The terms “walk-in” and “drive-through” tend to conjure images of greasy fries and burgers. Boundary-pushing skin care? Not so much. But Skinfolio, Canada’s first walk-in medi facial bar, aims to change that, addressing traditional issues—oily skin, acne, wrinkles, and all—in a fast, menu-ordered approach.
Think of Skinfolio as a cross between a spa, a cosmetic laser clinic, and a doctor’s office all rolled into one. Owned by a group of physicians, the new flagship in Park Royal shopping mall may look like a swish spa for upscale facials, but it’s a serious skin regime game-changer run by a medical professional who’s taking on the “aging gracefully” paradigm.
The idea is this: if you follow the Skinfolio Five each month (any combination of five standard 15-minute treatments ranging from a liquid facial for exfoliation to radio frequency for tightening) you won’t actually need annual botox, fillers, or even more radical treatments, because you’ve improved and maintained along the way. There’s a slow evolution over a few months where, in time, your skin starts to look flawless with a healthier glow. It’s more akin to aerating your lawn each month rather than changing or stripping out the sod each season.
Ongoing maintenance comes in tiny increments in lieu of a dramatic overhaul: in the first scenario, you’ll walk out after 15 minutes without needing a stitch of makeup; in the other, you need to hide out in your bedroom for 2-4 days until your epidermis recovers from the trauma of ablative lasers, or deep probing pokes and prods.
As a family physician, Dr. Lau has always been keenly interested in preventative healthcare over correction, and the idea that we invest money in our teeth (braces), our hair (colour) and even heirloom handbags—but not our skin—is, to her, absurd. “In a way, I like to think of it as the Aritzia of skin care,” she says. “It’s about making quality skin care democratic and affordable.” She adds that, as an Asian woman, “we come from a culture where having injectables is not the typical desired skin care route, but instead, we’ll do machines ’til kingdom come!”
Park Royal’s Skinfolio is the brand’s first outpost, but expect more locations across Canada and beyond. Just park your car, place your order—high-tech exfoliative facial with a side of radio frequency thrown in—and you’re back on the road in no time.
Skinfolio is now open at 2002 Park Royal South, West Vancouver, B.C.
