditions. Without adequate blood flow, our skin misses out on vital nutrients and creates blockages, accelerating the aging process, making us look dull, and stimulating a lot of the troublesome skin conditions we see today. So even though this facial doesn’t concentrate solely on my skin concerns, I would still likely see a huge improvement in my skin.
THE CLEANSE
April performs a beautiful, soft feeling cleanse to remove any dirt or debris from my skin. My appointment is at 9am, and with a mask on most of the time, who needs makeup!
Even though this part of the treatment is “just the cleanse”, I can tell she is using this time to feel my muscles and get a sense of where she will need to focus in today’s session. April quietly utters “Nice shoulders” sarcastically to me. I giggle because I know exactly what she was talking about. As most of you have only seen me virtually – I am actually a fairly tall 5ft11 lady who has to hunch constantly! I also, like probably everyone else, carry my stress in my shoulders. So, she’s a bit tight to say the least.
THE EXFOLIATION
After assessing my skin, April confirms that she can see some of the redness and the small breakouts I was talking about. Because of this, April decides to apply a light lactic peel to perform the exfoliation. She also mentions this will assist with hydration, as I do suffer from drier and more reactive skin in winter.
Being a very light peel, I feel no tingling before it is removed.
THE BUCCAL MASSAGE
For those that do not know, April is the only clinician in the Southern Hemisphere to be trained and certified by Danna Omari. After months of training overseas with both Master Yakov and world-renowned facialist Danna Omari, April introduced buccal massage to her clients here in Australia.
The Buccal massage begins with a few slow movements around the lower half of my face… “hmm, this is quite nice.” I think to myself. Then all of a sudden, April’s soft-touch kicks into high gear, and the real massage begins!
I actually have to stop myself from laughing because it was such a surprise! Sure, I had seen it being performed in videos, but this feels more vigorous than it looks on camera. It is very fast-paced, deep, and intense! If you have read any of my previous Mystery Shops, you know I like a firm massage, so I am certainly not mad at it.
At this point, my face is clay, and April is my Demi Moore! 
Now, I love a good massage – no-no, not just a firm massage, a GOOD massage. You know what I mean. Someone who knows what they are doing! Someone who oozes confidence through their fingers and places their hands with gusto! THIS is a damn good massage. I can feel that each of April’s finger movements are precise, methodical, and have a purpose. It is obvious that April is well trained in this unique, one-of-a-kind technique.
She uses a combination of fast sweeping upward movements with her fingertips, a cupping effleurage type technique under my cheekbones, and even moves down my neck and traps. This massage does not just stay local to just my buccal muscles; Aprils hands reach every bit of my face – from my forehead to my scalp, to my traps – It is all being seen to.
Often neglected, the muscles within the face require stimulation and movement to maintain tautness and vitality – just like the rest of our bodies. A big part of the massage is through the underside of my jaw and down the Sternocleidomastoid muscle (i.e. down the side of my neck). This makes perfect sense when you think about it! Any pulling down here is going to pull my mouth and my cheeks down with it, aging me not so gracefully.
After I have been deliciously kneaded into something Gordon Ramsay would be proud of, April excuses herself removing her touch as she begins to don gloves.
Okay… This I actually didn’t expect! I had seen all of the outside massage components floating around my feed, but I had missed the part about going inside the mouth! Oo-ho-ho, this is getting good.
April has me open and slowly close my mouth as she gracefully positions her fingers inside my cheeks, with her thumbs remaining on the outside. And with that, April begins to manipulate my buccal from the inside out. She uses her thumbs to knead right into my cheeks, as well as travel around my face, up into my forehead, even across my sinuses. This feels incredible!
Every ounce of my facial tension just melts away! April describes it as Pilates for the skin, working to improve circulation and lifting facial angles. I am in complete heaven and can feel soreness and knots where I didn’t know knots could exist!
THE LYMPHATIC DRAINAGE
Sadly, all good things must come to an end, and the Buccal massage component is over. April begins to perform lymphatic drainage around my decolletage, neck, and face using a small handheld cupping tool. This will assist in the removal of wastes, continue the increased circulation, and help detoxify me after my incredible massage. This feels so lovely and gentle and is extremely relaxing. April doesn’t miss a spot!
THE GUA SHA
This I was definitely looking forward to. A woman of the world, April journeyed to America to become Australia’s only Cecily Braden certified Gua sha fusion facial specialist. I can feel the quality of her Gua Sha compared to mine at home and man, it’s the real deal! While I can’t see my face, at this point it feels refreshed, relaxed and plump. I can feel the increased blood flow to my skin in the best way possible. The Gua Sha works to remove some of the final spots of tension remaining on my face and continues over what once were my horribly tight traps.
THE FINISHING PRODUCTS
April finishes with some divine products and of course SPF before handing me the mirror. IMMEDIATELY, I can see one of my main problem lines around my mouth has disappeared, and my face looks plump in all the right places!
April recommends I continue to roller facial tension out at home, and use my Gua Sha to get into my traps as often as possible. She recommends vigorously massaging while I cleanse, which is a fabulous way to multi-task if I’m short on time.
I walked out of the appointment in absolute bliss, only feeling a slight headache from the tension release and detoxification. However…. It wasn’t until I got home and compared my before and after pictures that I was absolutely floored.
Check. This. Out!!
I look like a different person! Where has my resting bitch face gone!? My mouth is sitting in a completely different position. And my face shape! Omg my face shape! How did my face get thinner!? The colour of my skin – so beautiful! So bright! SO MUCH WOW!
You best believe I sent this to like 7 of my closest friends! This treatment markets itself!
While this massage treatment was performed with vigor and gusto – At no point was it rough, unpleasant, or uncomfortable. I am very aware prefer things a bit firmer, but this was in no way a “no pain, no gain” treatment and was in fact a treatment I would get again and again.
As someone who is a bit of a ‘tech queen’, I have to say this treatment has me a complete convert! The results are undeniable and the immediacy and non-invasiveness make it the perfect treatment pre-event, pre-wedding, for those who like a more natural approach, or for anyone who prefers treatments that are non-invasive; I can’t recommend this treatment highly enough!
Thank you April and team for this amazing experience.
If you would like your space Mystery Shopped, or for further information on how to make a booking with me in your space for your team, please email info@beauteindustrie.com
Until next time, Stay Connected.