40 Under 40: Emily Hildebrand

Not many people buy a business when they are 22 years old.

But that is exactly what Emily Hildebrand did when she broached the idea of purchasing Highlands Day Spa.

Hildebrand went to work at Highlands in May 2016, starting out as the front desk receptionist before being promoted to manager in mid‑2017. She had taken the job at the day spa after working as assistant manager at the now‑closed Hancock Fabrics in Hayden.

“Which is essentially the reason I got the ‘temporary job’ working at the front desk at Highlands while I finished school,” Hildebrand said.

Hildebrand was doing a tax internship at Magnuson, McHugh and Co. in early 2017 when the original owner of Highlands told her she wanted to sell. After learning the owner was willing to finance the sale, Hildebrand pitched the idea of buying the business herself.

“I finally signed the paperwork for purchase at the end of 2017 when I was 22 years old,” she said.

At the time she purchased Highlands, Hildebrand was finishing her associate degree in business at North Idaho College and beginning her bachelor’s degree with a focus on business and accounting at Lewis‑Clark State College.

“Having that basic background really helped me ensure I was staffing legally, asking the right questions in interviews for new staff and managing the general accounting and finance of the business,” she said. “I also felt I had a lot more confidence to take on the endeavor of owning a company because I could understand financial statements, etc.”

Buying an established spa at 22 was a major initiation, Hildebrand said. Experiences along the way — a divorce and lost friendships among them — helped her become the person and business owner she needs to be.

“Ultimately I came out on the other side as the person I needed to be to actually hold what it really is to own a business like this with 30‑plus employees,” she said.

She credits both who she was and who she has become for helping her reach this point in her life.

“I think it’s extremely difficult to be fully immersed in the spa field and not end up a little ‘woo‑woo,’ so I definitely apply a lot of the credit for the person I’ve become to the metaphysical side of reality,” Hildebrand said.

Hildebrand plans to remain in the industry and continue expanding her services. She opened the spa’s Coeur d’Alene location in 2023, which she sees becoming an integral part of the community.

“I also see myself getting to take on a more visionary role in the spa as opposed to being in the thick of it daily,” she said of the future. “I will be traveling more and getting to enjoy the fruits of my labor for the last 10 to 15 years — five years in the future, I suppose.”

If she could give her younger self one piece of advice, Hildebrand said it would be simple.

“It’s all meant for you,” she said. “Every hurdle, every accomplishment, every disappointment is there to help you become the person you’re meant to be. Trust your gut and don’t allow other people’s fears or small dreams to discourage you.”