Anything shorter does not allow us to do the job well. We have learned this the hard way.
When I started in this industry, consultations were 15 minutes. The convention was to look at the client briefly, recommend a package, and book the first session. The client left feeling rushed, the practitioner did not have enough context to do their best work, and the result was often disappointing.
At Ivory, every consultation is 45 minutes. That is not a marketing position, it is a clinical necessity. The first 15 minutes are about you and not your skin. Sleep, stress, diet, training, medications, family history. These are the variables that change how your skin will respond to anything we do.
The next 15 minutes are the examination. Under proper lighting, with magnification, with photographs taken for the file. We classify your concerns by severity, identify what you have not mentioned but that is contributing, and look at the interplay between concerns. Pigmentation in the context of dryness behaves differently than pigmentation in the context of oily skin.
The final 15 minutes are the plan. On paper. With sequencing across months. With clear non-negotiables for at-home work. With honest pricing. With explicit notes about what we will not recommend, and why.
The clients who do best are the ones who take this hour seriously. They come in having thought about what they want. They answer the questions honestly. They take the written plan home, sit with it, and book the first session when they are sure. The clients who rush through, decide on the spot, and skip parts of the home protocol are the ones who come back disappointed.
We do not run aggressive sales conversations during the consultation. We never push a treatment in the room. If a client says they want to think about it, we send the plan by email and leave them to decide.
This is the work. The treatments are the easy part.