Dr. Lisa Golding-Granado and Eric Casaburi, founder and CEO of Serotonin Anti-Aging Centers.
Dr. Lisa Golding-Granado attended a top medical school and completed her residency at one of the best hospitals in the nation.
But all that training didn’t prepare her to run the business side of her primary care medical practice.
“I had no doubt about my medical abilities. What hadn’t occurred to me was thinking of my practice as an actual business,” Golding-Granada said. “It probably sounds incredibly naïve of me, but I was a month into opening my practice as a solo practitioner before I realized there was actually a business side to all of this.”
The Cornell University Medical College graduate said the turning point in her career came when she started another practice focused on helping patients slow down the aging process. She made a call to inquire about leasing space in a nearby office building and by chance was introduced to Eric Casaburi, the founder and CEO of Serotonin Anti-Aging Centers.
Golding-Granada, who also goes by “Dr. GG,” is one of Serotonin Centers’ initial franchisees with a location in Colts Neck, New Jersey. With partner Danielle D’Alessio, they signed a deal to open four more centers in Monmouth County, New Jersey. Serotonin appointed Golding-Granada to the chief medical officer role in June.
Casaburi said hiring Golding-Granada was an important step for the company, which created consistent and compliant operating standards and practices with its operators and clinicians.
Serotonin Anti-Aging Centers franchisee Dr. Lisa Golding-Granado was recently appointed chief medical officer for the company.
“We use a membership-based model, and creating personal relationships with our clients is what we strive for and Lisa is helping provide training and overall guidance on that,” Casaburi said. “Also, because states have different medical requirements, we needed someone with Lisa’s wealth of experience and medical knowledge to help keep everyone updated on any rule changes and make sure we are being compliant.”
Serotonin Centers, launched in 2021, is named after the hormone that stabilizes human feelings of well-being and overall happiness. It specializes in hormone restoration therapies, weight control services and aesthetic treatments such as dermal fillers and CoolSculpting. It also offers immunity and recovery services such as IV and red-light therapies.
Each center staffs licensed medical practitioners and personal health coaches who design personalized prescriptive road maps to assist members to achieve their individual goals.
Serotonin Centers has nine locations in Florida, Tennessee, Missouri and New Jersey. Casaburi saw the opportunity to get in early on the med spa and longevity market that’s projected to reach $98.6 billion in revenue by 2028, according to market research firm IMARC Group.
Related: New Multi-unit Deal Brings Longevity Franchise Serotonin Centers to California
The initial franchise investment range for a Serotonin Centers location is $665,634 to $1.4 million. The gross revenue for its affiliate-owned center was $2.1 million in 2023, according to the company’s franchise disclosure document. The FDD doesn’t include revenue for other centers.
Serotonin has a lot of new units in the works, with nearly 100 units sold. An anonymous operator signed a multi-unit deal recently to open six centers in Nassau County, New York, according to the company.
In her new role, Golding-Granado said she looks forward to working with new operators and helping them get their business running as quickly as possible.
“My ramp up was incredible with Serotonin basically being a turn-key business,” she said. “I even had patients lined up for me on the first day I opened my doors and it’s been a steady flow ever since, with more than half of our business every week being new patients, which is pretty amazing.”
Golding-Granada said most of her business comes from clients aged 40 to 65 who seek hormone restoration therapies and weight loss treatment. She said the advantage of being a Serotonin Centers operator is being provided a proven game plan for the business.
“Twenty years ago, when I first started my solo practice, I didn’t realize what it takes to run a successful business. It caused a lot of heartbreak,” she said. “Thankfully, Serotonin has provided me a great business plan and it’s made a world of difference for me.”