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Spas have been working hard over the past few years to market themselves as a necessary part of a healthy lifestyle, not an indulgence. But now that consumers are feeling anxious about paying for even more basic needs — like gas, house payments and butter — some spas are responding with a different strategy to appeal to stressed-out, maxed-out customers: discounts.
Ultra-luxury hotel owner and operator Rosewood Hotels & Resorts is putting its brand on spas. The Dallas-based company, which began prominently including its name on its hotels only two years ago, has launched Sense, a Rosewood spa. It's a move that mirrors efforts by other upscale hotels to leverage their spas as a marketing tool and revenue driver.
It's been 40 years since Virginia allowed liquor to be sold by the drink. Since then, the state's ABC laws have gotten complicated.
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A settlement was reached in a class action lawsuit between the Grand Traverse Resort & Spa and scores of resort employees over money withheld from their paychecks that was used for resort marketing.
The resort agreed to pay $78,000 to a group of around 150 current and former resort workers in a settlement filed Monday in 13th Circuit Court. The resort was sued last summer over alleged violations of state employment and wage laws over $150 bi-weekly paycheck deductions for numerous employees at its health spa that were used to help fund the resort's marketing efforts.
The Spa at Rancho Bernardo Inn Golf Resort & Spa has been voted the #1 Resort Spa in the country in a Readers' Poll published in the April 2008 issue of Conde Nast Traveler. The Readers Poll, which is conducted every year, ranks Spas across North America based on numerous criteria, including; Setting, Services, Staff, Programs and Cuisine, among others. Rancho Bernardo Inn Golf Resort & Spa was honored with an overall score of 91.8 out of 100 - the highest in its category.
Dirty foot spas in Orange County, California nail salons have sparked concern among consumers, causing the creation of new regulations. The Board of Barbering and Cosmetology (BBC) is cracking the whip by enforcing a new regulation that allows any representative of the board to temporarily suspend an establishment's license immediately if unsanitary conditions exist. . . . If debris is found in jets, foot-plates or impellers upon the removal of screens from foot spas, a license can be suspended.
Pacific Healthcare Holdings is expanding its presence in India via a joint venture that will invest 10 million Singapore dollars (7.2 million US dollars) in the healthcare sector over the next three years, executives said on Wednesday. The Birla-Pacific MedSpa will be 50 per cent owned by India's Yash Birla's Group, 42.5 per cent held by Pacific Healthcare and 7.5 per cent by a dermatologist based in India.
Epi Center MedSpa celebrates its 10th anniversary with the opening of the country’s first Eco-MedSpa in San Francisco in a completely renovated facility in the historic Union Square medical building. The new facility is LEED certified and built entirely with sustainable materials, from recycled and FSC-certified wood, marble flooring and countertops, to the eco-paints and recycled fabrics.
Forget avocado, evening primrose oil or other exotic ingredients, the latest facial to hit New York is a mask made with bird excrement. The Geisha Facial, available at Shizuka New York for $180, about $100 more than the shop's other facials, contains nightingale excrement.
She claims she was turned away and told she's too fat for a pedicure. Now, a West Palm Beach woman is planning a discrimination suit against a local nail salon.
Perched on a stunning seaside cliff within one of the Caribbean’s most celebrated luxury resorts, the Spa at Rosewood Little Dix Bay is a prized amenity. Now, with the debut of Rosewood’s new spa brand, Sense, A Rosewood Spa™, the experience becomes even more rejuvenating, with the addition of relaxation-fostering opening and closing rituals, longer treatments, and the abundant use of indigenous ingredients such as Virgin Gorda honey, goat milk and Neem leaf; and salt harvested from nearby Salt Island.
Lion’s Gate Development, along with The Waldorf=Astoria Collection™ and Spa Chakra, Inc., are pleased to announce that a Guerlain Spa Boutique will be included as part of the plan for the Proscenium’s luxury Waldorf=Astoria Sarasota hotel. Representing the first project between Guerlain and the luxury hotel brand, The Waldorf=Astoria® in Manhattan opened a Guerlain Spa Boutique in the main lobby in December 2007 and will debut its first Guerlain Spa in September of this year, occupying much of the 19th floor in the iconic New York landmark. Plans are to include them exclusively in other Waldorf=Astoria Collection Hotels. Spa Chakra, Inc. will develop and manage the spa.
The UK’s largest private investment syndicate is to construct the UK’s largest residential health spa.
Fifty members of investment group Hotbed have entered into a £23 million deal to construct and operate a 192-room residential spa in Essex, to be completed in late 2009.
Striving to take spa therapy beyond the confines of the elite, well-known beautician and aroma therapist Blossom Kochhar is all set to open 200 spas across India and abroad in two years. “Life is so hectic these days. People are constantly running around for work. At the end of the week they deserve good, rejuvenating spa treatment, which unfortunately can’t be afforded by all. These spas will specifically address that issue,” Kochhar told IANS in an interview.
Like those misguided victims on extreme makeover TV shows, so many hotels and resorts these days are renovating themselves into properties that have been "improved" beyond recognition. Happily, after a $35-million makeover, Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa in Rancho Mirage has emerged carefully refreshed -- and you can hardly see the scars.
It is commonly understood that spas were once an afterthought for operators of hotels and resorts. Yet as living a healthy and better lifestyle has become one of the population’s top priorities, spas have grown in popularity and are viewed as essential elements to a hotel or resort’s success rather than being just a luxury.
Today's economic downturn is causing spa owners in the Valley to sweat as they watch their bottom lines sag. "When the real estate market began dropping, people stopped spending money on themselves," said East Valley spa market analyst and Mesa author Christina Jordan. "Spas in the Valley, especially the day spas, are losing customers and income."
During 11 years as a broker serving wealthy South Floridians, Nicole Oden made a lot of money, endured a lot of stress and spent a lot of time in spas getting rid of both. So when she became dissatisfied with the spas in her area, she decided to open her own.
In short order, she researched the industry, prepared a business plan, secured a bank loan and in November 2004 opened Spa Eleven, an 11,100-square-foot luxury day spa in Delray Beach. Ms. Oden says the 70-person enterprise generated a modest profit on $3 million in first-year revenues, and she is investigating two more locations.
Running a spa is perhaps the ultimate feel-good business, and spa owners say helping others look better and feel more relaxed is a major benefit of their job. Earning a healthy income in the business, however, is hard work, given the challenges in employee retention and financing.
The dental spa has become an established part of the dentistry market. Dental spa experts estimate that up to 5% of dental practices in USA currently offer dental spa or spa dentistry services. Strong growth is forecast and numbers are expected to increase with as many as three quarters of US dental practices possibly becoming dental spas. They can boost sales by doing so as dental spas report patients spending about 30% more per visit than in a traditional dentists office.
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Seven Napa day spa owners received fines totaling $70,000 this week for state labor law violations, leaving many in state of shock and confusion.
At issue is the misclassification of spa employees as independent contractors, said state labor officials who also conducted sweeps of nail salons, day spas and beauty salons in California's San Francisco, Sonoma, Contra Costa and Alameda counties.
La Posada de Santa Fe Resort & Spa, A RockResort, will complete a $6.2 million dollar renovation this May 2008, inviting travelers to experience the revamped, sophisticated Southwest design, a brand new additional restaurant and updated luxury amenities. The extensive redesign will enhance all 157 guest rooms including 30 signature suites, public spaces, the RockResorts Spa, the historic Staab House and dining venues.
Canada's leading spa association will introduce a national inspection program next year to ensure its members comply with quality assurance and safety standards.
"It will help consumers and raise standards in the industry across the board," Leading Spas of Canada representative Kathryn Stolle said in an interview. "Consumers are saying: 'Give us some assurances here' and that's what this will do."
May 18-20, 2008
2008 Global Spa Summit
New York, NY, USA
For additional details, please visit www.globalspasummit.org
The 2008 Global Spa Summit will bring together 250 leaders from the global spa, real estate, investment, travel, education, beauty, and wellness sectors to chart the future of the global spa industry. The three-day Summit will feature major keynotes by industry visionaries, findings from the first-ever Global Spa Economy Research Report conducted by the Stanford Research Institute, and panels and sessions exploring the challenges and opportunities facing the spa industry.
Since 1769 the Equinox has stood as an icon of American resorts. This well known Vermont landmark has recently commenced a multi-million dollar revitalization that pays homage to the past while bringing sophisticated touches of extreme comfort that are sure to make even the most discerning guest feel right at home. The $20 million renovation of all guestrooms, suites, lobby, Marsh Tavern and the creation of two new exciting dining venues will be complete in July 2008. Envisioned by famed interior designer Geoffrey Bradfield and executed by well-known architectural firms Baskervill and Middlebury-based Bread Loaf, the renovation will ensure that the Equinox will retain its place as New England's premier destination resort.
The great cover-up is on, and it happened almost overnight: All of a sudden, spas – the last accepted venue for public nudity – have become discreet.
