PAMPERING T
he problem I have with the word pamper- ing is what it
conjures up in the mind. Indulgence equates to excess, waste and lack of conscious behaviour and is linked to the capricious behaviours of the privileged class. In some ways, it’s just the opposite of enlightenment and mindfulness, which are key components for the psychological orientation of a healthy being. Moreover, it has a strong association with babies, which, in my opinion infanti- lises the spa experience and demeans the professional image we are trying to create. Pampering has a limited appeal to a small
segment of the population but is a huge turn- off for the larger portion, the people who we need to make understand our industry and hopefully partake in what it has to off er.
MICHAEL STUSSER Founder, Osmosis Day Spa Sanctuary; and Green Spa Network
Since 2008, the industry has been on its
knees. People have become much more sophisticated about what they’re willing to pay for and accept in a treatment. T ey’re looking for substantial value and want to know that the time and money they’re spending in a spa is going to contribute in a measurable way to improving their quality of life – beyond feeling good for a day. It’s time for this industry to wake up and
smell the coff ee. We have to change our value proposition if we’re going to move beyond a struggle for survival. I think it’s really time for us to go deeper into the roots of what
It’s time we moved beyond the solipsistic idea of spa we’ve been living in and understand how to become more relevant to what’s happening with wellness globally
A
s money has become a big- ger factor in consumers’ deci-
created the spa movement in the fi rst place – which is healing and wellness. We strayed away from that dur- ing the years of opulence but I don’t think it is going to serve the future of our
industry to continue to go down that road. I cringe every time I hear the word
pampering but, unfortunately, it’s deeply embedded in our spa culture. Both con- sumers and marketers continue to use it frequently but, in my opinion, I don’t want to use it at all in our vernacular as we promote our business. We can do much better and we will have to do much better if we’re going to be able to meet people where they’re going now. It’s time we moved beyond the solip- sistic idea of spa we’ve been living in and understand how to become more relevant to what’s happening with wellness globally. Our industry needs an identity change.
Stusser, the founder of Osmosis Day Spa Sanc- tuary, is also a founding member of T e Green Spa Network, an association of eco-friendly spa professionals. Details:
www.osmosis.com;
http://greenspanetwork.org
sions, the spa industry has become concerned that if we’re perceived as a luxury or indulgence, people will stop coming. So there’s been a general feeling that if we could focus more on wellness and health, consum- ers would really value our services and spend money with us, even in tough times. But if the industry moves away from
JEREMY MCCARTHY Director of global spa development and operations for Starwood Hotels & Resorts
pampering, we move away from what diff er- entiates us. T ere are a lot of other businesses and industries focused on health, but what spas do really well is off er healing that feels good and that people look forward to expe- riencing. If we can emphasise that as the strength of our industry, we could solidify our place as leaders in an aspect of wellness that few people are covering. At Starwood, we think very deeply about the psychology of the spa experience, and
we think it has a lot to do with time. A lot of what happens in a spa doesn’t have so much to do with the treatment being received, it has to do with the fact that you’re being separated from technology for a while and you’re alone in a room with silence. So, even before the therapist lays their hands on the guest, there are many things that are hap- pening that are important to the guest’s psychological wellbeing. Moreover, there are some pretty clear sci-
entifi cally established links between feeling good and being well. For example, when we’re feeling better we become more open to positive health lifestyles and behaviours. And positive emotions act as a buff er, pro- tecting us from the harmful eff ects of stress
The biggest mistake we make is assuming that you have to be one or the other – pampering or wellness. What spas do really well is both
SPA BUSINESS 4 2012 ©Cybertrek 2012
(see sb12/2 p98). Of course there is a superfi cial side to pampering and spas don’t want to be associated with that, but what I would argue is that what people don’t like about the concept of pam-
pering is that it seems excessive. Yet, for me, the opposite is actually true: people aren’t being pampered enough. When we go to other healing institutions in our soci- ety, such as hospitals and clinics, they don’t make us feel good, and they don’t treat us the way we want to be treated. The biggest mistake that we make is
assuming that you have to be one or the other – pampering or wellness. I think what spas do really well is both and that’s what the industry is moving towards. By sharing some of the science behind posi- tive emotions, I’ve been trying to elevate the discussion to move people towards more of a mindful approach to wellness and pamper- ing, and I think we’re getting there.
McCarthy has over 20 years of experience in operating luxury resort spas and recently completed a masters degree in Applied Posi- tive Psychology. He’s also recently authored The Psychology of Spas & Wellbeing. Details:
www.starwoodhotels.com
Read Spa Business online
spabusiness.com / digital 27
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