Spa management and skincare company ESPA revealed ESPA Life, its brand new spa concept, at the five-star, 294-bedroom Corinthia Hotel London, UK, yesterday (4 July 2011).
ESPA Life is billed as 'a leading voice in the next generation of spa' and will offer a fully integrated wellness approach alongside a luxury spa experience.
The wellness menu includes lifestyle programmes that focus on detox, sleep, weight-loss, pregnancy and general vitality. It will also feature complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), alongside targeted fitness and rehabilitation services to counter-act the effects of the modern day lifestyle and optimise health.
An initial consultation with a gatekeeper (naturopath) will help determine the best choice of spa treatments combined with a lifestyle programme, CAM therapies and/or fitness routine to help customers achieve their goal.
In addition, there will be a full spa menu, incorporating ESPA's new and upgraded product lines and a number of targeted and specially-created signature treatments, plus Rush Hour Beauty - a service where those pressed for time can hire two or more therapists to work on their hands, feet, face and body within an hour.
ESPA's brand partners include Creative Nail Design and its UV gel finish Shellac(tm), Lycon Wax, Palomar and its IPL hair reduction and hair by Daniel Galvin.
ESPA worked closely with GA Design to create the spa design. Spread over four floors and covering 3,300sq m (35,500sq ft), the new facility boasts 15 curved treatment pods, a private spa suite, a thermal floor, a social spa lounge serving nutritional food, health juices, tisanes and champagne, and a gym featuring Life Fitness equipment and personal training pods.
The thermal floor includes a 9m swimming pool; a vitality pool with air and water massage jets; an amphitheatre glass sauna where you step down into the heat; a black mosaic steamroom; an ice fountain; experience showers, sleep pods and heated Cleopatra relaxation beds.
There will also be a Daniel Galvin-branded hair salon and a dedicated nail studio.
The concept was developed by ESPA's CEO and founder, Susan Harmsworth, who hand-picked specialists in spa, holistic health, complementary medicine and fitness for ESPA Life. Experts include Max Tomlinson, an Australian trained naturopath and his team consisting of naturopaths, nutritionists, homeopaths, medical herbalists, osteopaths, acupuncturists and physiotherapists and a fitness team trained and lead by Stephen Price, personal trainer to elite athletes.
Celebrity hairdresser Daniel Galvin is also on hand to provide the haircare.
Harmsworth says: "As the world's population ages, health is becoming a major issue. There's now a greater acceptance of complementary medicine by the medical profession and people are taking more responsibility for their health as they become disillusioned with national healthcare systems.
"ESPA Life brings together a concept that has evolved over the past 30 years as the spa and medical worlds have grown closer together. ESPA Life at Corinthia will be the first city-centre spa to offer this integrative approach."
