What’s been the most pivotal moment in your career? In early 2008, I was still working as a spa director in Grand Cayman when, on one particularly auspicious day, I received a call from none other than Sue Harmsworth, asking me to join her team at ESPA.
Switching from 18 years of spa operations to being a vendor/consultant was a big learning curve but that experience gave me a huge advantage and was pivotal to my success. It helped me form some strong and long-lasting relationships which I treasure and nurture to this day. This is a relationship-driven industry without a doubt.
What do you still hope to accomplish? My one wish, and something I should have done much earlier, is to be a mentor. Now, as an ISPA Board member, I hope to be able to guide young people in our industry and open their eyes to the opportunities available to them. This is a fast-growing, global industry with a lack of qualified employees and little succession planning, but there are countless options for career advancement. It’s such a rewarding and enjoyable vocation.
How do you hope the industry will look in 2050? The self-care trend has helped the spa world bounce back from COVID-19 and I see it becoming more mainstream than ever. This translates into all kinds of statistical improvements, particularly spa-goer demographics – a balance between genders to reflect more male visitors and a wider age range.
Touchless therapies are more popular and there will always be a place for them, but nothing will replace human touch. Many people are increasingly suffering from loneliness and a machine can’t fill that void like a caring therapist does.
I hope wellness and spa become increasingly mainstream and affordable for all, while at the same time, creating meaningful and rewarding career paths for future generations.
More from spa industry leaders...
In celebration of Spa Business’ 20th anniversary, industry leaders take a look at how far the sector has come since the magazine’s inception in 2003, share personal career highlights and reveal their plans and ideas for the future.
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2023 issue 3
Editor's letter: Reflection point
As Spa Business celebrates its 20th birthday, Katie Barnes pauses for thought and rejoices in the industry’s evolution
Spa People: 20th anniversary issue: Anna Bjurstam
The strategic senior advisor at Six Senses and Raison d'Etre on being initiated as a shaman, why psychedelics are here to stay and her bigger fear for the global spa industry
Promotion: Klafs: Relax into wellbeing
Klafs and Studio F. A. Porsche have combined their design and wellness expertise to create an oasis for total-body relaxation
News report: Eastern promise
Japan’s spa industry is valued at US$4.2 billion and is part of the world's third highest-performing wellness economy
Jeremy McCarthy: Theory of evolution
From spa to wellness and now leisure – Spa Business’ contributing editor looks at where hospitality experiences are heading
Promotion: Lemi: Built to last
Lemi is committed to leading with innovation to create
cutting-edge treatment room solutions that excel
in terms of performance and eco-credentials
Promotion: G.M. COLLIN: Collagen pioneers
GM Collin’s expertise in collagen research and product formulation has resulted in the creation of a new serum that combats age-related skin degeneration
Promotion: Comfort Zone: A brighter future
Consumers are increasingly interested in reducing dark spots and hyperpigmentation and a new line from Comfort Zone has been launched to address this emerging need
Promotion: Art of Cryo: Life changing experience
Vikki and Robbie are often exhausted after work. A visit to the spa to experience
the Art of Cryo Tech-Spa Module is a chance to re-set and rejuvenate together
An opportunity to reimagine one of the UK’s most recognisable towers has been formally
opened by Rivington Hark, as St Johns Beacon invites operators and partners to shape its
next phase. [more...]
What’s been the most pivotal moment in your career? In early 2008, I was still working as a spa director in Grand Cayman when, on one particularly auspicious day, I received a call from none other than Sue Harmsworth, asking me to join her team at ESPA.
Switching from 18 years of spa operations to being a vendor/consultant was a big learning curve but that experience gave me a huge advantage and was pivotal to my success. It helped me form some strong and long-lasting relationships which I treasure and nurture to this day. This is a relationship-driven industry without a doubt.
What do you still hope to accomplish? My one wish, and something I should have done much earlier, is to be a mentor. Now, as an ISPA Board member, I hope to be able to guide young people in our industry and open their eyes to the opportunities available to them. This is a fast-growing, global industry with a lack of qualified employees and little succession planning, but there are countless options for career advancement. It’s such a rewarding and enjoyable vocation.
How do you hope the industry will look in 2050? The self-care trend has helped the spa world bounce back from COVID-19 and I see it becoming more mainstream than ever. This translates into all kinds of statistical improvements, particularly spa-goer demographics – a balance between genders to reflect more male visitors and a wider age range.
Touchless therapies are more popular and there will always be a place for them, but nothing will replace human touch. Many people are increasingly suffering from loneliness and a machine can’t fill that void like a caring therapist does.
I hope wellness and spa become increasingly mainstream and affordable for all, while at the same time, creating meaningful and rewarding career paths for future generations.
More from spa industry leaders...
In celebration of Spa Business’ 20th anniversary, industry leaders take a look at how far the sector has come since the magazine’s inception in 2003, share personal career highlights and reveal their plans and ideas for the future.
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2023 issue 3
Editor's letter: Reflection point
As Spa Business celebrates its 20th birthday, Katie Barnes pauses for thought and rejoices in the industry’s evolution
Spa People: 20th anniversary issue: Anna Bjurstam
The strategic senior advisor at Six Senses and Raison d'Etre on being initiated as a shaman, why psychedelics are here to stay and her bigger fear for the global spa industry
Promotion: Klafs: Relax into wellbeing
Klafs and Studio F. A. Porsche have combined their design and wellness expertise to create an oasis for total-body relaxation
News report: Eastern promise
Japan’s spa industry is valued at US$4.2 billion and is part of the world's third highest-performing wellness economy
Jeremy McCarthy: Theory of evolution
From spa to wellness and now leisure – Spa Business’ contributing editor looks at where hospitality experiences are heading
Promotion: Lemi: Built to last
Lemi is committed to leading with innovation to create
cutting-edge treatment room solutions that excel
in terms of performance and eco-credentials
Promotion: G.M. COLLIN: Collagen pioneers
GM Collin’s expertise in collagen research and product formulation has resulted in the creation of a new serum that combats age-related skin degeneration
Promotion: Comfort Zone: A brighter future
Consumers are increasingly interested in reducing dark spots and hyperpigmentation and a new line from Comfort Zone has been launched to address this emerging need
Promotion: Art of Cryo: Life changing experience
Vikki and Robbie are often exhausted after work. A visit to the spa to experience
the Art of Cryo Tech-Spa Module is a chance to re-set and rejuvenate together
The Toverland theme park in the Netherlands has announced a €98m expansion programme
that will add a resort, new attractions and staff facilities as it pursues plans to become a multi-
day destination.
Hotel de France, located on the British Isle of Jersey, has created a wellness retreat package
that includes a hot yoga session that will take place in Jersey Zoo’s butterfly sanctuary.
A new immersive attraction designed to transport visitors into the final hours of ancient Pompeii
is preparing to open near the world-famous archaeological site in southern Italy.
Experience design company, BRC Imagination Arts, has completed a transition that sees founder
Bob Rogers pass ownership of the business to four long-serving senior executives, while
remaining actively involved with the company.
Movie Park Germany has opened a new Paramount Pictures-themed attraction as part of its 30th
anniversary celebrations, using immersive storytelling and adaptive reuse to reinforce the park’s
longstanding “Hollywood in Germany” positioning.
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.
Efteling has opened Hooghmoed, a new family drop tower designed to broaden the appeal of its
recently launched Sirene Island themed area and introduce younger visitors to thrill attractions.
A proposed Puy du Fou development near Bicester and Universal Destinations and Experiences’
planned resort in Bedford are emerging as part of a wider transformation of the Oxford–
Cambridge Growth Corridor into a major centre for UK leisure and tourism inv
Shedd Aquarium has opened the Immersion Theater developed in partnership with SimEx-
Iwerks, as part of a wider strategy to enhance the guest experience and create additional
revenue opportunities.
The UK government has announced a temporary reduction in VAT on visitor attractions and
children’s meals as part of a summer cost-of-living support package designed to stimulate the
visitor economy and encourage family days out.
An opportunity to reimagine one of the UK’s most recognisable towers has been formally
opened by Rivington Hark, as St Johns Beacon invites operators and partners to shape its
next phase. [more...]
