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The Global Expansion Blueprint: How Leading Spa Brands Navigate International Growth
In today’s interconnected landscape, spa leaders face both unprecedented opportunities and complex challenges when expanding their brands internationally. The global economy focused on selfcare, already a multi-trillion[1]dollar force, continues to grow rapidly post-pandemic, with the spa sector maintaining its position as a cornerstone of this expansion. With insights from three industry leaders— Tim Waller of BABOR BEAUTY GROUP, Verónica Fisas of Natura Bissé Group and Sammy Gharieni of Gharieni Group—this feature explores the global strategies, cultural nuances and innovative approaches driving successful international growth in the spa industry.
The Great Attraction, Part 2: Adapting the Renaissance to the Real World
In a town hall meeting recapped in the final issue of Pulse last year, four panelists discussed “The Great Attraction: Turning Resignation into Renaissance.” Their focus was making workplaces attractive to prospective and existing employees.
Recently, ISPA Chairman Patrick Huey asked a new panel of spa leaders to continue the conversation about applying exceptional hiring practices to attract and retain talent. Charlotte Prescott (Fisher Island Club), Marci Howard-May (Red Mountain Resort), Megan Jasper (Gadabout SalonSpas and VerVe Salons) and Justin Vanderpoel (Fairmont Scottsdale Princess) offered perspectives from their own spas about implementing the “renaissance” into a post-Covid world that has new demands and expectations.
The Hidden Gem of Horse Country: Inside the Kentucky Castle
Towering over the picturesque rolling hills of horse country lies a hidden gem, The Kentucky Castle Spa— a time capsule of tranquility and rejuvenation in the heart of Kentucky farmland. Chief Operating Officer Christie Eckerline invites Open House readers into this locally iconic space, sharing insights into its mysterious origin, transformation and retail philosophy.
The Humanleaigh Remedy for An Amplified Life
Pulse: As a Knowledge Builder presenter at the 2024 ISPA Conference, you will give attendees a wake-up call to inspire sharper focus, clarifying values and inspiring immediate action. Share a little about what that means.
Leigh Weinraub: Just as a muscle grows stronger from consistent flexing, our minds require healthy and refined repetition for optimization. I will offer an essential toolkit of psychological skills that will sustain a lifelong training program. Attendees will learn to master emotional regulation, access more authenticity, generate inner peace and channel gratitude as a catalyst for self-actualization.
The Importance of Love (Elevate Your Leadership Pt. II)
Do you come to work every day with love in your heart? Not the romantic kind, but rather the kind of love that shows you have intense passion for what you are doing.
The Manager Skills Course
So, you’re an amazing esthetician or massage therapist—with repeat clients and employee-of-the-month awards to prove it! Naturally, your well-meaning spa director sees your next step as a promotion to supervisor or spa manager. Yes!
The spa director is confident you’ll crush being a spa manager because you crushed being a service provider. After all, success in one role should automatically lead to inevitable success in the other, right? Right?!
The Missing Link on LinkedIn
The Missing Link on LinkedIn – How to Maximize Your LinkedIn Presence to Build Connections
By: Debra Jason
Are you baffled by LinkedIn? If so, you’re not alone. Many spa executives, directors and owners who initially accepted invites from colleagues to join the network may often be left thinking, “What’s next?”
The Next Generation: Creating Strategic Internships and Partnerships with Educational Institutions
This session will provide insights on shared mission and trends with education institutions as well as ways to create strategic alignment and partnerships.
Pulse: How will the ISPA Collaborative on Higher Education (CoHE) drive innovation in the spa and wellness industry?
Dr. Mary Wisnom: The focus on wellness on campuses is growing at a rapid pace. Not only are campus recreation centers offering spa and wellness services, but health centers, residential dorms and academic programs are also getting into the game. The CoHE team was formed in part to help create a connection between ISPA and those working in campus wellness.
Aaron Hobson: As we all know, wellness can mean many different things to many different people, particularly in higher education settings. I feel the CoHE will help drive new ideas for the spa and wellness industry and find ways to connect with students on university campuses.
Pulse: What are some barriers to education that CoHE will tackle?
Jennifer Aarons: As educators, we need to know what skills the industry desires so that we can tailor our programs to meet those expectations. Through conversations with industry leaders, we hope to gain insight on skillset needs so we can generate future leaders who are properly equipped for success in spa and wellness.
AH: There are many misconceptions regarding access, affordability and the intersection of spa-like services and wellbeing services at higher education institutions. The CoHE will explore each of these areas closely to bring additional perspective to ISPA and higher education fields alike.
The Next Generation: Creating Strategic Internships and Partnerships with Educational Institutions
The ISPA collaborative on higher education (COHE) is an initiative ISPA created to help bridge the gap between higher education and the resources and knowledge among ISPA members. Several paths already exist in higher education for individuals who wish to pursue a professional career in the spa industry, and opportunities continue to expand. CoHE’s mission is to educate and help connect those institutions with ISPA’s membership base of spa industry leaders.
Partnerships, rather than sponsorships, are an integral part of the higher education initiative. (It is important to note the difference between partnerships and sponsorships: A partnership is where both parties have something to give and something they wish to receive. A sponsorship is when one party receives money or other resources for a particular event or program.) When creating partnerships with higher education institutions, it’s important to remember the following:
The Positivity Principle: Helping Your Team Flourish and Thrive
Researchers are telling us that we can expect to see more change in the next decade than we did in the past hundred years. So, consider:
- Now more than ever, we have a reason to worry, to feel backed up against a wall or to even wring our hands as we look for new answers to old problems. For spa leaders, some of those ever-present daily challenges are staffing, retention and engagement.
- Now more than ever, we have an opportunity to put on our creativity capes, along with our best possible future glasses (not rose colored). In our industry, that means creating a flourishing environment for both our staff who stayed and our loyal, if somewhat exhausted, clients.
Which is the right perspective? You can make a case for each, and you get to decide.
You get to choose whether you view change as a threat or an opportunity. As difficult as disruption sometimes will be, you can use scientific research to stack the uncertain odds in your favor.
THE POSITIVITY PRINCIPLE
“Positive psychology is the scientific study of “what makes life most worth living,” as psychology professor Christopher Peterson wrote in Psychology Today. To dive a bit deeper, positive psychology is a scientific approach to studying human thoughts, feelings and behavior, with focus on strengths instead of weaknesses and with the objective to build on the good in life instead of repairing the bad.
Martin Seligman, Ph.D., who is often considered the pioneer of the positive psychology movement, coined an acronym for the five pillars that are needed to create a life where we can become our best self as we create our best future. PERMA comprises Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning and Accomplishments.