Brown has previously worked for GOCO and Resense Spas
Emlyn Brown has joined AccorHotels as vice president of wellbeing for its luxury portfolio and will work on spa and overall hotel wellness for brands such as Sofitel, Swissôtel, Fairmont and Raffles, among others. He will be based in Paris.
His role will cover everything from design and concepts to facilities and programming – all with a view to helping guests feel more energised and healthier than when they arrived. This is something the group refers to as ‘imperceptible wellness’. It includes working with Accor’s 250-plus spas globally, as well as having a hand in the design and function of guestrooms, the interaction of food and beverage with spa and fitness and the energy levels in public areas.
Brown joins the team at Accor in place of industry veteran Andrew Gibson, who was vice president of spa and wellness from 2014 to May this year, when he left to join the team at Larry Ellison’s Sensei.
Aldina Duarte Ramos and Lindsay Madden-Nadeau will report into him as directors of wellbeing. Both women have been in the spa industry for a number of years and are well-respected throughout the sector. Duarte Ramos works on wellness for Sofitel, Swissôtel and Pullman, while Madden-Nadeau focuses on Fairmont, Raffles and MGallery.
Before this move, Brown previously spent three years at spa consultancy and management company Resense Spas, where he was managing director of Asia, based in Beijing and then global design director, based in Switzerland.
He also did a five-year stint with GOCO Hospitality as director of spa operations, based in Bangkok.
In welcoming him to the team, Accor’s senior vice president of luxury brands, Rick Harvey Lam, says: “Emlyn will direct our global strategy in the pivotal area of wellbeing, enhancing our luxury offering through transformative guest experiences. His experience, skill set and leadership traits also position him well for future success within the group.”
Brown says: “AccorHotels’ discerning, affluent clientele are well-travelled and increasingly motivated by the opportunity to maintain and even improve their approach to health and wellbeing during their journeys.
“My goal is to surpass the expectations of our guests and to infuse their entire experience with opportunities for transformative, innovative and extraordinary moments of wellbeing.”
AccorHotels acquired FRHI Hotels & Resorts in 2016 for a reported US$2.7bn (€2.4bn, £2.1bn), making it one of the biggest hotel groups in the world. It has around 4,000 properties globally.
In a previous issue of Spa Business, we analysed what the merger and the move to overall wellness meant for group’s spa departments (see SB17/1 p76).
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Brown has previously worked for GOCO and Resense Spas
Emlyn Brown has joined AccorHotels as vice president of wellbeing for its luxury portfolio and will work on spa and overall hotel wellness for brands such as Sofitel, Swissôtel, Fairmont and Raffles, among others. He will be based in Paris.
His role will cover everything from design and concepts to facilities and programming – all with a view to helping guests feel more energised and healthier than when they arrived. This is something the group refers to as ‘imperceptible wellness’. It includes working with Accor’s 250-plus spas globally, as well as having a hand in the design and function of guestrooms, the interaction of food and beverage with spa and fitness and the energy levels in public areas.
Brown joins the team at Accor in place of industry veteran Andrew Gibson, who was vice president of spa and wellness from 2014 to May this year, when he left to join the team at Larry Ellison’s Sensei.
Aldina Duarte Ramos and Lindsay Madden-Nadeau will report into him as directors of wellbeing. Both women have been in the spa industry for a number of years and are well-respected throughout the sector. Duarte Ramos works on wellness for Sofitel, Swissôtel and Pullman, while Madden-Nadeau focuses on Fairmont, Raffles and MGallery.
Before this move, Brown previously spent three years at spa consultancy and management company Resense Spas, where he was managing director of Asia, based in Beijing and then global design director, based in Switzerland.
He also did a five-year stint with GOCO Hospitality as director of spa operations, based in Bangkok.
In welcoming him to the team, Accor’s senior vice president of luxury brands, Rick Harvey Lam, says: “Emlyn will direct our global strategy in the pivotal area of wellbeing, enhancing our luxury offering through transformative guest experiences. His experience, skill set and leadership traits also position him well for future success within the group.”
Brown says: “AccorHotels’ discerning, affluent clientele are well-travelled and increasingly motivated by the opportunity to maintain and even improve their approach to health and wellbeing during their journeys.
“My goal is to surpass the expectations of our guests and to infuse their entire experience with opportunities for transformative, innovative and extraordinary moments of wellbeing.”
AccorHotels acquired FRHI Hotels & Resorts in 2016 for a reported US$2.7bn (€2.4bn, £2.1bn), making it one of the biggest hotel groups in the world. It has around 4,000 properties globally.
In a previous issue of Spa Business, we analysed what the merger and the move to overall wellness meant for group’s spa departments (see SB17/1 p76).
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Interview: Thomas Klein
Senior living, family resorts and urban retreats are all on the cards for Canyon Ranch says COO and president Thomas Klein. Katie Barnes finds out more
Trends: Spa Foresight™ 2018/19
Spa Business’ predictions for the future include vegan spas, blue light antidotes, home wellness and plastic-free facilities
Interview: Dietmar Mueller-Elmau
The owner of Germany’s Schloss Elmau tells Spa Business why music, culture and spa feed the mind and soul
Promotional feature: Living Earth Crafts
Living Earth Crafts has distinguished itself with furniture for the spa industry that combines high design with seamless functionality. Brian Paris gives us insight into the company’s stylish new introductions
Event report: GWS 2018 - Bella vita
An Italian inspired Global Wellness Summit featured fashion, food, fitness and spa… and cameos from Hugh Jackman and Oprah Winfrey. Spa Business gives its highlights
Research: Growing up
Spa is the fastest growing sector of the US$4.2tn global wellness economy according to the latest GWI research
Event report: WTA Conference
What do wellness travellers want? And what issues need to be addressed as the wellness tourism sector grows? Anne Dimon reports from the inaugural meeting of the Wellness Tourism Association
Fitness: Inhale the future
Ashley Neese tells Spa Business about the possibilities of breathwork and opening up the practice to more people
Four Seasons Resort The Nam Hai in Hoi An, Vietnam, has put together a Global Wellness Day
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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 a world where imbalance often accumulates quietly, Wildsmith unveils its newest
wellbeing innovation: Silent Loads, an approach designed to meet the needs of modern spa
guests with precision and depth. [more...]
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the softness of towels and the freshness of linens. [more...]
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