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Got an outbreak of acne? A new “high street” clinic in NYC is on a mission to become the CityMD of skin conditions.
Spotless — Gotham’s first boutique clinic dedicated solely to treating the skin condition anywhere on a patient’s body — opened in November and allows walk-in appointments with no referrals needed.
With more and more celebrities and social media influencers opening up about their acne afflictions — including Apple Martin (Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin’s daughter) and Alix Earle — dealing with acne has become something less shame-inducing.
Paltrow, in particular, was praised for her candidness in a recent Vogue video.
“Now I’m just kind of like, I’m human,” Martin says in the video, which has racked up 232,000 views. “What am I gonna do if I have a pimple? It’s not the end of my life.”
At the same time, Martin spoke about the steps she continues to take to improve her skin, like keeping a “good, chill” skincare routine and visiting the dermatologist “a million times” — the latter of which, while potentially helpful, isn’t exactly convenient and would total up to a hefty price for the average person.
For the rest of us, that’s where places like Spotless come in.
“Most derms are only open Monday through Friday, nine to five. (They) have long waitlists, they’re expensive, and it can be intimidating to go to a doc’s office,” Dr. Wechsler, who operates her clinic six days a week with early and late night hours, explained to The Post.
“A lot of people with acne also feel intimidated or embarrassed to go to the doctor,” she added. “So at Spotless, we’re hitting all of these pain points.”
While Spotless isn’t exactly cheap — à la carte “express” services like steroid injections, extractions, pimple shots and salicylic acid peels cost $100 a pop, while initial consultations for an in-depth treatment plan ring in at $250 — it’s generally less expensive than visiting a dermatologist without insurance, which can cost up to $500 for new patients at high-end clinics in metropolitan areas.
It’s also far less intimidating of an environment. While city dermatology offices often feel cold and clinically pristine, the Upper East Side clinic feels warm and inviting with its chic furniture and soft lighting.
Customers like Karina Levy, a 25-year-old hospitality manager who has always struggled with regular breakouts and scarring, have appreciated this supportive, stress-free environment while on their journeys to clearer skin.
“Before going to Spotless, my skin really affected my confidence,” the Chelsea resident told The Post. “Acne made me feel self-conscious in photos and in social situations.”
Eager to put a stop to her spots after cycling through various retinol creams, home skincare regimens and oral medications, Levy put her trust in Spotless’ latex-gloved hands and finally saw her skin clear up, making a “huge difference in how I feel day-to-day,” Levy added.
She’s not the only one whose acne struggle brought her to Spotless. Madison, a Gramercy-resident, started getting hormonal breakouts in her early twenties and when they ramped up in the last year or so, her self-esteem took a “huge hit.”
“It affected me greatly from an emotional standpoint,” Madison, who asked for her last name not to be used, told The Post. “I was so self-conscious because the hormonal breakouts were so painful. It felt like all I could see when I looked in the mirror.”
After trying countless acne remedies and struggling to find a thorough dermatologist she liked, she decided to try Spotless after hearing about it from a friend.
“With some dermatologists, it feels like they brush you off,” said Madison. “…I loved that it [Spotless] was so easy to make an appointment and have someone hear you out and take you seriously.”
While most would call this compassion merged with quick client care admirable, Dr. Jodi LoGerfo, a NYC dermatology nurse practitioner with Orentreich Medical Group, has doubts about the potentially “transactional” nature of Spotless, which she feels could ultimately trump quality patient care.
“A ‘pimple bar’ is designed for speed, convenience, and high patient turnover — walk-ins, quick injections, extractions, and prescription access,” LoGerfo told The Post. “That will probably appeal to patients who want immediate treatment, especially for painful cystic pimples or for a pimple that pops up before an event.
“But acne is not just a procedural condition,” LoGerfo continued. “It’s a chronic inflammatory disease with hormonal, genetic, and biologic drivers. I don’t think treating individual lesions quickly and reactively is not the same as managing the disease comprehensively.”
To this, Dr. Wechsler disagreed.
“Spotless is designed for both short-term and long-term treatments,” Dr. Wechsler said. “These can be done efficiently like a pimple shot, but equally important are our thorough consultations. Our clinicians are trained in my office with me on how I assess acne patients.”
“(There), we review genetic predisposition, hormonal issues, stress, sleep, products, and other medications they’ve tried to come up with a comprehensive plan to take care of the patient’s acne,” she continued.
While I did not get a full consultation, I did feel cared for when I visited Spotless mid-workday on my lunch break. I was unsure how much the center would be able to help me — since (knock on wood) my sensitive, prone-to-bumps skin has been behaving.
After receiving a recommended salicylic acid peel from one of Spotless’ clinicians, I was surprised by just how quickly the process went. It felt like she had simply dabbed my face with a slightly more potent makeup wipe — then, as quickly as we had begun, we were done.
Aside from a bit of redness around my mouth (my typical sensitive area), I was fine to head back to work.
The real results, however, took place over the next few days. My dry skin took on a glowy, rosy quality.
Beyond this extra glow factor, I was genuinely impressed by the clinic’s warm, inclusive atmosphere. I would go back with or without major acne.
