Inspiring Conversations with Dr. Ricky Chang of EnerQi Wellness Center

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Ricky Chang. They and their team shared their story with us below:

Dr. Chang is trained in conventional medicine. After working as a hospitalist in a cancer hospital, he became increasingly frustrated with the limitations of Western medicine. He sought to provide a more holistic/whole-person approach to healing by incorporating the principles of Integrative Medicine and Eastern medicine (Traditional Chinese Medicine) to help prevent diseases, relieve pain, and help educate people on how they can empower their bodies for self-healing. 

After coming to LA in 2019 to train in East-West Medicine at UCLA, he was inspired to open his own practice with his partner Rhette that focuses on the integration of Eastern and Western medicine to help people heal and reveal their beauty from the inside out. 

Now with a boutique wellness center in Marina Del Rey, patients can receive conventional treatments such as trigger point injections, neurotoxins, body sculpting, microneedling, and PRP treatments while also receiving Eastern treatments such as acupuncture and cupping. Treatments are paired with customized wellness plans and valuable lifestyle education to help patients continue their healing journey at home. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We thought with a strong existing patient panel, building our own business would be easier (not easy, but we didn’t realize it would be this difficult). We underestimated the BUSINESS side of building our own practice. 

We started in a brick-and-mortar space before moving into our home to provide a more concierge experience. We wish we had started this way, seeing how positively people respond to the high level of one-on-one time and personalization they receive. 

We also underestimated the amount of time and money people are willing to spend on their well-being versus their appearance (come on, we’re in LA – we should have known better). 

When we first launched, we found it difficult to get people in the door to address their pain. 

Once we rolled out aesthetics in our business, we found it much easier to get people in for consultations. Once they’re getting treatments and comfortable with us, they’re typically much more open to discussing lifestyle changes and addressing their pain and other underlying issues. If we had a crystal ball, this is where we would have started. 🙂 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next, you can tell us a bit more about your business.
EnerQi Wellness Center (pronounced En-er-chee) believes the most efficient path to beauty and healing is through the combination of Eastern and Western medicine. 

We utilize Western conventional treatments to provide more immediate results (e.g., trigger point injections, body sculpting, neurotoxins, microneedling, etc.) while educating on and treating patients with Eastern modalities (acupuncture, cupping, diagnosing body constitution, lifestyle optimization, etc.) to reveal your beauty from the inside out. 

What sets us apart? We’re not a typical medical clinic or medspa. With a focus on healing and beauty through a combination of East-West treatments, we truly treat patients internally and externally, helping them get the results they want in the short term while setting them up for success to sustain healthy, full lives for many years to come. 

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out.
Our advice for those just starting out is 

1. JUST START: Waiting for the perfect time, the perfect slogan, the perfect design… will keep you in the waiting phase. Hit the ground running and learn from your mistakes. People appreciate authenticity and will show up to support you in a surprising way when you’re being your authentic self.

2. BE YOU: Don’t just embrace your uniqueness, but double down and make it your marketing angle. When getting started we felt the pressure to adapt to what others were doing but consistently found more success when leaning into our unique approach. Don’t be afraid of rejection. The customers you are supposed to attract will find you.

3. KNOW YOUR WHY: When you’re passionate about what you do and can clearly communicate why it’s important to you, the Universe will align you with the right customers, partners, and supporters.

4. COLLABORATE: There are plenty of people in LA and plenty of business to go around. Find those whom you can help and make sense to align with you — work together and flourish together (remember the metaphorical expression about rising tides lifting all boats).

Contact Info:

• Website: enerqicenter.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/enerqi_center
• Facebook: http://facebook.com/enerqi.wellness.center
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/enerqi-center/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/enerqi-wellness-center-marina-del-rey
• Other: https://bit.ly/m/enerqi