You’ve heard of pizza parties, ice cream parties and make-your-own-something parties. Here’s a truly refreshing idea: Host a relaxing, invigorating and one-of-a-kind spa party at your house!
Get a group of friends together and welcome The Sperling Sprinter from Sperling Dermatology, a 25-foot-long mobile spa that will pull into your driveway with certified technicians who will give each of your guests a private spa treatment like Botox, filler or a refreshing facial. Everyone can still eat and schmooze before or after their turn. If you’d prefer the treatments in your home for extra privacy, the equipment can be brought inside and the van parked in a different location.
The Sperling Sprinter is the brainchild of Ari Katz, owner of Sperling Dermatology, and his wife, Dr. Shari Sperling, a board-certified dermatologist and Frisch alum from Fair Lawn who founded the practice in the summer of 2016. In March 2020, the pandemic lockdown closed most businesses and non-essential medical practices, including theirs. By that point, Dr. Sperling had become a leading practitioner of cosmetic procedures in addition to her medical skincare offerings, with expertise in various facials, injectables like Botox and fillers, and body sculpting treatments like CoolSculpting and EMSCULPT that use cutting-edge medical technology to eliminate fat cells and tone muscles. The practice had expanded from its primary office in Florham Park, New Jersey, to include offices in Red Bank and Montclair. Katz left his job in corporate America to take charge of the rapidly growing practice in January of 2018.
Then it stopped. “The business was exploding and then it hit a brick wall,” said Katz. “It was like someone pulled the plug on the music at the party.” All three locations were shut down, and all 40-plus employees were furloughed and began collecting unemployment.”
One night, after a glass of wine to tamp down his panic, Katz thought of creating the mobile spa on wheels for cosmetic treatments. The next day he sprang into action. In short order, he found the 25-foot-long Mercedes Benz Sprinter with six-foot ceilings and Maybach-style leather seating, along with two 50-inch TVs and custom lighting, and had it outfitted with their specialized business equipment. Within a week of announcing the mobile spa on Instagram, Sperling had over 100 appointment requests. The van hit the road for a busy summer, including travel to the Hamptons and other vacation destinations.
When the pandemic restrictions were lifted and people began to socialize in groups again, Katz and his team thought of a new idea for the Sprinter: parties. Facials are both pampering and therapeutic for a wide range of ages. Katz’s daughter had a facial party for friends—and many of her mother’s friends—before her bat mitzvah earlier this year. The Sprinter has been the star of bridal showers, birthday parties and business retreats. Women who appreciate the difference Botox and fillers make in their appearance are loving the convenience of the Sprinter and the group togetherness it fosters.
To get a feel for the experience, Katz offered to bring the Sprinter to The Jewish Link office, and four of us eagerly agreed to have complimentary facials. Our ages ranged from Gen Z to Baby Boomer. There are two types of facials, HydraFacial and JetPeel. The HydraFacial treatment delivers a deep cleaning of the pores with serums, leaving the skin hydrated and glowing. The JetPeel uses a cooling solution to perform a detoxifying lymphatic technique and leaves your skin sculpted, glowing and refreshed.
Elizabeth Papraniku, one of Sperling’s certified Aestheticians, gave each of us a JetPeel facial and explained that she makes choices from a variety of serums and boosters according to the condition of the individual’s skin, from anti-aging to the most youthful go-and-glow, that penetrate deep into the epidermis layers. Sitting in the Sprinter’s comfy chair, with the lights low, already puts you in de-stress mode. The initial treatment with the serum sprayed on your face in slowly targeted movements is cool and refreshing; Papraniku cautioned beforehand that it sometimes might feel like being underwater but the effect was more like sitting in the splash pad at a children’s playground. The treatment ends with a soothing moisturizer gently massaged into your skin. We all left feeling rejuvenated.
One of us opted to include an EMSCULPT muscle toning treatment. With EMSCULPT, a paddle is placed over your abdomen and a machine delivers a current that creates involuntary contractions of your muscles. Marwa Mahmoud, Sperling’s Mobile Spa director, cosmetologist and certified body sculpting technician, explained that an EMSCULPT session is equivalent to doing 20,000 crunches in just 30 minutes. Mahmoud emphasized that EMSCULPT is for muscle toning, and not weight loss. CoolSculpting, another type of treatment specifically for fat reduction, may result in weight loss for the right candidate over a period of treatments. Both treatments go hand in hand with a healthy lifestyle for optimal results.
Sperling Dermatology has three New Jersey offices, which offer their complete menu of medical and cosmetic treatments, and recently announced a Manhattan location that will be opening next month. For information about office or mobile treatments, group packages for The Sperling Sprinter and complete pricing, visit www.sperlingdermatology.com or visit their Instagram page and mention you read about them in The Jewish Link for a special reader’s discount.
By Bracha Schwartz
