As our industry becomes ever more global, thanks to the influence of Global Wellness Day and the Global Wellness Summit, we find ourselves positioned to be able to contribute to the wider agenda of wellbeing around the world. This work has never been more important
By Liz Terry | Published in Spa Business 2016 issue 3
Our industry is unique in its focus on the positive. There are no others which put wellbeing, peace, prevention and personal responsibility at their heart.
This means we’re in a position to be a force for good in the world at a time when there are some very dark things happening which need to be countered.
Some say spa and wellbeing and a focus on health are a self-indulgent distraction and that at times of division and political and social unrest, there are more important things to be focusing on. But I don’t believe this is the case, or that these things are disconnected.
Wellbeing is scalable, it starts with the individual, extends to the family, the community, the nation and then to the wider world. For each part of humanity to be well in the widest and truest sense, we must be at peace, feel energised in our own skin and have clarity of purpose. We also need to have good intentions to take the world forward in a positive direction based on understanding and compassion, rather than selfishness.
There is much we can do as an industry to shore up positivity and help people to not only deal with the darkness, but also to begin to turn the tide of it.
We can fight for what we believe is important, work to bring communities together and extend our reach to ensure that knowledge about healthy living and wellbeing is shared where it’s most needed.
Much of what is going adrift in the world at present is as a result of lack of education, lack of opportunity and lack of love and it is well within our remit as an industry to make our contribution to addressing these issues.
All require us to commit to self-care in body and mind and for those in a position to create life-changing chances for other people to do so at every opportunity.
The ultimate goal being a world which is able to keep refocusing on the things which matter – tolerance, collaboration, mutual support, fairness, compassion, peace, love and a commitment to making each day better than the last for everyone on the planet.
This industry is represented by outward looking, well travelled and right-thinking people who form a powerful global network. We are a community and we have many opportunities for collaboration and to exert a wide range of influences for good around the world.
What can be done? Education and community outreach sit at the heart of this and in our annual Spa Foresight™ report on page 50 we highlight ‘social good’ as a key trend which we think the industry can embrance going forward, to open up opportunities for others.
I urge you to look to your own business and to think about how you can reach out and share the philosophy and knowledge that underpins the work of wellbeing.
Liz Terry, editorial director @elizterry
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
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As our industry becomes ever more global, thanks to the influence of Global Wellness Day and the Global Wellness Summit, we find ourselves positioned to be able to contribute to the wider agenda of wellbeing around the world. This work has never been more important
By Liz Terry | Published in Spa Business 2016 issue 3
Our industry is unique in its focus on the positive. There are no others which put wellbeing, peace, prevention and personal responsibility at their heart.
This means we’re in a position to be a force for good in the world at a time when there are some very dark things happening which need to be countered.
Some say spa and wellbeing and a focus on health are a self-indulgent distraction and that at times of division and political and social unrest, there are more important things to be focusing on. But I don’t believe this is the case, or that these things are disconnected.
Wellbeing is scalable, it starts with the individual, extends to the family, the community, the nation and then to the wider world. For each part of humanity to be well in the widest and truest sense, we must be at peace, feel energised in our own skin and have clarity of purpose. We also need to have good intentions to take the world forward in a positive direction based on understanding and compassion, rather than selfishness.
There is much we can do as an industry to shore up positivity and help people to not only deal with the darkness, but also to begin to turn the tide of it.
We can fight for what we believe is important, work to bring communities together and extend our reach to ensure that knowledge about healthy living and wellbeing is shared where it’s most needed.
Much of what is going adrift in the world at present is as a result of lack of education, lack of opportunity and lack of love and it is well within our remit as an industry to make our contribution to addressing these issues.
All require us to commit to self-care in body and mind and for those in a position to create life-changing chances for other people to do so at every opportunity.
The ultimate goal being a world which is able to keep refocusing on the things which matter – tolerance, collaboration, mutual support, fairness, compassion, peace, love and a commitment to making each day better than the last for everyone on the planet.
This industry is represented by outward looking, well travelled and right-thinking people who form a powerful global network. We are a community and we have many opportunities for collaboration and to exert a wide range of influences for good around the world.
What can be done? Education and community outreach sit at the heart of this and in our annual Spa Foresight™ report on page 50 we highlight ‘social good’ as a key trend which we think the industry can embrance going forward, to open up opportunities for others.
I urge you to look to your own business and to think about how you can reach out and share the philosophy and knowledge that underpins the work of wellbeing.
Liz Terry, editorial director @elizterry
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Top team: Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat
The people behind this world-renowned lifestyle retreat share their business insights with Julie Cramer. Plus a focus on co-investor Hugh Jackman
Ask an expert: Visiting practitioners
Done well, visiting practitioner programmes can boost profits by up to 40 per cent. But how can spas get the offer right? Kate Parker investigates
Promotional feature: Esadore - creating a splash
The MD of Esadore International, Theodora Kioussis, explains how the company’s creative, manufacturing and operational skill sets can bring an international managing director
of UAE-based esadore International to life in a short space of time
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.
In the fast-paced world of fitness and wellness, where high-intensity workouts push us to
our limits and the sweat pours, the importance of efficient recovery cannot be overstated. [more...]
+ More featured suppliers
COMPANY PROFILES
Agilysys UK Ltd Agilysys, Inc. (Nasdaq: AGYS), is a leading
global provider of hospitality software
solutions that [more...]
