editor’s letter Time to engage with governments
sent shock waves through the industry when it was announced recently. Maldives President Mohamed
N
Nasheed attributed the ban to lobbying by an opposition party, saying: “T e government has decided to close all massage parlors and spas, following an opposition-led religious protest last week calling for their closure.” Opposition leader Maumoon Abdul
Gayoom said the move was aimed at harming spa businesses owned by rivals, claiming: “We wanted massage clinics closed to prevent prostitution [but] Nasheed is misusing the demands to take revenge by imposing the ban on resorts owned by opposition members.” Although the ban was subsequently liſt ed pending a review,
the very fact that something like this can happen out of the blue came as a shock to both investors and operators. Tourism is worth us$1.5bn (€1.1bn, £1bn) to the Maldives and
makes up 30 per cent of GDP and the announcement is bound to have a damaging impact on the islands’ tourism industry. T e episode has highlighted several critical issues. T e fi rst
is the important but oſt en underestimated role spas play in drawing high-spending customers to resorts and the second is the industry’s lack of coherence when it comes to high-level lobbying and proving its economic value strategically. We could learn a valuable lesson from operators in the
airline industry who’ve become past masters at leveraging their infl uence commercially by negotiating terms with governments, cities and local businesses. You can be sure that
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ews that the government of the Maldives had instructed spas on the islands to close (see p16)
We could learn a valuable lesson from operators in the airline industry who’ve become past masters at leveraging their infl uence commercially to negotiate terms with governments, cities and businesses
when a new route opens up which involves carrying hoards of new customers to a destination, the airlines involved have negotiated themselves the very best deal possible. T e episode of the Maldives ban should act as a catalyst for
the industry and prompt us to commission research which proves the economic value of the spa industry to world tourism and to set up the necessary lobbying infrastructure to enable us to speak on a peer-to-peer basis with governments and other key stakeholders to sell the case for our industry. With so many parts of the world in turmoil which
involve clashes of ideology, spas are vulnerable to threats of this nature. Being clear about both health and economic benefi ts and then being united it getting these points across in a clear and culturally sensitive way is vital if our industry is to avoid further disruption.
Liz Terry, editor twitter: @elizterry Attractions management NICK VARNEY
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www.leisuresubs.com SPA BUSINESS 1 2012 ©Cybertrek 2012
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