Elements Massage - Saugus — Attraction in Saugus

had a horrible experience at the Elements Massage in Saugus, and I need to warn others. My appointment was in early November, and from the moment I arrived, everything went wrong. I was on time, but I had to wait a shocking 12 minutes for the masseuse, Yohannes, to even come out. Once he did, I was made to wait another 7 minutes in the room before he finally came in. I explained exactly where I wanted focus—on my lower back—but I did not want him to focus solely on that area for the entire massage. But that’s exactly what he did. To make matters even worse, Yohannes ended the massage a full 12 minutes early, after spending the entire time on one area. When I told him I wasn’t satisfied, he became completely defensive and rude. He had the nerve to tell me that if I wanted a free massage, I should go complain at the front desk. As I tried to leave, he pointed at me, glared at me with pure anger, and made me feel completely unsafe. His face and eyes were filled with such rage, it honestly felt like he was ready to do something to me.

After the session, when I was in the lobby talking to the receptionist about what had happened, Yohannes stormed out from the back when he overheard me complaining about him. He came out looking enraged, his face filled with fury. He shouted at me, and it was obvious that he was ready to escalate things. His whole demeanor screamed anger, and it was honestly frightening. He made comments about me being broke and about my background and what I was wearing, which was completely unprofessional and inappropriate. He openly accused me of being unable to afford the service and treated me with complete disrespect. Then, on December 19th—over a month later—I received a follow-up call. The receptionist called me, and I explained everything to her—what happened, the entire incident. She was very kind, very empathetic, and truly understood my frustration. She then transferred me to the manager, and that’s when everything went downhill. The manager immediately came on the line and said, “You seem like you were upset when you got here to begin with.” I was stunned and said, “Excuse me?” She went on to say, “Well, the notes here say that you shouted across the lobby asking when the massage would start.” I was confused and told her, “First of all, I never shouted. Yes, I stood up and asked the receptionist how long it would take because I had already waited for more than 12 minutes. I had every right to ask that question.”

She dismissed this and said, “Well, I’m just reading from the notes here.” I explained, “That’s not what happened,” but she continued to insist it was in the notes. Then she said, “It’s also noted that you were very upset, and you came out of the back extremely mad. It seems like you went from ‘small mad’ to ‘big mad’ today.” She kept repeating the words “small mad” and “big mad,” which was completely bizarre to me. In my head, I thought, “What is she talking about?” It only made me more frustrated. The manager’s tone and choice of words were completely dismissive, and it only added to my anger. She kept downplaying the entire situation, and instead of apologizing or taking responsibility for the actions of their staff, she turned it all on me. She had the nerve to tell me that I could rebook my appointment at a different Elements Massage and that she would refund my previous session—but only if I went to a different location. This implied that I was banned from the Saugus location. How can you ban a customer who was harassed, disrespected, and offended by your own employee? How is that even possible? The real issue here is your employee, not me, and for the manager to make me out to be the problem is insane. It’s beyond frustrating, and the audacity she had to treat me like that is just unbelievable. This place has no idea what customer service is. The entire experience was a nightmare from start to finish, and I would never, ever recommend anyone go there. Save yourself the trouble and find a place where you’re treated...

This review is specifically in regards to the front desk help at this location and not a reflection of my massage therapist. The challenge is -- the welcoming and exit experience was so terrible it genuinely left my stress level higher than when I arrived. The poor service began when I arrived when the front desk attendant forgot to give me the paperwork I was supposed to fill out as a new client. My therapist was obviously herself miffed by this but, fine, mistakes happen and, although not ideal, I could fill it out after the service. (Although, talk about a legality issue to not have me consent to treatment PRIOR to the massage). The complete lack of professionalism and down right just extremely rude treatment came after. When booking my appointment, I had been assured that Spafinder giftcards were accepted. Great! When I presented these for payment at the end, the same front desk attendant who forgot to check me in took my cards but quickly dismissed them as "not having the right pin number" needed for redemption. I explained to her that they were older cards that I hadn't used for awhile but that I had contacted Spafinder to assure their balances and I even pulled up the email from Spafinder confirming this. She then proceeded to tell me that I was mistaken and that it was possible that someone else had "stolen my cards" and used them unbeknownst to me at some point. I was taken aback by this accusation and frustrated. When I disagreed, she pretended to call Spafinder in front of me but said, "oh, no body answered." literally without even listening to the prompts on the phone. She then proceeded to say, nothing she could do, and quickly told me to pull out my credit card. I told her I would pay now and that I would call back with the confirmations from Spafinder (even though I found this to be ridiculous itself). So, I paid and in the parking lot called Spafinder myself. For one of the three cards I had, I was easily able to pull it up online to show a $25 balance (something she refused to do inside). I immediately went right back (within two minutes of exiting the store) to let her know that at the very least I could clearly show her on Spafinder's website the $25 balance on one of the cards. As I got out of my car to go back in, she was squatting down outside of the building smoking and literally told me to have the other girl deal with it inside. I also at this time was on speaker phone hold with Spafinder for the other two cards. Suddenly, though, when I got back in and spoke to the second woman and they realized I was actually calling Spafinder... just as I got someone on the line, they magically knew how to accept the cards -- all $75 was now put through. All of this after having to fill out paperwork AFTER my massage, be accused of lying about my gift cards, being LIED to that Spafinder wasn't picking up, and having the attendant basically blow smoke in my face. There was not even so much as an apology. It was clear she was furious that I had simply checked her facts. I don't write many reviews because it's a tough world out there -- but this was egregious beyond words, let alone for...

From the moment I walk in, I am quickly greeted with a warm welcome by the front desk staff and my massage therapist Andre. There hasn't been one time where he is not present prior to or as I am walking in to my appointment. What a great feeling. He has such a polite and respectful demeanor, creating an environment that feels comfortable, relaxed and like a safe space. He asks questions and determines areas of focus depending on your wants and needs. I've worked with several therapists in the past, and it's been very difficult for me to find someone that is able to listen and truly provide pain relief. I am in a sitting position for the majority of my day and it can be rather bothersome and uncomfortable. It's caused much pain in my neck, lower back, glutes, hamstrings etc. Some days I feel as though my body is falling apart and I cannot get myself to a point of relaxation. From day one, Andre has really listened to my needs each session. He is able to find all of my trigger points to include ones I didn't even know existed. His massaging technique allows the necessary relief of having knots loosen up to the point that I immediately feel a difference when walking out. Andre goes above and beyond with suggestions pertaining to at home stretches, hot and cold therapy, cupping, etc. to help make my days a bit more bearable. We at times discuss different options for desks, chairs and tools to loosen up any tightness throughout the day. My favorite is when I joke about the dreadful headrest and he works hard to ensure the best comfort possible with what he has to work with. He truly gives his all in all that he does. He is extremely personable, answers all of my questions and makes sure that I am comfortable with the pressure, table, temperature etc. I am really glad that I switched over to this location. I tried one therapist prior to him, but the style was not a fit for me. I've been seeing Andre since and look forward to our sessions that help my body and mind receive the relief it deserves. He continuously reminds me, we are like cars. They need their oil changes to keep running and we too need our massages to keep our bodies going! Our sessions truly allow me the comfort for a better night of sleep. I cannot thank you enough Andre for being so kind, helpful, respectful and...