The fashion designer’s hotel will host a Brain Edit retreat in April / photo: Jose Castellar/vermelho
He’s famous for the most stylish and sought-after women’s shoes in the world, but over the past few years, this fashion designer has been making a name for himself in hospitality and is now staking his claim in wellness.
We’re talking about Christian Louboutin, whose hotel in Portugal will host a Brain Edit retreat on 6-9 April.
Hotel by accident The French fashion icon is known for his signature red-soled high heels, which sell for €1,000 (US$1,053, 828) upwards. In 2023, however, he turned his hand to hospitality with Vermelho, a boutique hotel in the coastal hamlet of Melides. The destination is 90 minutes south of Lisbon and has become a hub for sculptors, architects and musicians (Philippe Starck is just one of the creatives who has a second home there).
Vermelho is operated by Marugal Hotel Management and is also part of the Relais & Chateaux portfolio.
“To be honest, I never planned to open a hotel,” he says in an article in Insidehook, “I had a place in [the nearby town of] Comporta but over the years it became a bit too cemented for me.”
Stumbling over the picturesque Melides on a drive one day, he was captured by its sleepy charm and bought a fisherman’s house there, followed by a plot of land to build a restaurant on. He adds: “The mayor came to me and mentioned it was quite a big plot for a restaurant [and said] ‘Why not open a hotel instead?’ I said yes – as simple as that.”
Louboutin worked with Portuguese architect Madalena Caiado on the project. Outside, Vermelho reflects the style of the country’s traditional buildings. Yet inside, it oozes with the designer’s eclectic style and bold hues – vermelho means red in Portuguese, paying homage to Louboutin’s trademark colour.
Louboutin on wellness Alongside its 13 bedrooms and Xtian restaurant, serving refined Portuguese cuisine, there’s an equally intimate wellness area in a maximalist design featuring sacred stones from ancient churches. A mix of Indian healing practices and Anne Semonin treatments – a 60-minute massage starts at €120 (US$126, £99) – are offered in one of two treatment rooms and complimentary yoga sessions take place every Saturday morning.
In a recent interview with Vogue India, Louboutin highlighted his emotional strength and how he tries to keep active. “Some people build their lives trying to prove something to others, trying to fight against whatever negativity they experienced growing up,” he says, explaining, “I grew up in a very protective, loving environment. It’s hard to be knocked down when you’re raised with that kind of love and confidence.”
He adds: “Wellness is an interesting concept for me. I’ve never been much into sports – never watched them – but I’ve always done some kind of physical activity.”
Brain Edit retreat Part of Louboutin’s wellness regime is guided by his personal trainer Terrence the Teacher, a UK-based health and fitness specialist who added neurolinguistic programming to his repertoire in 2001.
Terrence has made a name for himself in the fashion world with models, designers and editors seeking help for anything from anxiety and panic attacks to insomnia. And now he’s set to host a Brain Edit Mindfulness & Meditation retreat at Vermelho on 6-9 April to “teach guests how to harness the power of their mind, cultivating lasting change”.
With prices starting at €2,523 (US$2,658, £2,090), the four-day programme includes a one-on-one session with Terrence, lectures, meditation and breathwork experiences, morning yoga group classes and two guided mindfulness sessions in the evening. Spa treatments can be booked during meals, yoga and free time at an extra cost.
Aside from aiding self-discovery, other benefits of such a retreat, says Terrence, could include reduced stress, enhanced relaxation and better coping skills, plus improvements in the immune system, creativity and mental health.
Brand extension Louboutin’s crossover into hospitality isn’t the first of its kind. Spa Business has widely reported on fashion spas and hotels over the years. Most recently it delved into the offerings at the new Palazzo Versace and Karl Lagerfeld spas in Grand Lisboa Palace, Macau (see www.spabusiness.com/versace_lagerfeld).
Last July, Louboutin also acquired a stake in Experimental Group using his personal funds. Experimental is a Paris-based hospitality group which runs 20 boutique hotels, restaurants and bars across Europe. It’s known for owning Cowley Manor in the UK, is planning openings in Val d’Isère, Rome and Paris this year and has also expressed an interest in expanding into the US.
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2025 issue 1
Editor's letter: Auto spas
Fully automated, self-service spas are set to enter the market, presenting a disruptive opportunity for investors and operators
Spa People: Christian Louboutin
The fashion designer teams up with his personal trainer to create a Brain Edit retreat at his hotel in Portugal
Spa People: Julien Alfred
Exercise, endurance and resilience are the focus of a programme being led by Olympic 100m winner Julien Alfred at BodyHoliday in St Lucia
News report: Emerging economies
Two fresh GWI reports highlight the potential of the wellness markets in the Maldives and Saudi Arabia
Interview: Paul Hawco
Katie Barnes talks to the man heading up wellbeing at Banyan Group as it prepares to open its 100th resort and reports a 16 per cent rise in revenue
Wellness design: Design of the times
Sixteen experts share their insights on how wellness design can be used to create more impactful and profitable spas in a new white paper by Accor
Opinion: High leverage learning
What three skills do people need to master to future-proof their spa careers? Jeremy McCarthy reports
Spa tourism: Hot on the trail
A famous pilgrimage route and natural hot springs are being combined in an innovative tourism package in Spain
Opinion: Beacons of light
As cities in the US start to hire chief wellness officers, Mia Kyricos reveals what this means for our sector
Sponsored: 111SKIN - Winning formulation
111SKIN’s spa/clinic concept is making waves globally – backed by a combination of medical expertise, intuitive partner support and potent products
Product focus: AI and robot massage
Spas around the world are starting to offer AI massage. We highlight the different types of equipment coming to market
Menu engineering: At your service
A dedicated brain health facility at Kamalaya and a menopause package by actor Naomi Watts feature in our programming pages this issue
Finishing touch: Big business
Companies investing in workers’ happiness outperform other portfolios in major global stock markets, according to new research
The fashion designer’s hotel will host a Brain Edit retreat in April / photo: Jose Castellar/vermelho
He’s famous for the most stylish and sought-after women’s shoes in the world, but over the past few years, this fashion designer has been making a name for himself in hospitality and is now staking his claim in wellness.
We’re talking about Christian Louboutin, whose hotel in Portugal will host a Brain Edit retreat on 6-9 April.
Hotel by accident The French fashion icon is known for his signature red-soled high heels, which sell for €1,000 (US$1,053, 828) upwards. In 2023, however, he turned his hand to hospitality with Vermelho, a boutique hotel in the coastal hamlet of Melides. The destination is 90 minutes south of Lisbon and has become a hub for sculptors, architects and musicians (Philippe Starck is just one of the creatives who has a second home there).
Vermelho is operated by Marugal Hotel Management and is also part of the Relais & Chateaux portfolio.
“To be honest, I never planned to open a hotel,” he says in an article in Insidehook, “I had a place in [the nearby town of] Comporta but over the years it became a bit too cemented for me.”
Stumbling over the picturesque Melides on a drive one day, he was captured by its sleepy charm and bought a fisherman’s house there, followed by a plot of land to build a restaurant on. He adds: “The mayor came to me and mentioned it was quite a big plot for a restaurant [and said] ‘Why not open a hotel instead?’ I said yes – as simple as that.”
Louboutin worked with Portuguese architect Madalena Caiado on the project. Outside, Vermelho reflects the style of the country’s traditional buildings. Yet inside, it oozes with the designer’s eclectic style and bold hues – vermelho means red in Portuguese, paying homage to Louboutin’s trademark colour.
Louboutin on wellness Alongside its 13 bedrooms and Xtian restaurant, serving refined Portuguese cuisine, there’s an equally intimate wellness area in a maximalist design featuring sacred stones from ancient churches. A mix of Indian healing practices and Anne Semonin treatments – a 60-minute massage starts at €120 (US$126, £99) – are offered in one of two treatment rooms and complimentary yoga sessions take place every Saturday morning.
In a recent interview with Vogue India, Louboutin highlighted his emotional strength and how he tries to keep active. “Some people build their lives trying to prove something to others, trying to fight against whatever negativity they experienced growing up,” he says, explaining, “I grew up in a very protective, loving environment. It’s hard to be knocked down when you’re raised with that kind of love and confidence.”
He adds: “Wellness is an interesting concept for me. I’ve never been much into sports – never watched them – but I’ve always done some kind of physical activity.”
Brain Edit retreat Part of Louboutin’s wellness regime is guided by his personal trainer Terrence the Teacher, a UK-based health and fitness specialist who added neurolinguistic programming to his repertoire in 2001.
Terrence has made a name for himself in the fashion world with models, designers and editors seeking help for anything from anxiety and panic attacks to insomnia. And now he’s set to host a Brain Edit Mindfulness & Meditation retreat at Vermelho on 6-9 April to “teach guests how to harness the power of their mind, cultivating lasting change”.
With prices starting at €2,523 (US$2,658, £2,090), the four-day programme includes a one-on-one session with Terrence, lectures, meditation and breathwork experiences, morning yoga group classes and two guided mindfulness sessions in the evening. Spa treatments can be booked during meals, yoga and free time at an extra cost.
Aside from aiding self-discovery, other benefits of such a retreat, says Terrence, could include reduced stress, enhanced relaxation and better coping skills, plus improvements in the immune system, creativity and mental health.
Brand extension Louboutin’s crossover into hospitality isn’t the first of its kind. Spa Business has widely reported on fashion spas and hotels over the years. Most recently it delved into the offerings at the new Palazzo Versace and Karl Lagerfeld spas in Grand Lisboa Palace, Macau (see www.spabusiness.com/versace_lagerfeld).
Last July, Louboutin also acquired a stake in Experimental Group using his personal funds. Experimental is a Paris-based hospitality group which runs 20 boutique hotels, restaurants and bars across Europe. It’s known for owning Cowley Manor in the UK, is planning openings in Val d’Isère, Rome and Paris this year and has also expressed an interest in expanding into the US.
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2025 issue 1
Editor's letter: Auto spas
Fully automated, self-service spas are set to enter the market, presenting a disruptive opportunity for investors and operators
Spa People: Christian Louboutin
The fashion designer teams up with his personal trainer to create a Brain Edit retreat at his hotel in Portugal
Spa People: Julien Alfred
Exercise, endurance and resilience are the focus of a programme being led by Olympic 100m winner Julien Alfred at BodyHoliday in St Lucia
News report: Emerging economies
Two fresh GWI reports highlight the potential of the wellness markets in the Maldives and Saudi Arabia
Interview: Paul Hawco
Katie Barnes talks to the man heading up wellbeing at Banyan Group as it prepares to open its 100th resort and reports a 16 per cent rise in revenue
Wellness design: Design of the times
Sixteen experts share their insights on how wellness design can be used to create more impactful and profitable spas in a new white paper by Accor
Opinion: High leverage learning
What three skills do people need to master to future-proof their spa careers? Jeremy McCarthy reports
Spa tourism: Hot on the trail
A famous pilgrimage route and natural hot springs are being combined in an innovative tourism package in Spain
Opinion: Beacons of light
As cities in the US start to hire chief wellness officers, Mia Kyricos reveals what this means for our sector
Sponsored: 111SKIN - Winning formulation
111SKIN’s spa/clinic concept is making waves globally – backed by a combination of medical expertise, intuitive partner support and potent products
Product focus: AI and robot massage
Spas around the world are starting to offer AI massage. We highlight the different types of equipment coming to market
Menu engineering: At your service
A dedicated brain health facility at Kamalaya and a menopause package by actor Naomi Watts feature in our programming pages this issue
Finishing touch: Big business
Companies investing in workers’ happiness outperform other portfolios in major global stock markets, according to new research
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.
