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As the third Global Wellness Day approaches, founder Belgin Aksoy tells Spa Business about the movement that’s been embraced by the spa sector the world over
Belgin Aksoy is the driving force behind the campaign
Three years ago, Belgin Aksoy, creative director of hotel management company Richmond International in Turkey, came up with an idea to combat depression and unhappiness by promoting the importance of living well. “According to many studies, depression is the most common health problem around the world,” she says. “It often manifests itself in sleep deprivation, stress, poor nutrition, inactivity, obesity, heart disease and more. To overcome this problem and lead a healthy, happier life we need an inspiring beginning. The name of that beginning is Global Wellness Day.”
Aksoy reasons: “We’ve honoured almost everything which is valuable to us with a special day, so why not have one that’s dedicated to the universally accepted importance of wellness?”
Make a change Held on the second Saturday of June each year, Global Wellness Day (GWD) is based on a simple premise – to increase our consciousness of living a better life, even if it’s just for one day, to draw our attention to healthier lifestyles.
It’s campaigning for people to change one aspect of their lives for that day and outlines seven possible manifests: • Drink more water • Walk for an hour • Shop locally & eat organically • Stop using plastic bottles • Do a good deed • Eat a family dinner • Go to bed at 10pm
Aksoy hopes that it will motivate people to keep up the good habits to “impact their wellbeing on the other 364 days of the year”.
Striking a chord What started as a vision is quickly becoming a reality with both celebrities and a growing number of spa professionals showing their support for the not-for-profit campaign.
Last year, Aksoy went back stage at the Emmy Awards where stars from TV shows such as Mad Men and Scandal visited the GWD stand and praised the venture.
The initiative is also striking a chord in the spa arena. There are now 39 spa industry leaders, from 30 countries, who’ve been appointed GWD ambassadors. From Noel Asmar (Noel Asmar Group) and Nicolas Ronco (Yelo Spa) in North America to Marianne Brepohl (Lapinha Spa) in Brazil and Sammy Gharieni (Gharieni Group) in Germany – all ambassadors have made a commitment to invite their community to become a part of GWD.
Asmar says: “Wellness is a necessity, not an option, and I felt I must be involved.”
Gharieni adds: “I’m excited about finally having one day when everyone thinks about wellness. It’s a sober claim that ‘GWD or one day can change your whole life’.”
In fact, many initiatives, partnerships and events are already underway or being planned behind the scenes in the run up to the third GWD on Saturday 13 June. Highlights include the possibility of a seal of approval from the Dalai Lama when he talks at the Happiness and its Causes conference in Australia on 11-12 June; while in Thailand, GWD has been included as an official event in the Tourist Authority’s calendar for 2015 and 2016.
In the USA, UK, Austria and Germany, word is being spread to spa and wellness-related organisations. And in Turkey the aim is to set up an official GWD association and to distribute GWD apples with in-flight meals to 80,000 Turkish Airline passengers on the day.
Wellness is the answer From its first tentative steps in Turkey, the GWD campaign has gathered momentum and moved across borders – five continents to be precise. So far, it’s collected signatures from over 5,000 people who support the campaign.
Aksoy concludes: “Ten years ago, wellness was considered a luxury. Today most of us know that we all need to adopt a better lifestyle and approach to wellbeing. Ten years from now, people will know that ‘wellness’ is the answer – we’ll go back to basics and learn to appreciate the silence within our minds, as well as how to transfer positive vibes to others. We’ll take actions to learn the simplicity of happiness. At least this is my dream for the future and Global Wellness Day will be a very important instrument to achieve this dream.”
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Interview: Kathy Van Ness
The COO at Golden Door tells Katie Barnes how she’s used her background in fashion to reinvent the destination spa
Wellness: In sickness & health
The Urban Zen Integrative Therapy programme by designer Donna Karan helps acutely-ill patients in health and social care settings. Julie Cramer reports
Design: Sense of arrival
Neena Dhillon talks to the spa designers and operators at the new Aman and Ritz-Carlton properties in Japan
Ask an expert: Neuromarketing
Could this field of market research hold the key to finding out what customers really want? Rhianon Howells investigates
Aksoy would love to hear from anyone who wants to become a GWD ambassador for their country. She’s looking for volunteers – especially influential industry leaders – who have “motivation and dedication”.
As the third Global Wellness Day approaches, founder Belgin Aksoy tells Spa Business about the movement that’s been embraced by the spa sector the world over
Belgin Aksoy is the driving force behind the campaign
Three years ago, Belgin Aksoy, creative director of hotel management company Richmond International in Turkey, came up with an idea to combat depression and unhappiness by promoting the importance of living well. “According to many studies, depression is the most common health problem around the world,” she says. “It often manifests itself in sleep deprivation, stress, poor nutrition, inactivity, obesity, heart disease and more. To overcome this problem and lead a healthy, happier life we need an inspiring beginning. The name of that beginning is Global Wellness Day.”
Aksoy reasons: “We’ve honoured almost everything which is valuable to us with a special day, so why not have one that’s dedicated to the universally accepted importance of wellness?”
Make a change Held on the second Saturday of June each year, Global Wellness Day (GWD) is based on a simple premise – to increase our consciousness of living a better life, even if it’s just for one day, to draw our attention to healthier lifestyles.
It’s campaigning for people to change one aspect of their lives for that day and outlines seven possible manifests: • Drink more water • Walk for an hour • Shop locally & eat organically • Stop using plastic bottles • Do a good deed • Eat a family dinner • Go to bed at 10pm
Aksoy hopes that it will motivate people to keep up the good habits to “impact their wellbeing on the other 364 days of the year”.
Striking a chord What started as a vision is quickly becoming a reality with both celebrities and a growing number of spa professionals showing their support for the not-for-profit campaign.
Last year, Aksoy went back stage at the Emmy Awards where stars from TV shows such as Mad Men and Scandal visited the GWD stand and praised the venture.
The initiative is also striking a chord in the spa arena. There are now 39 spa industry leaders, from 30 countries, who’ve been appointed GWD ambassadors. From Noel Asmar (Noel Asmar Group) and Nicolas Ronco (Yelo Spa) in North America to Marianne Brepohl (Lapinha Spa) in Brazil and Sammy Gharieni (Gharieni Group) in Germany – all ambassadors have made a commitment to invite their community to become a part of GWD.
Asmar says: “Wellness is a necessity, not an option, and I felt I must be involved.”
Gharieni adds: “I’m excited about finally having one day when everyone thinks about wellness. It’s a sober claim that ‘GWD or one day can change your whole life’.”
In fact, many initiatives, partnerships and events are already underway or being planned behind the scenes in the run up to the third GWD on Saturday 13 June. Highlights include the possibility of a seal of approval from the Dalai Lama when he talks at the Happiness and its Causes conference in Australia on 11-12 June; while in Thailand, GWD has been included as an official event in the Tourist Authority’s calendar for 2015 and 2016.
In the USA, UK, Austria and Germany, word is being spread to spa and wellness-related organisations. And in Turkey the aim is to set up an official GWD association and to distribute GWD apples with in-flight meals to 80,000 Turkish Airline passengers on the day.
Wellness is the answer From its first tentative steps in Turkey, the GWD campaign has gathered momentum and moved across borders – five continents to be precise. So far, it’s collected signatures from over 5,000 people who support the campaign.
Aksoy concludes: “Ten years ago, wellness was considered a luxury. Today most of us know that we all need to adopt a better lifestyle and approach to wellbeing. Ten years from now, people will know that ‘wellness’ is the answer – we’ll go back to basics and learn to appreciate the silence within our minds, as well as how to transfer positive vibes to others. We’ll take actions to learn the simplicity of happiness. At least this is my dream for the future and Global Wellness Day will be a very important instrument to achieve this dream.”
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Interview: Kathy Van Ness
The COO at Golden Door tells Katie Barnes how she’s used her background in fashion to reinvent the destination spa
Wellness: In sickness & health
The Urban Zen Integrative Therapy programme by designer Donna Karan helps acutely-ill patients in health and social care settings. Julie Cramer reports
Design: Sense of arrival
Neena Dhillon talks to the spa designers and operators at the new Aman and Ritz-Carlton properties in Japan
Ask an expert: Neuromarketing
Could this field of market research hold the key to finding out what customers really want? Rhianon Howells investigates
Aksoy would love to hear from anyone who wants to become a GWD ambassador for their country. She’s looking for volunteers – especially influential industry leaders – who have “motivation and dedication”.
Four Seasons Resort The Nam Hai in Hoi An, Vietnam, has put together a Global Wellness Day
(GWD) agenda with activations rooted in nature and shaped by four pillars of Joy – in
alignment with the day’s theme #JoyMagenta.
The Global Wellness Summit (GWS) will celebrate its 20th anniversary at the 2026 event in
Phuket, Thailand, later this year with the theme: The Science, Art and Soul of Wellness.
Auko, an all-inclusive development, is opening in Phong Nha in Vietnam in Q3 2026, with a
series of 30 tented eco-lodges and wellness hospitality operations by Lumina Wellbeing.
Therme Manchester’s 28-acre development, which will include interconnected glass pavilions
that measure 65,000sq m, will be the largest bathing and wellbeing attraction in the world once
complete, according to prof David Russell, CEO of Therme UK.
Naples Beach Club, a Four Seasons Resort, has opened a 2,800sq m spa called The Sanctuary,
with the design and concept inspired by the Native American people that populated Florida’s
Southwest coast – the Calusa.
Swire Hotels’ luxury hospitality brand Upper House has revealed it will roll out its two-day
House of Healing retreats at its three hotels in Hong Kong, Chengdu and Shanghai.
LVMH-owned beauty house Guerlain will launch up to five spas with partners a year as part of
its plan to expand globally, according to the brand’s international spa and wellness director,
Diane Davody.
A new global study by Kevin Kelly and Peter Yesawich, called WELLSurvey 2.0, has revealed
more than half of consumers in the UK, US and Germany would not choose numerous high-
profile wellness resort brands for a future trip.
Luxury hospitality and wellness pioneer Jeremy McCarthy has launched Leisure Alchemy, a
digital platform that will provide professionals with strategic guidance on how to build
transformational leisure experiences that drive profit.
