SKINSTATE · 16 — FOUNDERS · ANGELO CASTELLO
Dr. Angelo Castello.
Scientist · strategist · founder · operator
From immunology research at Cambridge and UCL published in Science, through seven years advising global luxury brands at Bain, to founding Italy's first luxury aesthetic-medicine brand and leading the FaceGym turnaround — a career that converges precisely on SKINSTATE: science, brand, clinics. Click a step to jump to that chapter.
01 — 2009–2013
Scientific research — immunology.
University of Cambridge · UCL · published in Science. Data-backed rigour and intellectual curiosity as a first professional language — the roots of SKINSTATE's diagnostics-led, evidence-first model.
Science (AAAS) — published research
Lymph-node antigen transport — schematicElectron microscopy — serial section fly-through
Published figures — imaging, 3D reconstruction, quantificationWhat it builds
Doctoral-level research across the University of Cambridge and UCL, published at the highest tier of scientific publishing — imaging and quantitative work on lymphatic antigen transport and macrophage biology: confocal microscopy, volumetric electron microscopy, 3D tissue reconstruction and statistical analysis.
Experimental discipline and the habit of asking why — carried through consulting, brand-building and clinic operations.
02 — 2013–2020
Management consultant — Luxury & Fashion vertical.
Milan · London · New York. 7+ years advising personal luxury goods brands, premium retailers, high-end furniture manufacturers, department stores and hotel chains — 50+ projects across Italy, Europe, the USA and the Middle East, leading large teams with up to 15 months of continued implementation alongside clients.
Key projects
- Rebranding & turnaround — European luxury hotel chain (€100m+): 12+ months post-PE-acquisition brand, positioning, guest experience, operations and CAPEX deployment.
- Product strategy — British accessible-luxury brand (€3bn+): 18 months; collection architecture, brief-to-buy redesign, end-to-end category management.
- Portfolio strategy — European high-end furniture group (€500m+): M&A due diligence, brand positioning, go-to-market, digital roadmap.
- Brand strategy — US accessible-luxury retailer (€4bn+): repositioning of three portfolio brands; mission, identity, brand codes, retail-network optimisation.
- Concept design, luxury hospitality — European luxury department store (€1bn+): vision and expansion strategy for entry into luxury hospitality.
- Strategy that survives contact with implementation — the toolkit behind SKINSTATE's business plan and roll-out model.
Selected clients & brands worked with
03 — 2018–2023
Founder — cosmetic medicine.
To create the first luxury brand for aesthetic medicine in Italy — committed to authentic, non-transformative beauty.
The SOTHERGA missionArt-gallery-inspired clinics — a sense of place
Milan · Via Fatebenefratelli 26
Rome · Via Morgagni 19
The brand — four pillars
SO Authentic
Enhance individuality — never conform to a preconceived stereotype. Physical and mental health as much as beauty. Positive, inclusive, respectful.
SO Hi-Tech
More than 2/3 of revenue from lasers and technology; no single-supplier commitment — the best machines in class. Non-invasive first.
SO Expert
Vertical expertise — each doctor tied to one of five specialisms. Équipe mindset: team-work in service of the patient.
SO Artsy
Art to talk about values and lower the fear barrier — gallery-inspired clinics; patients enhanced like works of art, never changed.
SO AuthenticReal people, real editorial stories
Editorial-grade patient stories over advertising — enhancing individuality, never conforming to a stereotype. Four films, running silently on loop.
SO Hi-TechEBD — the true core
Five service areas plus skincare retail, built behind a best-in-class energy-based-device arsenal — more than half of revenue from technology, not needles.
Energy-based devices
51%share of revenue
Injectables
33%share of revenue
Regenerative medicine
16%share of revenue
Nutrition & psychology
Dermatology
Skincare retail
Best in class — EBD arsenal · no single-supplier lock-in, the best machine per indication
SO ExpertExpertise through hyper-specialisation
A founders’ duo, a medical équipe and support staff, organised by hyper-specialisation — every doctor tied to one of five specialisms and signing their own work. Each expert is linked to the patient’s journey, guiding them and building loyalty to the équipe rather than to a single star.
Energy-based devices
Injectables
Regenerative medicine
Nutrition & psychology
Dermatology
Proprietary protocols
Scientific collaborations
SO ArtsyArt as a communication tool
Art to carry the brand’s values and lower the fear barrier — gallery-curated clinics and editorial-grade content across every touch point. Patients enhanced like works of art, never changed.
Building demand
Editorial-grade storytelling over advertising — a macro-to-micro creators programme giving unfiltered visibility of real treatments.
Original content creation — magazine, editorial, journal, photo & video
Press coverage
Selected editorial — Vogue, Vanity Fair, Elle, Corriere della Sera, L’Officiel, Harper’s Bazaar, iO Donna and more.
Vanity Fair
“I migliori prodotti per la skincare post intervento”
13.12.2021
iO donna
“Back to office: i trattamenti medico estetici perfetti per il rientro in ufficio”
07.09.2021
L’Officiel
“Come eliminare le macchie della pelle”
27.09.2021
Il Messaggero
“Melanoma, l’esperto: fondamentale la diagnosi precoce, l’80% si salva”
16.05.2021
Corriere della Sera
“Medicina estetica viso uomo 2021: i trattamenti più richiesti”
25.08.2021
Elle
“Coccole di bellezza per il corpo in gravidanza e dopo il parto”
26.11.2021
L’Officiel
“Sotherga, l’arte della bellezza a Milano”
22.06.2021
Vanity Fair
“Missione pelle perfetta: sai cos’è la medical skincare?”
12.07.2021
Vanity Fair
“I migliori trattamenti medicali e skincare routine per le over 50”
03.06.2021
Elle
“Tempo di restyling dalla testa ai piedi, nel nome del selflove”
30.11.2021
Elle
“Riportare la pelle del viso in uno stato di puro benessere”
21.07.2021
L’Officiel
“5 trattamenti Sotherga da provare prima dell’estate”
27.07.2021
Elle
“Il trattamento viso consigliato per un effetto anti-age naturale dopo i 55 anni”
04.12.2021
Vogue
“Basta un filler, e alle occhiaie si può dire bye-bye”
07.02.2022
Il Sole 24 Ore
“Prendersi cura di sé circondati dalla bellezza”
18.01.2022
Bazaar
“Come rimuovere e trattare le macchie della pelle dopo le vacanze”
07.09.2021
Elle
“Tutti i segreti copia e incolla per minimizzare i pori dilatati della pelle”
27.06.2021
Corriere della Sera
“Una pioggia di micro-massaggi e i glutei tornano tonici”
15.06.2021
Elle
“Fisico scolpito e una self confidence che fa bene al cuore”
26.07.2021
Vanity Fair
“Avete esagerato con il sole nel weekend? Soluzioni per lenire e idratare la pelle”
13.06.2021
Elle
“Voce del verbo prevenire”
23.11.2021
Elle
“La vostra pelle è stata danneggiata dal trucco occlusivo e pesante”
31.08.2021
Elle
“Fisico slanciato, leggero e tonico dopo i 60: guida all’uso”
29.06.2021
Vanity Fair
“Una cicatrice racconta che hai vinto una battaglia”
29.11.2021
Vogue
“Medicina estetica e centro beauty: cosa sapere prima di fare un trattamento in estate”
05.08.2020
Elle
“Consigli beauty per un fisico tonico e sodo a 50 anni”
30.09.2021
Elle
“Seno in menopausa, il parere dell’esperta”
27.06.2021
Bazaar
“I rimedi semplici per prevenire e curare le rughe del collo e décolleté”
25.04.2021
Vanity Fair
“I migliori prodotti per la skincare post intervento”
13.12.2021
iO donna
“Back to office: i trattamenti medico estetici perfetti per il rientro in ufficio”
07.09.2021
L’Officiel
“Come eliminare le macchie della pelle”
27.09.2021
Il Messaggero
“Melanoma, l’esperto: fondamentale la diagnosi precoce, l’80% si salva”
16.05.2021
Corriere della Sera
“Medicina estetica viso uomo 2021: i trattamenti più richiesti”
25.08.2021
Elle
“Coccole di bellezza per il corpo in gravidanza e dopo il parto”
26.11.2021
L’Officiel
“Sotherga, l’arte della bellezza a Milano”
22.06.2021
Vanity Fair
“Missione pelle perfetta: sai cos’è la medical skincare?”
12.07.2021
Vanity Fair
“I migliori trattamenti medicali e skincare routine per le over 50”
03.06.2021
Elle
“Tempo di restyling dalla testa ai piedi, nel nome del selflove”
30.11.2021
Elle
“Riportare la pelle del viso in uno stato di puro benessere”
21.07.2021
L’Officiel
“5 trattamenti Sotherga da provare prima dell’estate”
27.07.2021
Elle
“Il trattamento viso consigliato per un effetto anti-age naturale dopo i 55 anni”
04.12.2021
Vogue
“Basta un filler, e alle occhiaie si può dire bye-bye”
07.02.2022
Il Sole 24 Ore
“Prendersi cura di sé circondati dalla bellezza”
18.01.2022
Bazaar
“Come rimuovere e trattare le macchie della pelle dopo le vacanze”
07.09.2021
Elle
“Tutti i segreti copia e incolla per minimizzare i pori dilatati della pelle”
27.06.2021
Corriere della Sera
“Una pioggia di micro-massaggi e i glutei tornano tonici”
15.06.2021
Elle
“Fisico scolpito e una self confidence che fa bene al cuore”
26.07.2021
Vanity Fair
“Avete esagerato con il sole nel weekend? Soluzioni per lenire e idratare la pelle”
13.06.2021
Elle
“Voce del verbo prevenire”
23.11.2021
Elle
“La vostra pelle è stata danneggiata dal trucco occlusivo e pesante”
31.08.2021
Elle
“Fisico slanciato, leggero e tonico dopo i 60: guida all’uso”
29.06.2021
Vanity Fair
“Una cicatrice racconta che hai vinto una battaglia”
29.11.2021
Vogue
“Medicina estetica e centro beauty: cosa sapere prima di fare un trattamento in estate”
05.08.2020
Elle
“Consigli beauty per un fisico tonico e sodo a 50 anni”
30.09.2021
Elle
“Seno in menopausa, il parere dell’esperta”
27.06.2021
Bazaar
“I rimedi semplici per prevenire e curare le rughe del collo e décolleté”
25.04.2021
From service to product — medical skincare prescription
A personalised medical skincare prescription — skin diagnosis, morning & evening routines and an app-guided regimen that extends the clinic relationship into daily life.
Prescribed skincare — a curated brand formulary
SOTHERGA — by the numbers
Revenue evolution 2019–2022 · steady growth despite COVID
2022 = H1 actual + H2 budget · estimated €2.6M full-year total, up from €846K in 2019. Source: internal company data.
By gender
By business unit
By age group
04 — 2023–CURRENT
Founder-led PE asset — beauty services, skincare & tools.
Leading the turnaround and international expansion of the studio-born facial-fitness brand.
FACEGYMA The strategy — path to profitability
1.
Service & studio first
The studio experience is the product: put the workout, the trainers and the four walls back at the centre of the business.
2.
Clarity & simplification
Cut the sprawl — a simplified menu, a clear brand and an operating model everyone can run.
3.
Empowering people
Trainers and studio teams as the growth engine — culture, incentives and standards that scale.
B Key initiatives
A more authentic & contemporary brand
Rebalance toward a more gender-neutral aesthetic, in tune with a more authentic portrait of beauty — the language of fitness expressed consistently across all touch points.
Case study →New subscription model
£88 a month · only 2 months commitment
1 monthly workout worth £110 · 40% off boosters · 30% off additional workouts · 20% off tools + skincare.
Simplify the services menu to facilitate newness, push up-selling and enable the transition to a membership model.
Case study →Clinical push in skincare
Refocus positioning from playful to new-pharma, building on the collagen expertise of the service proposition.
Case study →Re-launch the iconic tool
Fully re-design the best-selling product to ensure ownership and increase gross margin by 30p.p.
De-prioritise other channels
Deprioritise wholesale and digital channels to preserve resources while focusing on studio expansion both in domestic and international markets.
UGC-first marketing
- Pivot to a viral content strategy
- Shift to a social, UGC-first approach vs hi-fi productions
- Tap into fitness & wellbeing communities
- Re-focus on customer retention vs acquisition
New studio blueprint for DOS & franchise roll-out
- Re-design the customer journey
- Double service productivity
- Drive customer self-service
- Improve back-of-house space for staff
- Elevate brand expression
- Codify the blueprint for franchising partners
C The scorecard
25%
Service-sales CAGR
Like-for-like organic growth of service in studios over the last 2 years, despite the introduction of membership more than offsetting any price adjustments.
+10p.p.
Studio GM
Smart service innovation shifting to boosters with no consumables, bringing service GM above 90%.
−20%
Studio CAPEX
Reduction in cost per new studio opening in the US despite 3 years of high inflation.
60%
Membership UK adoption
45% adoption in the US, with 50% retention after 12 months.
×4
4-wall studio EBITDA
EBITDA in the high-20s% across studios in both the UK and US, proving the unit economics of the model.
+60p.p.
eNPS
Team engagement lifted markedly through the turnaround.
+30–35p.p.
Booster rate in UK
+20–25p.p. increase in booster rate; adoption in the US was already higher.
−60%
Central OPEX
−62% in HQ headcount and over 60% reduction in marketing spend.
−93%
EBITDA-loss reduction
Group EBITDA shy of breakeven within 21 months of joining; positive EBITDA forecast for the current FY normalising growth investments.
+33
Locations signed
From 13 to 46: 3 US DOS opening by end of FY, 25 in India (first 4 in Mumbai), first 5 UK franchise sites signed with the first opening by year end, and +15 more in the pipeline toward a total of 30.
Why it matters for SKINSTATE
Live proof of the exact muscles SKINSTATE needs: turning a premium studio concept profitable, codifying a repeatable site blueprint, building membership economics, and scaling through DOS and franchise.
Premium studio concepts create brand equity — the architecture SKINSTATE retains within a single business across clinics, prescription and skincare.
D Studio pipeline — Dec 2025 → Jan 2027
Positioned roughly by opening month. Number = chairs. Direct = corporate-owned; all others are franchise partners. Click Silver Lake for photos.
202520262027
DecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJan
Corporate-ownedDirect · USA
Los AngelesSilver Lake8▤ photos
Los AngelesStudio City10▤ photos
New YorkTriBeCa10▤ photos
UK franchisingFranchise
CambridgeGran Arcade9▤ photos
LondonBroadgate9▤ photos
ManchesterSelfridges Trafford3
LondonRichmond8▤ photos
ManchesterKing’s Street5+7▤ photos
LondonCanary Wharf9
LeedsVictoria Gate10▤ photos
LiverpoolLiverpool One6▤ photos
LondonFitzrovia / Victoria / Islington / Belgravia / Covent Garden / Wimbledon / HampsteadTBD
SolihullTouchwoodTBD
CardiffSt. DavidsTBD
LondonMarylebone / George StTBD
India franchisingFranchise
MumbaiKemps4▤ photos
MumbaiJio World Plaza3▤ photos
DelhiMall of India5–7▤ photos
DelhiJio World Drive7▤ photos
HyderabadGVK Lake / Junction Shore7▤ photos
KolkataPark Street5
Italy franchisingFranchise
MilanVia Meravigli8▤ photos
Direct (corporate-owned)Franchisenumber = chairs
© 2026 SKINSTATE · imagery & content from “Angelo — Past Work” (private deck; videos available in the original) · strictly private & confidential — for discussion only
2 · NEW PHARMA — THE EVOLVED PACKAGING
