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Kim Perrone is the founder and owner of Center for the Healing Arts at 312 W. Leuda St. in Fort Worth. Founded in 2004, her clinic and its practitioners offer massage therapy, acupuncture, cupping therapy and microneedling services.
Contact information:
Website: https://www.centerforthehealingarts.net/
Email: cftharts@gmail.com
Phone: 817-882-9750
The Fort Worth Report spoke with Kim Perrone about the clinic’s 20th anniversary, its history and plans for the future. This interview has been edited for clarity, grammar and length.
David Moreno: Prior to opening the Center for the Healing Arts, you spent over 40 years as a pharmacist. Why did you decide to blend your medical experience and background with Eastern medicine?
Kim Perrone: My story is very similar to most people who get into alternative medicine. For most people, they themselves or someone very near to them could not get well and so they search for a different answer. In my case, it was my oldest sister. She had cancer at 40 and it came back when she was around 47, but she was misdiagnosed for a long period of time. The week after she died, I went back to school and started acupuncture school.
Moreno: When you decided to go to acupuncture school, was the idea of opening your own practice always on your mind?
Perrone: No, I didn’t really know what it was going to look like. When I went back to school, it was mainly just to learn. I was fortunate enough to meet a doctor who hired me after I graduated, and I learned so much about acupuncture from him. How I ended up here with the center is kind of a weird story.
I had these dreams a couple of nights in a row while I was still working for the doctor. In the dream, there was an old house and a church. You know how sometimes you can just tell a dream is more than a dream? After two nights, I was like “OK, God, I don’t know what you’re trying to tell me, but you have to be more specific.” Two of my patients came in the next day and they said, “You’re not supposed to be here anymore. You’re supposed to be in an old house.”
I started driving around and I came across this house. The guy who owned this place was mowing the lawn and I stopped to ask him about it. He let me in and as soon as I walked in, I knew this is where I was supposed to be. At the time, this neighborhood was not like it is now. It’s a good thing I found this place when I did, because I could not afford it now. But back in 2004, I could.
Moreno: Speaking of 2004, you’re celebrating 20 years since you opened. How has the center changed in 20 years?
Perrone: I would say we have a more diverse clientele now. I’ve also always been fortunate to have at least one other acupuncturist with me. They can come build their business. After COVID-19, our business took a big hit then. It’s back to the normal number of people coming in, but we have a lot more safety measures now with ancillary staff just washing a ton of sheets every day.
We also have a lot more involvement with different people in the community. People in the healing community utilize our third floor space to host sound bath therapies and yoga. I’m just proud that we’ve been able to help as many people as we have.
Moreno: How big is your staff now?
Perrone: We have two front desk employees, three acupuncturists, a neuro integration practitioner and a massage therapist, who has his own business, but rents from us.
Moreno: How has your approach to getting clientele changed from when you first opened to now?
Perrone: We try to get out there with social media, but really, the majority of our people have always been through word of mouth. We’ve tried different advertising forms through the years, but it always comes back to word of mouth with patients telling other people. You do get a bit more bang for your buck. Someone is going to believe their friend more than they’re going to believe an ad.
Moreno: Have you ever thought about opening up a second location?
Perrone: Oh no (laughs). A couple of acupuncturists who have retired along the way have asked me if I wanted to buy their practice. And, to me, why would I do that? Our practice is so hands-on and personal that it’s not easy to duplicate. It’s not like a restaurant. This practice is a very personal thing. It’s just easier to have the overhead of one place and have people come to you.
Moreno: Where do you see this center in the next few years? What goals do you have?
Perrone: I would like Jessica Correa and Drew Tucker, our other acupuncturists, to really be the new faces of the center. We have tried to do that some with social media, because they’re the new blood. If the center is going to continue, it’s not going to be this old lady here for the next 15 years.
They have new ideas and they are bringing in fresh things. Jessica does a lot of fertility which is bringing in a younger subset of people. Drew’s work deals a lot with pain medicine, but he also has a history as a trainer. He’s bringing that aspect as well. I’m not leaving anytime soon, but I feel like I would be short-sighted if I didn’t realize the energy of the center will be with them.
David Moreno is the health reporter for the Fort Worth Report. His position is supported by a grant from Texas Health Resources. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or @davidmreports on X.
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