From the outset, the team placed an importance on understanding my goals and where I was in my career. My focus was to refine my knowledge in financials and strategic development. From the meetings with my mentor Jim Croghan, director of spa & reception at The Grand Del Mar, I was able to come up with a blueprint of how to tackle both of these. I received consistent and insightful feedback and guidance and left having accomplished everything I wished for and more.

To have the chance to be mentored by an inspiring industry peer has been phenomenal. It’s expanded my knowledge and set me up for further growth in my career. I cannot recommend it enough to industry peers – it’s a way for them to give back and to strengthen our community.

The main topics my mentee and I decided to work on were the financial aspects of the spa business, particularly profit and loss accounts, as well as essential leadership skills such as daily actions that a spa manager can implement to drive and motivate the team to achieve their goals and targets. There was a mutual understanding between us and because we had clear goals, good communication and commitment, the plan ran smoothly.

I’d definitely be a mentor again – sharing experiences and best practice examples benefits both parties and the feedback you receive is essential for professional development.

On a wider level, as the spa industry continues to grow at such a fast pace, there’s an increasing shortage of experienced spa managers. I strongly believe that education and sharing knowledge with young spa managers through this programme will only benefit the industry in the long-run

I’ve been in the spa business for a long time and always struggled to find information about how to run a facility and about revenue management, because a spa is always seen as an amenity rather than a profit centre in its own right. I joined the programme to assist spa managers or directors with the questions they might face.

It’s not designed to hand mentees an answer, but rather guide them in their journey in finding their own solution while keeping them focused on the business and company guidelines. What worked best was being able to focus on just one mentee, building trust with them, getting to understand their problems and coming up with suggestions.

Although I was a mentor, this was a learning process for me too – the experience goes both ways – and I feel it will help me towards the next level in my career. I’d certainly do this again because I really enjoy connecting with people who share my interest of ‘being the best at what they do’.

The programme gave me an extraordinary opportunity to exchange ideas with and to receive professional advice from Morgan Lefrançois, the corporate spa business development manager at Clarins.

It came at the right time for me – I’ve been a spa manager for five years and an international trainer for 10, but I wanted guidance in how to improve my overall management skills. I also wanted help in developing the wellness aspect of the spa – to address both physical and mental wellbeing – to create a niche.

Even half way through the programme, I started to notice a difference in the way I worked. Of course, participants need to put in the time and effort to get the most out of this, but I’d recommend it to anyone who wants to make an improvement.