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The media has fallen in love with longevity, but guests want good, old-fashioned wellness / photo: shutterstock/PeopleImages.com – Yuri A
In the last few years, ‘longevity’ has become one of the biggest buzzwords in our sector and it now seems everyone is trying to bring more of it into their offerings.
In some ways, this isn’t hard, as anyone in the wellness industry is, by definition, already trying to improve the length and quality of people’s lives. So, this sudden influx of new longevity programming is confusing. It’s difficult to know if it’s merely a change of semantics or if something more meaningful is being proposed.
Modern longevity treatments, programmes and concepts are categorised by a few primary principles:
1. They’re based on measurement and diagnostics They begin with assessments to establish a baseline of health, age and wellness metrics to be addressed through further treatments.
2. They’re scientific Brands are shifting their language from holistic (and perhaps fluffy) concepts to those based on ‘longevity’ which implies that there’s some medical oversight or, at a minimum, some scientific validation for the services being offered.
3. They’re forward-thinking Longevity programming isn’t just about feeling good in the moment or improving current health. It’s about making changes now that will have a lasting effect on our health and quality of life across our lifespan.
Longevity clinics and programmes are popping up everywhere, not only in medicine but also in fitness, nutrition, beauty, spas and hospitality. Although the media is very excited about this trend, it’s unclear how many of these new concepts are viable. I suspect many businesses will fail in their longevity ventures, while a few models will succeed.
I’m reluctant to push too much longevity into hospitality. It’s so popular because consumers don’t want to wait until they’re sick to apply scientific approaches to improve their health and quality of life. They want their healthcare to become less about disease management and more about wellness. They want it to be more holistic, proactive and service-oriented. In other words, longevity is gaining so much traction because consumers want their healthcare to feel more like hospitality, NOT because they want their hospitality to feel more like healthcare.
Based on this, longevity is more likely to be a disruptor of healthcare than hospitality. Patients may be influenced by longevity offerings when choosing clinics, physicians or hospitals – who they wish to partner with for their long-term health. But when it comes to choosing hotels, brands and destinations for travel, guests will be more influenced by wellness.
In contrast to the principles of longevity, wellness in hospitality is based on different core beliefs:
1. It gets us more of what we need now Providing services and offerings that help guests to be and feel at their best, including physical movement, healthy nourishment, deepening relationships, positive emotional experiences and improved sleep, rest and recovery.
2. It offsets the modern pressures on wellbeing caused by travel and technology Helping guests to maintain their wellness lifestyles, even when routines are disrupted.
3. It inspires us Guests are introduced to healthy and enjoyable practices that inspire positive lifestyle changes.
Hospitality customers are looking for offerings that enrich their experience and immediately impact their wellbeing. They aren’t usually thinking about long-term health goals.
Hospitality brands which are developing their wellness offerings should consider this difference in the temporal focus. Longevity is more about how you will feel later in life. Wellness is more about how you feel now. The media has fallen in love with longevity. But our guests are still looking for good, old-fashioned wellness, not to help them age better, but to help them be at their best right now.
photo: Mandarin Oriental
Jeremy McCarthy has worked in the wellness industry for over 30 years. As group director of leisure, spa and wellness for Mandarin Oriental, he oversees facilities at 40 luxury hotels globally. Contact him with your views on Twitter @jeremymcc
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2024 issue 3
Editor's letter: At a crossroads
As the UK prepares to host this year's Global Wellness Summit, fresh research shows its wellness industry must address a number of issues if it's to maintain levels of unprecedented growth
Spa People: Charlotte Church
The Welsh singer talks about how growing up in the media spotlight has influenced The Dreaming, her healing retreat business
Spa People: Julia Bradbury
Leading a series of Walk Yourself Happy retreats based on her best-selling book and years of TV presenting
Spa People: Samantha Dunn
Shaking up the industry with her new, affordable DIY consultancy programme for entrepreneurs
News report: Big spenders
Finn Partners’ latest research shows how China’s high-net-worth women are redefining luxury travel
News report: Step back in time
Two new GWI reports analyse the growth of the global spa and hot springs markets over the past 10 to 15 years
Interview: Dillip Rajakarier
Following a 450 per cent increase in core revenues, Minor Hotels is planning 200 more properties. Megan Whitby sits down with its CEO
New opening: Kintsugi Space
Patrizia Bortolin talks to Lisa Starr about creating a transformative women-only sanctuary in Abu Dhabi
Research: To inform and inspire
The UK Spa Association has conducted its first survey of spa businesses in the country for 18 years. GM Bobby Griffiths unveils the numbers
Research: From wellness to wellbeing
A new study uncovers four wellness consumer market segments ripe for innovation. WELLSurvey co-author Kevin Kelly reveals the findings in a Spa Business exclusive
First person: To the source
Jane Kitchen takes to the sulphurous waters of Terme di Saturnia in Italy and shares details about its exciting upcoming sister site in Milan
Promotion: L'OCCITANE en Provence – the art of recovery
With an approach to wellbeing that’s both holistic and grounded in science, the latest massage from L’OCCITANE en Provence promises to have a powerfully-beneficial effect on customers, both in the spa and at home
New opening: Surrenne at The Emory
The £15k memberships at this wellness club in London sold out in just weeks. Creator Inge Theron tells us why
First person: Playful wellness
A Stella McCartney facial and Tracy Anderson studio are just two USPs Megan Whitby finds at Surrenne
Promotion: TechnoAlpin – naturally cool design
TechnoAlpin’s snow technology is not only an effective way to introduce gentle cold therapy into the spa environment, it’s also a powerful biophilic design element that can bring the wonder of nature indoors
Promotion: Biologique Recherche – potent partnership
A new anti-senescence serum from Biologique Recherche offers transformative results and raises the bar in anti-ageing skincare when combined with its iconic collagen formula
Promotion: Comfort Zone – A longer life for skin
Created to combat the visible signs of ageing, Comfort Zone’s latest range revamp is based on the company’s pioneering research into cutaneous cellular longevity
Promotion: G.M. COLLIN – Clinical excellence in skincare
With laboratories based in Montreal, G.M. Collin’s highly researched derma-corrective treatments have been helping skincare professionals deliver exceptional and exclusive results worldwide for many decades. We talk to VP Myriam Sayer
The media has fallen in love with longevity, but guests want good, old-fashioned wellness / photo: shutterstock/PeopleImages.com – Yuri A
In the last few years, ‘longevity’ has become one of the biggest buzzwords in our sector and it now seems everyone is trying to bring more of it into their offerings.
In some ways, this isn’t hard, as anyone in the wellness industry is, by definition, already trying to improve the length and quality of people’s lives. So, this sudden influx of new longevity programming is confusing. It’s difficult to know if it’s merely a change of semantics or if something more meaningful is being proposed.
Modern longevity treatments, programmes and concepts are categorised by a few primary principles:
1. They’re based on measurement and diagnostics They begin with assessments to establish a baseline of health, age and wellness metrics to be addressed through further treatments.
2. They’re scientific Brands are shifting their language from holistic (and perhaps fluffy) concepts to those based on ‘longevity’ which implies that there’s some medical oversight or, at a minimum, some scientific validation for the services being offered.
3. They’re forward-thinking Longevity programming isn’t just about feeling good in the moment or improving current health. It’s about making changes now that will have a lasting effect on our health and quality of life across our lifespan.
Longevity clinics and programmes are popping up everywhere, not only in medicine but also in fitness, nutrition, beauty, spas and hospitality. Although the media is very excited about this trend, it’s unclear how many of these new concepts are viable. I suspect many businesses will fail in their longevity ventures, while a few models will succeed.
I’m reluctant to push too much longevity into hospitality. It’s so popular because consumers don’t want to wait until they’re sick to apply scientific approaches to improve their health and quality of life. They want their healthcare to become less about disease management and more about wellness. They want it to be more holistic, proactive and service-oriented. In other words, longevity is gaining so much traction because consumers want their healthcare to feel more like hospitality, NOT because they want their hospitality to feel more like healthcare.
Based on this, longevity is more likely to be a disruptor of healthcare than hospitality. Patients may be influenced by longevity offerings when choosing clinics, physicians or hospitals – who they wish to partner with for their long-term health. But when it comes to choosing hotels, brands and destinations for travel, guests will be more influenced by wellness.
In contrast to the principles of longevity, wellness in hospitality is based on different core beliefs:
1. It gets us more of what we need now Providing services and offerings that help guests to be and feel at their best, including physical movement, healthy nourishment, deepening relationships, positive emotional experiences and improved sleep, rest and recovery.
2. It offsets the modern pressures on wellbeing caused by travel and technology Helping guests to maintain their wellness lifestyles, even when routines are disrupted.
3. It inspires us Guests are introduced to healthy and enjoyable practices that inspire positive lifestyle changes.
Hospitality customers are looking for offerings that enrich their experience and immediately impact their wellbeing. They aren’t usually thinking about long-term health goals.
Hospitality brands which are developing their wellness offerings should consider this difference in the temporal focus. Longevity is more about how you will feel later in life. Wellness is more about how you feel now. The media has fallen in love with longevity. But our guests are still looking for good, old-fashioned wellness, not to help them age better, but to help them be at their best right now.
photo: Mandarin Oriental
Jeremy McCarthy has worked in the wellness industry for over 30 years. As group director of leisure, spa and wellness for Mandarin Oriental, he oversees facilities at 40 luxury hotels globally. Contact him with your views on Twitter @jeremymcc
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2024 issue 3
Editor's letter: At a crossroads
As the UK prepares to host this year's Global Wellness Summit, fresh research shows its wellness industry must address a number of issues if it's to maintain levels of unprecedented growth
Spa People: Charlotte Church
The Welsh singer talks about how growing up in the media spotlight has influenced The Dreaming, her healing retreat business
Spa People: Julia Bradbury
Leading a series of Walk Yourself Happy retreats based on her best-selling book and years of TV presenting
Spa People: Samantha Dunn
Shaking up the industry with her new, affordable DIY consultancy programme for entrepreneurs
News report: Big spenders
Finn Partners’ latest research shows how China’s high-net-worth women are redefining luxury travel
News report: Step back in time
Two new GWI reports analyse the growth of the global spa and hot springs markets over the past 10 to 15 years
Interview: Dillip Rajakarier
Following a 450 per cent increase in core revenues, Minor Hotels is planning 200 more properties. Megan Whitby sits down with its CEO
New opening: Kintsugi Space
Patrizia Bortolin talks to Lisa Starr about creating a transformative women-only sanctuary in Abu Dhabi
Research: To inform and inspire
The UK Spa Association has conducted its first survey of spa businesses in the country for 18 years. GM Bobby Griffiths unveils the numbers
Research: From wellness to wellbeing
A new study uncovers four wellness consumer market segments ripe for innovation. WELLSurvey co-author Kevin Kelly reveals the findings in a Spa Business exclusive
First person: To the source
Jane Kitchen takes to the sulphurous waters of Terme di Saturnia in Italy and shares details about its exciting upcoming sister site in Milan
Promotion: L'OCCITANE en Provence – the art of recovery
With an approach to wellbeing that’s both holistic and grounded in science, the latest massage from L’OCCITANE en Provence promises to have a powerfully-beneficial effect on customers, both in the spa and at home
New opening: Surrenne at The Emory
The £15k memberships at this wellness club in London sold out in just weeks. Creator Inge Theron tells us why
First person: Playful wellness
A Stella McCartney facial and Tracy Anderson studio are just two USPs Megan Whitby finds at Surrenne
Promotion: TechnoAlpin – naturally cool design
TechnoAlpin’s snow technology is not only an effective way to introduce gentle cold therapy into the spa environment, it’s also a powerful biophilic design element that can bring the wonder of nature indoors
Promotion: Biologique Recherche – potent partnership
A new anti-senescence serum from Biologique Recherche offers transformative results and raises the bar in anti-ageing skincare when combined with its iconic collagen formula
Promotion: Comfort Zone – A longer life for skin
Created to combat the visible signs of ageing, Comfort Zone’s latest range revamp is based on the company’s pioneering research into cutaneous cellular longevity
Promotion: G.M. COLLIN – Clinical excellence in skincare
With laboratories based in Montreal, G.M. Collin’s highly researched derma-corrective treatments have been helping skincare professionals deliver exceptional and exclusive results worldwide for many decades. We talk to VP Myriam Sayer
Private hotel owner and developer HVL Hotels will open a new luxury resort and tourism
destination called Laval Hunter Valley in the second half of 2027 in Pokolbin, Australia.
The annual wellness festival dedicated to wellbeing, culture, longevity and human connection,
called Alma, will be hosted by Rocco Forte hotel, Verdura Resort in Sicily, Italy.
Capella Hotel Group has appointed Feisal Jaffer as chief development officer as the company
ramps up its global expansion of both its Capella and Patina brands.
People taking GLP-1 weight loss medications such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound
may be losing weight, but they’re also becoming less physically active, according to new
research presented at the ENDO 2026 annual meeting of the Endocrine Society
Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Mubadala Capital has made a binding, fully financed
€1 billion
offer to acquire Pierre and Vacances SA, the European holiday resort operator behind the
continental European Center Parcs business.
Global retreat trade show, Synergy The Retreat Show, has launched a resource called The
Source, which hosts an open-access online Transformation Series programme.
The Standards Authority for Touch in Cancer Care (SATCC) charity has announced its first five-
day Living with Cancer and Beyond retreat, which will be held at Carden Park Hotel and Spa in
Cheshire, UK, between 1 and 5 September.
Patmos Aktis, a Luxury Collection Resort and Spa, has opened in Greece, with a renovated and
rebranded wellness offering called Ansana Wellness and Spa.
The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel, an Autograph Collection property in Hawaii, US, has opened its
22,000 sq ft indoor-outdoor Spa at Mauna Kea as the final step in the property’s overall
renovation, which has cost more than US$180 million (€166 million, £140 mill
The UK spa review and discovery platform for consumers, the Good Spa Guide, has announced
it will host the Good Spa Guide Awards 2026 during an event on 16 November at Sopwell House
Hotel in St Albans, UK.
