Spa and wellness businesses will reopen while COVID-19 is still circulating in the community, meaning we have to find models which work in this new reality. How will this change the industry?
By Katie Barnes | Published in Spa Business 2020 issue 2
Medical wellness includes oxygen therapy and DNA testing / Drazen Zigic/shutterstock
The coronavirus pandemic has brought with it some dark times, but I truly believe the global spa industry is a beacon of light in the world.
We should be proud of how suppliers have switched production to support medical staff and the public (Spa Business 2020 issue2 p96), operators have pivoted to digital solutions (Spa Business 2020 issue2 p26) and we’ve all come together in hundreds of webinars, virtual conferences and ‘collaboration calls’.
For those who haven’t been able to keep up with the webinar overload, we share our takeaways on p56 and p62.
Overall, the industry standpoint is one of optimism – people will be in need of wellness more than ever going forward and there are reports of phones ringing off the hook in anticipation of reopening.
In some countries, like China and the US, spas are already starting to operate once more, while in others, like the UK, this is weeks away. But the reality is that when doors open, we will need to operate while COVID-19 is still active in the community – for the foreseeable future.
So how can we deliver meaningful experiences while avoiding transmission? There won’t be one solution and only operators that are adaptable and responsive will survive.
There will be an opportunity to position spas as safe spaces – places of ‘safe touch’. Hygiene and social distancing will need to be scrutinised at every touchpoint and this demonstrated to customers to build up trust.
Maybe it will be about testing staff and customers before they enter the spa, or using UV robots, anti-viral fogging and anti-viral air con to keep spaces safe. Perhaps it will be around wearing masks, or delivering touchless therapies using machines. There are many tools and strategies we can use.
We can also make more of the outdoors as a safe space by offering interventions such as forest bathing. This will also help support people with their mental health.
There will be a significant move towards medical wellness, and businesses in this part of the sector will do well in the new reality. This is an opportunity for spas to add more science-based interventions to menus to support customers.
Now is also the time to cement relationships with medical institutions to create new operating models and also to reconfirm the efficacy of what we already offer.
We’ll find a growing demand for beauty maintenance, so we also expect to see spas embracing these services far more.
In a time of crisis, people are open to new ideas. We need to be entrepreneurial and flexible, not only to survive, but also to add meaningful depth to our services.
Katie Barnes, editor @SpaBusinessKB
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2020 issue 2
Editor’s letter: Our greatest challenge
Spa and wellness businesses will reopen while COVID-19 is still circulating in the community, meaning we have to find models which work in this new reality, says Katie Barnes. So how will this change the industry?
On the menu: Pivot to digital
Which forward-thinking spas are taking their offerings online during the coronavirus pandemic?
Interview: Mary Celeste Beall
The celebrated Blackberry Farm has opened a sister property in the mountains of Tennessee. The owner tells Spa Business why wellness through nature underpins the new destination
Everyone’s talking about: COVID-19
Spa operators, wellness companies and organisations from around the world talk to Spa Business about the impact of coronavirus and what to expect down the line
Promotion: Simone Gibertoni: Clinique La Prairie
World-renowned medical spa, Clinique La Prairie, is creating a global network of
locations to support clients with their wellbeing, every day of the year, says its CEO
Research: First responders
ISPA’s COVID-19 survey offers insights into how the industry has responded to the global pandemic. Spa Business magazine examines the findings
Hotel spa: Country life: The Newt
Karen Roos, owner of the world-renowned hotel The Newt, on design, gardens and a spa housed in an old cow barn
Insights: Calls to action
Industry leaders around the world come together in a crisis to share ideas and innovations in a series of GWS Collaboration calls. Spa Business magazine reports on the highlights
Insights: Webinar wisdom
Spa Business shares its industry-relevant takeaways from the masses of webinars that are being streamed worldwide
Research: Measure for measure
Intelligent Spas reveals its latest global spa benchmarks and explores what they mean in today’s ever-changing climate
Focus on: Extreme wellness
Spa Business tries out two boundary-pushing, cold immersion retreats led by ‘The Iceman’ Wim Hof and Dr Marc Cohen
Promotion: Barr and Wray: Creating
a seamless journey
With 60 years of experience, Barr and Wray has long been known for excellence in technical design for wellness. Design director Graeme Banks explains the company also offers interior design services
Interview: Juliu Horvath
The founder of Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis tells Spa Business why he’ll never stop adapting his famous movement modality
Promotion: ISPA publishes Reopening Toolkit
A much-needed guide by ISPA gives essential advice on business planning, standard operating procedures, marketing and communications to support spas through the coronavirus crisis
Le Atelier by C.O.D.E. doesn't offer a standard bespoke service, it provides a highly
customised approach to designing massage beds and loungers in high-end wellness
environments. [more...]
Spa and wellness businesses will reopen while COVID-19 is still circulating in the community, meaning we have to find models which work in this new reality. How will this change the industry?
By Katie Barnes | Published in Spa Business 2020 issue 2
Medical wellness includes oxygen therapy and DNA testing / Drazen Zigic/shutterstock
The coronavirus pandemic has brought with it some dark times, but I truly believe the global spa industry is a beacon of light in the world.
We should be proud of how suppliers have switched production to support medical staff and the public (Spa Business 2020 issue2 p96), operators have pivoted to digital solutions (Spa Business 2020 issue2 p26) and we’ve all come together in hundreds of webinars, virtual conferences and ‘collaboration calls’.
For those who haven’t been able to keep up with the webinar overload, we share our takeaways on p56 and p62.
Overall, the industry standpoint is one of optimism – people will be in need of wellness more than ever going forward and there are reports of phones ringing off the hook in anticipation of reopening.
In some countries, like China and the US, spas are already starting to operate once more, while in others, like the UK, this is weeks away. But the reality is that when doors open, we will need to operate while COVID-19 is still active in the community – for the foreseeable future.
So how can we deliver meaningful experiences while avoiding transmission? There won’t be one solution and only operators that are adaptable and responsive will survive.
There will be an opportunity to position spas as safe spaces – places of ‘safe touch’. Hygiene and social distancing will need to be scrutinised at every touchpoint and this demonstrated to customers to build up trust.
Maybe it will be about testing staff and customers before they enter the spa, or using UV robots, anti-viral fogging and anti-viral air con to keep spaces safe. Perhaps it will be around wearing masks, or delivering touchless therapies using machines. There are many tools and strategies we can use.
We can also make more of the outdoors as a safe space by offering interventions such as forest bathing. This will also help support people with their mental health.
There will be a significant move towards medical wellness, and businesses in this part of the sector will do well in the new reality. This is an opportunity for spas to add more science-based interventions to menus to support customers.
Now is also the time to cement relationships with medical institutions to create new operating models and also to reconfirm the efficacy of what we already offer.
We’ll find a growing demand for beauty maintenance, so we also expect to see spas embracing these services far more.
In a time of crisis, people are open to new ideas. We need to be entrepreneurial and flexible, not only to survive, but also to add meaningful depth to our services.
Katie Barnes, editor @SpaBusinessKB
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2020 issue 2
Editor’s letter: Our greatest challenge
Spa and wellness businesses will reopen while COVID-19 is still circulating in the community, meaning we have to find models which work in this new reality, says Katie Barnes. So how will this change the industry?
On the menu: Pivot to digital
Which forward-thinking spas are taking their offerings online during the coronavirus pandemic?
Interview: Mary Celeste Beall
The celebrated Blackberry Farm has opened a sister property in the mountains of Tennessee. The owner tells Spa Business why wellness through nature underpins the new destination
Everyone’s talking about: COVID-19
Spa operators, wellness companies and organisations from around the world talk to Spa Business about the impact of coronavirus and what to expect down the line
Promotion: Simone Gibertoni: Clinique La Prairie
World-renowned medical spa, Clinique La Prairie, is creating a global network of
locations to support clients with their wellbeing, every day of the year, says its CEO
Research: First responders
ISPA’s COVID-19 survey offers insights into how the industry has responded to the global pandemic. Spa Business magazine examines the findings
Hotel spa: Country life: The Newt
Karen Roos, owner of the world-renowned hotel The Newt, on design, gardens and a spa housed in an old cow barn
Insights: Calls to action
Industry leaders around the world come together in a crisis to share ideas and innovations in a series of GWS Collaboration calls. Spa Business magazine reports on the highlights
Insights: Webinar wisdom
Spa Business shares its industry-relevant takeaways from the masses of webinars that are being streamed worldwide
Research: Measure for measure
Intelligent Spas reveals its latest global spa benchmarks and explores what they mean in today’s ever-changing climate
Focus on: Extreme wellness
Spa Business tries out two boundary-pushing, cold immersion retreats led by ‘The Iceman’ Wim Hof and Dr Marc Cohen
Promotion: Barr and Wray: Creating
a seamless journey
With 60 years of experience, Barr and Wray has long been known for excellence in technical design for wellness. Design director Graeme Banks explains the company also offers interior design services
Interview: Juliu Horvath
The founder of Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis tells Spa Business why he’ll never stop adapting his famous movement modality
Promotion: ISPA publishes Reopening Toolkit
A much-needed guide by ISPA gives essential advice on business planning, standard operating procedures, marketing and communications to support spas through the coronavirus crisis
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.
Le Atelier by C.O.D.E. doesn't offer a standard bespoke service, it provides a highly
customised approach to designing massage beds and loungers in high-end wellness
environments. [more...]
