Spa Executive | October 2020

Spa Executive 

For leaders in the business of wellness 

ISSUE #21 – OCTOBER 2020 

GORDON TARETA OF 

MARCUS HOTELS & 

RESORTS 

On Leadership & 

Retail In The New 

World Of Wellness

Spa Executive 

For leaders in the business of wellness 

ISSUE #21 – OCTOBER 2020 

IN THIS MONTH'S ISSUE 

NEWS PAGE 3 

ACCOR, THREE SAGES PARTNER 

TO CREATE IN-ROOM WELLNESS 

PROGRAM 

NEWS PAGE 4 

HYATT & EXHALE PARTNER 

WITH AMAZON FOR LAUNCH OF 

AMAZON HALO SERVICE 

MANAGEMENT PAGE 6 

STUDY FINDS TRAVEL & 

HOSPITALITY EMPLOYEES FEEL 

UNDERVALUED. HERE’S HOW TO 

TURN THAT AROUND 

AND WHY YOU MUST 

BUSINESS PAGE 8 

LIVE LOVE SPA CEO LISA 

MICHAELIS ON THE PRESENT 

AND FUTURE OF SPA INDUSTRY 

EVENTS 

GROWTH PAGE 10 

FEATURED PROPERTY: 

Sheraton Belitung Resort 

SPOTLIGHT PAGE 12 

GORDON TARETA OF MARCUS 

HOTELS & RESORTS 

On Leadership & Retail In The New 

World Of Wellness 

NEWS PAGE 15 

THE BEST DESTINATION SPAS IN 

THE WORLD, ACCORDING TO CN 

TRAVELER 

BUSINESS PAGE 16 

5 MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR 

HOTEL & RESORT SPAS IN A 

COVID-19 WORLD 

PUBLISHER 

CREATIVE DIRECTOR 

EDITOR 

COPY EDITOR 

DESIGNER 

Roger Sholanki 

Nima Chadha 

Elizabeth Bromstein 

Andrea Coreas 

Samuel Peter

NEWS 

ACCOR, THREE SAGES 

PARTNER TO CREATE IN-ROOM 

WELLNESS PROGRAM 

Accor has partnered with Three Sages, to launch restorative 

in-room wellness program with video content. 

Program will continue to 

roll out 

The pilot program launched at select 

Fairmont, Sofitel and Swissôtel properties 

in North America on September 23, 2020. 

Additional properties will be added in the 

coming year. 

Global hospitality leader, Accor, has 

partnered with wellness technology 

company Three Sages to launch 

comprehensive in-room restorative 

wellness programming at select North 

and Central America properties. 

Guests are connected to 

nature 

The partnership offers Fairmont, Sofitel 

and Swissôtel guests complimentary 

yoga, stretching, breath-work, mindfulness 

and sleep practices on the in-room 

entertainment systems. The in-room 

wellness program comes in video format 

and the content features spectacular 

outdoor backdrops from awe-inspiring 

locations and is designed to be restorative 

and to help guests feel less stressed, more 

relaxed and at ease while traveling. Guests 

are connected to nature through videos 

featuring spectacular outdoor backdrops 

from beautiful locations. 

“We are thrilled to partner with Three 

Sages to offer an industry-leading caliber, 

depth and breadth of in-room wellness 

offerings for our guests,” Daniel Poulin, 

Director of Spa and Fitness, Accor North 

and Central America, said in a statement. 

“During these stressful times, the option 

of having a comprehensive restorative 

wellness program like this to enjoy from 

the comfort of your room further elevates 

our guests’ overall experience while 

on property and alleviates some of the 

pressure from the travel experience.” 

Greg Commins, Founder & CEO at Three 

Sages, said, “Three Sages experiences 

are intended to help guests virtually 

connect with nature, find balance and 

ground themselves. Our short format, 

nature-inspired programs are the ideal 

way to take a sip of wellness to de-stress, 

relax and recharge.” 

Complimentary access to the Three 

Sages app will also be offered to all Accor 

North and Central America employees 

in support of the group’s commitment to 

employee wellbeing. 

Accor is a world-leading augmented 

hospitality group offering unique and 

meaningful experiences in 5,000 hotels, 

resorts, and residences across 110 

countries. Three Sages is a wellness 

technology platform that delivers immersive, 

nature-based restorative experiences where 

people live, work, and play. 

Three Sages’ flagship product is a 

plug-and-play wall unit that creates a 

relaxing environment with an interactive 

touch screen and surround sound 

that delivers proprietary travel-inspired 

restorative content, along with the 

necessary equipment for a restorative 

holistic experience. The company also 

offers mobile and streaming channels for 

wellness on the go. 

- 3 - Spa Executive | OCTOBER 2020 ISSUE

NEWS 

HYATT & EXHALE PARTNER 

WITH AMAZON FOR LAUNCH OF 

AMAZON HALO SERVICE 

Hyatt and Amazon partner to launch the Amazon Halo service, which 

gives users greater access to fitness programs offered through Hyatt’s 

wellness brand, Exhale’s, streaming video platform. 

Hyatt Hotels Corp. has launched a 

collaboration between its Exhale spa 

and fitness company, and Amazon 

Halo, Amazon’s new wearable band 

and wellness service. The Amazon Halo 

service is a membership platform that 

uses technology to provide personal 

wellness insights and ways to improve 

users’ everyday health. 

The service gives users and Exhale 

members greater access to fitness 

programs offered through Exhale’s 

streaming video platform, Exhale on 

Demand. It is powered by a mobile app 

and accompanying wristband. 

Hyatt acquired Exhale, which provides 

a full suite of award-winning boutique 

fitness classes and spa therapies, three 

years ago. There are currently 19 Exhale 

locations in the US and the Caribbean. 

“Exhale reinforces Hyatt’s commitment 

to wellbeing by providing meaningful 

wellness experiences that support total 

mind and body through boutique fitness 

classes, spa therapies and original 

Spa Executive | OCTOBER 2020 ISSUE - 4 -

streaming content,” Julia Sutton, COO of 

Exhale, said in a statement. 

“We are thrilled to team up with Amazon 

Halo and provide even more people with 

the opportunity to easily access fitnessand 

wellbeing-focused programs. Exhale 

On Demand allows people to maintain 

their wellbeing routines when they want, 

where they want, and the collaboration 

with Amazon Halo adds a new element 

of measurement to help people better 

understand personal health and 

wellbeing and create a more connected, 

informed approach to their everyday 

wellbeing routines.” 

The Amazon Halo app and band 

launched at the end of August with 

technology that combines a suite of 

AI-powered health features to provide 

actionable insights into overall wellness. 

Dr. Maulik Majmudar, Principal Medical 

Officer, Amazon Halo, said in a statement, 

“Despite the rise in digital health services 

and devices over the last decade, 

we have not seen a corresponding 

improvement in population health in 

the U.S. We are using Amazon’s deep 

expertise in artificial intelligence and 

machine learning to offer customers a 

new way to discover, adopt, and maintain 

personalized wellness habits. 

“Health is much more than just the 

number of steps you take in a day or 

how many hours you sleep. Amazon 

Halo combines the latest medical 

science, highly accurate data via the 

Halo Band sensors, and cutting-edge 

artificial intelligence to offer a more 

comprehensive approach to improving 

your health and wellness.” 

Amazon Halo service offerings with 

Exhale on Demand are one-to-four-week 

programs that include: 

• Event Prep Bootcamp: A fourweek 

program that combines 

strengthening, stretching and 

sweating to help get users into shape. 

• Target Your Midsection: A threeweek 

program to help focus on the 

core and trim the waistline with sixpack-focused 

workouts. 

• Intermediate Barre: A three-week 

commitment to complete four Exhale 

Barre workouts per week. 

• No Props, No Problem: Stay fit on 

the go with bodyweight-only workouts 

ranging from barre to yoga to cardio. 

• Upper Body Program: A three-week 

lab to build upper body strength with a 

variety of workouts that will challenge 

arms, back, shoulders and abs. 

• Beginner’s Guide to Barre: A fourweek 

introduction to all the benefits 

of barre with detailed instructions and 

step-by-step progressions. 

• Intermediate Yoga: A program to 

energize the body and take yoga 

practice to next level in three weeks. 


MANAGEMENT 

STUDY FINDS TRAVEL & 

HOSPITALITY EMPLOYEES 

FEEL UNDERVALUED. HERE’S 

HOW TO TURN THAT AROUND 

AND WHY YOU MUST 

A new report has found that travel and hospitality 

employees are the least likely out of all industries to 

feel valued at work. Can we turn this around? 

COVID-19 has hit travel and hospitality 

employees hard – possibly harder than 

those of any other industry. While there 

are many positives to working in this 

industry at this time, like working in an 

area full of passionate advocates and 

being at the forefront of tech wellness 

and innovation, there are clearly some 

issues to be worked out. Employee 

culture is one of them. 

Now, a new report from Qualtrics 

has found that travel and hospitality 

employees are the least likely out of all 

industries surveyed to feel valued at 

work. This is bad because it will cost 

hospitality companies, including hotels 

and spas, big. 

Qualtrics writes, “As closed borders and 

canceled conferences forced many across 

the globe to either stay home or scramble to 

get home, those in the Travel & Hospitality 

industry faced furloughs and layoffs.” 

It’s not just about layoffs 

and furloughs 

One might think that travel and hospitality 

employees feeling undervalued can be 

blamed entirely on layoffs and furloughs, 

but this isn’t the case. Only 42% of travel 

& hospitality employees who are still 

working full-time say they feel valued 

by their company. What gives? Some 

people have some work to do. Moreover: 


• 29% of travel & hospitality 

employees who are still working 

full-time say their employee 

experience has gotten worse 

since the pandemic — the 

highest of any industry, and 

the only industry where more 

workers said it got worse rather 

than better. 

• Travel & hospitality employees 

rated their company’s response 

to COVID-19 the lowest, along 

with automotive employees. 


employees say it’s been harder to 

feel connected to customers now 

compared to before the pandemic; 

24% say it’s been easier. 


employees say it’s been harder 

to deal with customers than 

before the pandemic; 25% say 

it’s been easier. 

This matters for a number of reasons, 

one of which is the cost of employee 

disengagement for your company. 

Research findings suggest that when 

employees feel undervalued they are 

significantly less engaged in their jobs, 

and the fallout costs of this can be huge. 

Unhappy employees may expect bigger 

salaries and, anecdotally, may increase 

costs by arriving late, leaving early, 

and taking advantage of out of office 

expenses. Poor employee engagement 

can also hurt talent recruitment and 

retention, customer acquisition and 

retention, productivity, and revenue. 

A disengaged workforce costs you at 

literally every level, some say an estimated 

$16,000 per employee per year. 

Strategies for increasing 

travel & hospitality 

employee engagement 

Qualtrics recommends the following 

strategies for improving the situation: 

Listen to and act on employee 

feedback. Travel & hospitality was the 

only industry where employees said their 

experience is worse since the pandemic. 

They were also least satisfied before 

the pandemic with the ways in which 

their managers listened to and acted on 

feedback. Qualtrics suggests conducting 

regular employee pulse checks to help 

identify experience gaps and determine 

the best course of action. 

Make employee experience a 

priority. Qualtrics found that people in 

most industries expect the pandemic to 

increase focus on employee experience 

more than anything else, but less than 

half of workers in travel & hospitality 

believe the same. They suggest building 

interactive tools for employees, especially 

frontline workers, to help them feel like 

part of the broader organization. 

Communicate the positive changes 

you make that are designed to improve 

employee experience with your employees 

– and hold your organization to them. 

Here are eight more strategies for 

increasing employee engagement at your 

spa, wellness, or hospitality business: 

Encourage ownership. Communicate 

company goals and involve everyone in 

achieving them. Be transparent and let 

your team in on how you’re doing and 

where you want to get to. People are 

more committed to the success of an 

organization when they feel they are an 

important part of it. 

Involve them in decision making. 

Consult everyone at your company on 

decisions related to it and encourage 

their input. Again, if they feel more 

involved they’ll feel more invested. 

Recognize and reward success. Too 

many employers only communicate with 

their teams when something is wrong. 

Give praise where it’s due – often and 

effusively – and be a cheerleader along 

the way. 

Get to know your team. Being friendly 

with employees and asking them about 

their lives and interests is one sure fire 

and very simple way of improving your 

relationship with them. 

Provide them with the tools they 

need to succeed. Effectively train and 

onboard new employees. They should 

never have to wonder what is expected 

of them and not know who to go to for 

answers. Make sure they have what they 

need at all times, be it available schedules, 

insight into commissions, products on 

hand, face masks, or clean towels. 

Have tools and strategies for 

difficult situations. Note that Qualtrics 

found that customers have become more 

difficult to deal with recently. Ensure 

that your employees aren’t dealing with 

this alone, and that they know you have 

their backs and are providing tools and 

guidelines for dealing with situations. 

Support career development and 

growth. Help your team members grow 

and reach their career goals. If you’re 

not in a position to promote internally, 

support growth anyway. An employee 

who moves on to move up will be easier 

to replace if they feel valued because 

they will be a promoter of your employer 

brand rather than a detractor from it. 

Don’t overdo it. Interaction between 

managers and team members is good 

but be mindful of people’s time as 

well. If all your team building exercises, 

trainings, and check-ins are piling on top 

of endless meetings, this will be resented 

rather than appreciated. People have 

lives and families on top of their jobs. 

Keep that in mind. 

It’s never too late to change the way we 

do things. We can improve this situation. 

It just takes time and effort. 


BUSINESS 

LIVE LOVE SPA CEO LISA 

MICHAELIS ON THE PRESENT 

AND FUTURE OF SPA INDUSTRY 

EVENTS 

Live Love Spa founder and CEO, Lisa Michaelis, talked with Spa Executive 

about recent changes in the industry and how events will change in the future. 

The event landscape in all industries, 

including spa & wellness, has 

undergone a massive shift in recent 

months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Gatherings of all sizes have moved 

onto digital platforms to allow people to 

connect while keeping our distance. 

We wanted to know what the spa and 

wellness event world might look like in 

the near and far future, so we connected 

with Lisa Michaelis. Michaelis is the 

CEO of Live Love Spa, a community for 

spa professionals to connect, discover 

and learn about new trends, products, 

experiences and emerging insights 

within the wellness space. She is 

known in the industry for her wonderful 

event hosting and community building. 

We asked her what Live Love Spa is 

doing to cope with the new challenges 

brought on in recent months, and what 

the coming years will bring. 

First let’s talk about what 

Live Love Spa does. 

I started Live Love Spa because it’s a 

way to connect people in this industry. 

Directors really need to experience all 

of the amazing wellness products and 

services out there in order to understand 

what they can in turn offer their customers. 

I wanted to create a whole experiential 


event instead of going to a traditional 

trade show where people could come 

into a spa and actually get into the 

shoes of the guests. They can try and 

experience treatments, talk to the 

brand on a more intimate level, and 

they actually became the guests for the 

day. That’s the core of what Live Love 

Spa regional events are. We connect 

spa buyers to the most innovative 

trendsetting products and treatments. 

Now that things are a little bit different, we 

can’t do experiences. But we’re all kind 

of in the same boat and we have to figure 

out how to be creative and still message, 

connect and create community. 

What does the event 

landscape look like in the 

foreseeable future? 

Obviously, in-person events have 

stopped almost completely. What’s 

good about this is it has made us 

push forward with new, innovative and 

creative ways to connect. I don’t think 

anything will take the place of an inperson 

event, especially in our type of 

industry where it’s all about connection 

and being with people, but I do think we 

have found some really amazing cost 

effective and creative solutions through 

virtual events. We’re really excited about 

those things, but we also can’t wait to 

see everybody again. 

Talk about some of the 

things you’ve got coming 

up and how you are 

making virtual events fun 

and exciting. 

Right now we have 11 new virtual events 

on the calendar, held by region. These 

last 90 minutes to two hours. We send 

out a care package in advance with all 

of the latest in trend-setting products to 

our spa partners. We do a fun wellness 

drink or a cocktail and a live unboxing 

together with a brand leading as 

everyone gets their product out of their 

box. We also give the spas some ideas 

on what they can do with their own 

virtual events, because they are also 

having to turn around and create unique 

ideas to keep in contact with their 

customers. We’ll have an energizing 

break and some type of a virtual activity. 

We’ve held a floral design class, and for 

another event we’ll have a spa night at 

home with a Halloween quiz. So, we 

have a lot of ideas! 

Our events are not only designed to get 

people connected, create community, 

and discover products, but also to help 

others find revenue generating ideas and 

ideas on how to maintain connection 

with their teams and customers. 

Have you found anything 

in the virtual events that 

is better than before and 

that you’ll try to take into 

the world in the future? 

It’s very cost effective to do something 

virtual. You’re not spending money on 

flights, hotels, or food and beverage. 

You’re saving a lot of money. That is 

great. The experience is not going to 

be the same but there are some big 

positives. Because of that, I definitely 

think virtual events are here to stay. I 

think it’s a great platform. 

What do you think this 

industry will look like 

in one year, two years, 

three years? 

I think it might take a year or two to get 

things back to the level that they were 

because people still think of spas as a 

luxury. But I think our spas will get a lot 

more savvy on staying connected with 

their community and making sure that 

their customer sees them as a valuable 

place to go. Not only to get their spa 

treatment, but for skincare products and 

wellness advice. I think that spas can 

really enhance their offerings and how 

the customer perceives them. 

A spa is not just a place to go get a wax. 

It’s a way to connect and communicate 

on how to live a better life and be 

healthier. So, I think it’s going to take a 

little time, but people will need wellness 

more than ever. 

What else are you 

excited about? 

I’m excited about digital connection in 

general. We started shoplivelovespa.com 

as essentially a discovery platform for 

buyers and spa professionals to learn 

more about brands. It’s like a trade show 

in the cloud. There’s a membership 

program, so people can discover items 

before reaching out to the brand for 

wholesale. It allows you to really see 

what’s out there and it’s digital and 

available 24 /7 from the comfort of your 

own home. I have a background in 

the computer industry and I’ve always 

thought this industry could be more 

connected all the time. We also have 

an app that allows people to contribute 

content and education. There are a lot 

of ways that our community can stay 

connected and together, and I am really 

excited about those things. 


GROWTH 

FEATURED PROPERTY: 

SHERATON BELITUNG RESORT 

The Sheraton Belitung Resort is a gorgeous new Marriott property in 

Indonesia, surrounded by stunning scenery and fascinating wildlife. 


Marriott recently opened the stunning 

Sheraton Belitung Resort in Indonesia. 

The 169-room hotel is located 

45 minutes away from H.A.S. 

Hanandjoeddin International Airport and 

a short drive away from the coast of 

Tanjung Kelayangsits. It is surrounded by 

more than 100 small islands in a place 

that is home to more than 1,000 different 

types of flora and fauna. This includes 

the Karamunting flower which only grows 

in Belitung, and the Tarsius, one of the 

world’s smallest primates, found only on 

some islands in Southeast Asia. 

Rooms at the Sheraton Belitung offer 

ocean, lagoon or garden views, and 

feature 55-inch LCD televisions, highspeed 

wireless internet, and motion 

sensors that automatically activate and 

deactivate the AC when guests enter or 

leave the room. 

“We are delighted to be opening the 

Sheraton Belitung Resort, which is the 

8th Sheraton branded hotel to open 

in Indonesia,” said Rajeev Menon, 

President, Asia Pacific (excluding 

China), Marriott International. “Sheraton 

is Marriott International’s most global 

brand, and this opening marks another 

exciting moment in the continued brand 

expansion across Asia Pacific. Belitung 

is one of Indonesia’s best kept secrets, 

and the arrival of Sheraton Belitung 

Resort will only enhance its appeal as a 

destination for couples and families alike 

to enjoy this paradise together.” 

The resort features three food and 

beverage outlets, 7,480 square feet of 

event space, a 24-hour fitness centre, a 

kid’s club with educational programming, 

an outdoor infinity pool, and a Shine Spa. 

Local ingredients for 

inspired treatments 

The spa features six treatment rooms 

and draws from local inspiration and 

wisdom, using products with local 

ingredients for treatments and services 

inspired by the surrounding land. These 

ingredients include: Daun Simpor 

(Dilleniasuffruticosa), Peppercorn 

seed (piper nigrum), and Calamansi 

(Citrofortunellamicrocarpa). A Calamansi 

Bath, which is a bathtub filled with the 

aroma and fresh slices of the Calamansi 

citrus fruit, soothes and revives guests. 

According to Spa Manager, Sih Rini 

Angernani, a wonderful treatment that 

holds local wisdom is the relaxing 

massage using the black peppercorn 

compress ball, as Belitung is a main 

producer of black pepper. 

Shine Spa is using Book4Time software 

and Sih Rini Angernani says that the 

system has been very helpful, “especially 

for the pre-opening team,” and that the 

support team has been quick to respond 

to questions while the spa team learns 

the ropes and gets accustomed. 

Indonesia’s hidden gem 

“We are thrilled to open the first five-star 

hotel in Belitung, and to welcome local 

and international travellers to discover 

Indonesia’s hidden gem with Sheraton 

Belitung Resort,” said Yvonne Wan, 

General Manager of the resort. “We 

look forward to creating memorable stay 

experiences for our guests that bring 

to life Sheraton’s signature hospitality 

initiatives, with a green conscience.” 


SPOTLIGHT 

GORDON TARETA OF MARCUS 

HOTELS & RESORTS ON 

LEADERSHIP & RETAIL IN THE 

NEW WORLD OF WELLNESS 

Spa Executive chats with Gordon Tareta of Marcus Hotels & Resorts about being a good 

leader and how spas can leverage retail sales to recoup lost revenue in tough times. 

Gordon Tareta is a hospitality industry 

veteran with an impressive history of 

experience managing spas for some of 

the biggest and best-known property 

names in the world. He has worked 

as a Spa Director for Banff Springs, 

Corporate Director of Spa Operations for 

Fairmont hotels, and Vice President of 

Spa Operations for Hyatt Hotels. 

Interestingly, in the middle of his 

hospitality career, he then took what 

looks like an about turn to become Vice 

President of Services for Petsmart and 

explore the world of retail sales, before 

returning to hospitality and opening his 

own consultancy company, Tareta Group 

International. Currently, he serves as 

Area Spa Director for Marcus Hotels & 

Resorts and is located at Grand Geneva 

Resort & Spa in Lake Geneva, WI, 

while also overseeing the Well Spa at 

Milwaukee's Pfister Hotel. 

With his level of industry experience and 

retail expertise, Gordon Tareta is the 

perfect leader to talk about how spas 

can leverage retail in the current climate. 


As many properties have been forced to 

scale back on occupancy, retail is one 

area through which to recapture some 

of that lost revenue. But many spa and 

wellness managers and directors don’t 

know how best to make the most of retail 

opportunities. We asked Mr. Tareta for 

some insight and advice on that, and 

about what it takes to be a good leader 

today, among other things. 

How have things been 

at Grand Geneva in the 

past few months, since 

the COVID lockdown? 

One of the biggest jobs is navigating the 

anxiety of our team members. I have 

about 85-100 staff here and this situation 

has taken a toll on everybody. We have 

been trying to help everyone cope, and 

doing regular pulse checks on how 

people are feeling, making sure they are 

comfortable and doing OK. 

At Grand Geneva we’re in a unique 

position, being in the country and a 

two-hour drive from Chicago and a 40- 

minute drive from Milwaukee. Nobody 

wants to fly right now, so there’s no 

shortage of demand for our services. 

Obviously, we have had to scale back 

our occupancy and implement safety 

protocols like social distancing and 

moving things around to facilitate this, 

but things are going very well. We have 

even seen improvements over last 

year, when there was no COVID. Our 

customer service scores were very high 

and are now even higher. There has 

been an increase in confidence in our 

engagement with our customers and our 

retail sales have been really strong since 

reopening. There was a pent-up demand 

for both our services and for retail. Not 

that we want to be navigating in the 

COVID world, but there are silver linings. 

Talk a bit about 

how you developed 

your knowledge and 

understanding of retail 

I went from being Vice President of Spas 

for Hyatt to becoming Vice President of 

Services for PetSmart. After 20 years 

in the industry, I was at a point where I 

wondered if the skills that I had acquired 

through hospitality and spa were 

applicable to anything else. And I’d always 

had a desire to try to learn retail because 

spas, generally, weren’t good at it. So, 

I immersed myself in that and had the 

opportunity to learn from the best of the 

best at a Fortune 500 Company. Then I 

took my department from a $500 million 

department to $650 million in 18 months. 

What advice can you 

give to other spa and 

wellness businesses that 

are struggling with retail? 

A good place to start is with looking at 

your brand and making sure that your 

retail is aligned with your brand concept. I 

often use a restaurant analogy: if you’re a 

steakhouse, sell steak knives on the retail 

side. Don’t sell chopsticks. 

Also, ask yourself why you are selling 

these products. Whatever product we 

sell or use has to earn its place in our 

business. Why this product? What’s 

the story around it? When our service 

providers understand and believe in our 

products, why it complements our brand 

vision and positioning, then they sell 

from the heart versus from the head and 

it’s much easier. I also look for brands 

that are unique and are not available 

everywhere. So that you have to buy it 

from us. Though we also carry Lululemon 

and that sells unbelievably well. 

You have to have a retail strategy. Some 

spa directors might be loyal to a rep, 

which is fine, but does the product really 

complement? And are you the only place 

selling it? There can be 10 spas in your 

area all using the same thing because 

of a really good sales rep. And, if it’s the 

best of the best, great, but I always look 

for something that you really have to 

purchase from us. 

Can you talk about how 

technology has been 

helpful to your business? 

We didn’t have online booking when 

I first got here. We brought it in two 

years ago with Book4Time. Cloudbased 

solutions are great for the 

industry, because we don’t have to 

invest tens of thousands, or in some 

cases, hundreds of thousands of 

dollars in servers and maintenance. 

So, cloud-based technology is really 

helpful. Also, our capture ratio of services 

is higher with online booking. The 

average ticket is about 45% higher. This 

is because of the ability to set the order 

of the menu. For example, in a way that 

shows premium services first, before 

smaller services that are really designed 

to complement or pair with other 

services rather than be purchased as a 

standalone. Our goal is to have about 

20% of our booking done online and we 

are at about 15%. 


SPOTLIGHT 

What are you excited 

about right now? 

I’m excited that the business has come 

back, at least for us, and to know that 

the demand is there. When we were all 

in lockdown and you didn’t know what 

the next day was going to bring, that was 

worrisome. So, to know that the demand 

is there is exciting. 

What skills or qualities 

would you say are most 

important at this time in 

history to be a leader in 

spa and wellness? 

Patience and care. We are in a very 

emotionally charged time. And, in this 

industry, we feed off of energy. So, you 

have to be patient. Everybody’s dealing 

with the many factors affecting them in 

different ways. Some people are just 

stressed out to the max with everything 

going on and there are things you can 

control and things you can’t. As a leader, 

you have to be patient. You have to listen 

and be understanding and thoughtful. 

You should also have your own outlet, you 

have to manage all of this with confidence 

and, to do that, you need people to talk 

to or activities to do to decompress. You 

have to take care of yourself. 


NEWS 

THE BEST DESTINATION SPAS 

IN THE WORLD, ACCORDING TO 

CN TRAVELER 

Condé Nast traveler readers choose the best hotels, resorts, 

cities and more – and the best destination spas in the world. 

Ananda in the Himalayas 

Condé Nast Traveller has announced the 

winners of its annual travel awards. The 

awards are among the most prestigious 

and influential in the hospitality world and 

are designed to highlight travelers’ favorite 

places around the globe. 

CN Traveler notes that its 33rd Readers’ 

Choice Awards represent the first time that 

voters chose their top destinations when 

almost no one was traveling. Addressing 

these travelers, the authors wrote: 

“So the names in this year’s edition are 

the ones that brought you comfort, that 

you still connected with long afterward, 

that got you through the months without 

travel. These are the enduring gems 

that can withstand the test of time and 

the vicissitudes of circumstances. So 

while it is always an honor to be on 

this list, in this strangest of years it is a 

special honor, indeed. Many readers 

have told us that when we emerge from 

this pandemic, they want to turn their 

attention to the classics, whether that 

means personal favorites or places they 

know have brought joy to others.” 

Hundreds of thousands of readers 

reportedly voted for their favorites which 

are divided into multiple categories. These 

include, but aren’t limited to, the best 

hotels and resorts in the world, the best 

airlines and the best islands, cities, and 

countries. There are lists of the best by 

location, like the US, Europe, Asia, Mexico 

and Canada 

Also featured are the Best Spa Resorts in 

the US and Around the World. The Ranch 

Malibu (California) tops that list, followed 

by Ananda in the Himalayas (India) and Six 

Senses Duoro Valley (Portugal). 

Condé Nast says, "'Wellness' may be 

a trendy buzzword—and a multi-trilliondollar 

industry—but at these soothing and 

invigorating retreats, some of the best spa 

resorts in the U.S. and around the world, 

it’s the real deal. “ 

The list of the Top 30 Best Spa Resorts in 

the US and Around the World is as follows: 

1. The Ranch Malibu — Malibu, California 

2. Ananda in the Himalayas — Uttarakhand, 

India 

3. Six Senses Douro Valley — Douro Valley, 

Portugal 

4. Ikbal Thermal Hotel & SPA — Afyonkarahisar, 

Turkey 

5. Cal-a-Vie — Vista, California 

6. Vana — Dehra Dun, India 

7. Lefay Resort & SPA Dolomiti — Pinzolo, Italy 

8. VIVAMAYR Altaussee — Altaussee, Austria 

9. Lefay Resort & Spa Lago di Garda — 

Lake Garda, Italy 

10. COMO Shambhala Estate — Bali, Indonesia 

11. Shou Sugi Ban House — Water Mill, New York 

12. SHA Wellness Clinic — Alicante, Spain 

13. BodyHoliday — Cariblue Beach, St. Lucia 

14. Bürgenstock Hotels & Resort Lake 

Lucerne — Bürgenstock, Switzerland 

15. Miraval Arizona Resort & Spa — Tucson, 

Arizona 

16. Lake Austin Spa Resort — Austin, Texas 

17. Andronis Concept Wellness Resort — 

Santorini, Greece 

18. Clinique La Prairie — Clarens-Montreux, 

Switzerland 

19. Vila Vita Parc — Alporchinhos, Portugal 

20. Euphoria Retreat — Mystras, Greece 

21. CIVANA Wellness Resort & Spa — 

Carefree, Arizona 

22. The Lodge at Woodloch — Hawley, 

Pennsylvania 

23. Schloss Elmau — Krün, Germany 

24. Bio-Hotel Stanglwirt — Going am Wilden 

Kaiser, Austria 

25. Aro Ha¯ Wellness Retreat — Glenorchy, New 

Zealand 

26. Villa Stéphanie — Baden-Baden, Germany 

27. Canyon Ranch Lenox — Lenox, 

Massachusetts 

28. Preidlhof Luxury DolceVita Resort — 

South Tyrol, Italy 

29. The Retreat Costa Rica — Atenas, Costa Rica 

30. Palace Hotel Merano — Merano, Italy 


BUSINESS 

5 MARKETING STRATEGIES 

FOR HOTEL & RESORT SPAS IN 

A COVID-19 WORLD 

It’s been a tough time for hospitality but we can get through it. Try these five 

marketing strategies for hotel and resort spas to thrive in the new world. 

refers to the database of names, email 

addresses, phone numbers, and other 

information you collect from customers 

(providing that you’re doing this right and 

not inputting a bogus generic phone 

number or email in your software in an 

attempt to save a couple of precious 

seconds when scheduling appointments 

or selling retail). Building a list of local 

customers is a core principle of success in 

any environment, but now with COVID and 

low hotel occupancy levels, it’s become 

absolutely critical. And, all other things 

being equal, the bigger your list, the more 

money your spa will make from each 

campaign you send out. 

Months into the pandemic, many hotel & 

resort spas are beginning to re-open their 

doors to the public. With estimates that a 

COVID-19 vaccine will not be available until 

January to June of next year according 

to an article in The Telegraph, and travel 

forecasts looking dire until then, it is now 

more important than ever for hotel & resort 

spas to adjust and adapt their approach in 

order to survive and thrive in the face of the 

pandemic. I’ve outlined some marketing 

strategies to help you pivot your business 

model and marketing below based on 

conversations that I’ve had recently. 

1. Staycations 

While many signs point to a quick rebound 

for travel in 2021 with people looking to 

make up for missed travel, hotel & resort 

spas need to contend with today’s clear 

and present danger – a lack of hotel 

guests – and look at creative ways to boost 

local business. One such solution is to 

develop a day pass or staycation offering. 

People are going stir crazy after months in 

lockdown and looking to find ways to get 

out of the house. A night or weekend at the 

Four Seasons, Fairmont, Waldorf Astoria or 

Ritz Carlton, complete with spa treatments, 

yoga classes and lounging by the pool, is 

the perfect remedy for the lockdown blues; 

it combines the convenience of staying 

in your own city with the glamour and 

excitement of a vacation. 

2. The Money is in the 

list and personalization 

You’ve probably come across the 

expression “The money is in the list.” This 

Now, maybe you’ve tried this but are 

getting poor response rates from your 

promotions. The key to boosting your 

response rate (the number of people 

who open your emails and take the 

action you want them to take – booking 

an appointment, buying a gift certificate 

or buying a retail product) is to develop 

a relationship with your customers. The 

easier you make it for them to know, like, 

and trust you, the more likely they will be 

to open your emails and click on your 

links. So how, exactly, do you develop 

a relationship with the people on your 

list? Get personal! When you write copy 

for an email, look for ways to inject your 

personality into the copy and incorporate 

your personal and client stories. Also try to 

segment the offers you send out based on 

past purchase history vs. sending a single 

generic message to your entire list. Your 


campaigns should contain a personalized 

“why you, why you right now” message. 

And remember, your emails don’t always 

need to be promotional in nature – make 

sure you mix in a number of value-added, 

nurture emails that don’t have a call to 

action that requires your customer to open 

up their wallet! If all of your emails contain 

offers, your customers will turn blind to 

them and tune them out. 

3. Local marketplace 

promotions for the win 

Don’t have an extensive local database to 

market to? Tight on marketing funds and 

need to see an instant return on every 

marketing dollar spent? Still experiencing 

downtime during off-peak times? Turning 

to Groupon or Travelzoo to capture local 

business is a great tactic. These local 

marketplaces have spent millions of dollars 

building local databases that can help you 

to bring in new guests and fill downtime 

on a moment’s notice when the spa is not 

as busy and give you a great opportunity 

to drive trial with new guests, “wow 

them” and drive repeat, regular business. 

Concerned about getting an influx of calls 

or creating lineups in the spa with voucher 

redemptions? We recently launched 

OpenBooker to help you curate specific 

availability (time, date, service, therapist, 

etc.) for these marketplace promotions 

to help facilitate voucher redemption and 

booking online, helping you to free up 

the front desk, automate bookings and 

avoid the unpleasant voucher redemption 

conversations….if you know what I mean! 

4. Reputation and 

referrals are everything 

standards. Spas should encourage positive 

reviews and get ahead of negative ones. 

This is achieved by sending out NPS 

(Net Promoter Score) guest surveys after 

appointments. If a customer is a promoter 

and rates your service a nine or a 10, they 

should be encouraged to write a review. 

If they are a detractor, immediate steps 

should be taken to intercede and fix the 

situation BEFORE they blast you and 

your spa and leave a negative review on 

Google, Yelp or TripAdvisor. This is crucial. 

Research has consistently found that 

reviews matter a great deal. Some findings: 

• Consumers are willing to spend 

31% more on a business with 

excellent reviews. They are just 

looking for evidence that it’s worth 

spending an extra $75-100 for a 

massage at your establishment 

vs. the local day spa. 

• 92% of buyers are more likely to 

purchase after reading a trusted 

review 

• 94% say an online review has 

convinced them to avoid a 

business. 

• Only 13% of consumers will 

consider using a business that 

has a 1 or 2 star rating. 

We also trust our friends to tell us about 

their experiences and will take their 

recommendations. If you have found 

yourself a new promoter, also encourage 

that person to refer or bring a friend by 

offering them a discount or promotion on a 

product or return visit. 

5. Ecommerce and 

subscription boxes 

lock down the economy, that shift became 

a sudden wave, accelerating the trend to 

where they thought it would be five years 

from now. Spas can take advantage of 

this trend by setting up their own online 

storefront and by leveraging data to run 

targeted, personalized campaigns – 

Amazon’s recommendation engine simply 

cannot compete with the guest preference 

and purchase data that is housed within 

your spa software! 

In addition, subscription boxes are literally 

piling up at doorsteps as consumers 

increasingly shop from home. Just about 

every day, I see two or three meal kit boxes 

sitting at the concierge desk in my condo 

building. Over the past four months, many 

U.S. consumers turned toward the directto-consumer 

subscription box market for 

the first time, with one in five people buying 

subscription boxes during this time period 

to have products available to them during 

the pandemic. Retail sales often make up 

for 10-15% of a spa’s total revenue but 

can represent an outsized 20-25% of the 

profit – why not incorporate a retail product 

element to your membership offerings or 

create your own themed subscription box? 

Try these strategies to help you survive and 

thrive, and you’ll be way ahead of the game. 

Reviews and word of mouth play a big 

role in new and local customer acquisition. 

The first place a customer will look when 

shopping for a spa is at reviews. Probably 

now more than ever, because people are 

concerned with cleanliness and safety 

Both Amazon and Shopify have been 

aggressively building businesses that have 

aimed to take advantage of the steady shift 

in consumers’ buying habits from brick 

and mortar to e-commerce stores. When 

the coronavirus forced governments to 

By Sean Anderson, 

- 17 - VP of Global Sales Spa Executive at Book4Time | OCTOBER 2020 ISSUE

BOOK ONLINE, 

PAY ONLINE, 

SKIP THE LINE 

Enjoy the contactless experience 

with Book4Time. 

Spa Executive

Spa Executive | October 2020

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