with
Sybil Hofmann
President
Alpine Center
the Swiss Business School for Hotel & Tourism Management Education
Alpine, decided, with the help of Spa specialists, to design and launch a Spa Management course to prepare the future managers of the spa industry.
1) What current market needs does this new specialization in Spa Manager address? According to what criteria did you decide to launch this spa management course?
The health
and wellness industry is the fastest growing segment of the hospitality and
leisure industry both in Greece
and globally. For years, spas were seen
as havens for the rich, places where privileged people could be soothed and
pampered. Today, however, thanks in part
to the economic boom of the 90’s and the growing trend among many people to
indulge themselves, spas have become increasingly popular and profitable. Revenues generated from this industry are
very substantial with high profit margins.
With
this blooming sector, the demand for qualified staff to manage spa’s has also
increased. A Spa Manager needs to be a highly effective business manager and
must be able to compete in an intensely competitive industry that is constantly
changing.
Spas’
are today an integrated concept of various hospitality industries. They can be
found in every new 4 and 5 stars hotels. They are also being incorporated in
existing establishments in order not to lose market share or competitiveness,
especially when consumers are very spa savvy and difficultly ‘fooled’
In the
last two years, Alpine Center has received many requests from hotel managers or
owners looking for specialized spa managers, strengthening even more the
importance of integrating spas to their core businesses in order to remain
profitable and competitive.
It
was therefore not surprising that Alpine, decided, with the help of Spa
specialists, to design and launch a Spa Management course to prepare the future
managers of the spa industry.
Although
this course does not at the moment endeavor to develop technical skills, such
as spa treatments and spa cuisine, it will however emphasize business knowledge
and skills introducing students to the different treatments and services
offered at a spa; it will include visits to 5* spas and industry experts as
guest lecturers. Furthermore, students will have to complete a 20 weeks
industry placement in a reputable spa in order to apply the theory learned.
Successful spa management requires good business and administrative skills combined with customer service skills.
2) What new
trends can be identified in the global market and how can they be addressed
through education?
To
start with, it is important to identify the different types of spas representing
distinct sectors such as the resort spa, destination spa, day spa, hotel spa
with full service spa including fittness, thalassotherapy, cruise ship spa,
medical spas, health farm, etc. It is important to create a transparent
categorization system for spas in order to convey and market them to the
consumer.
A
recent trend is the resort-based
“hybrid” concept which helps a spa
to maximize its economic potential by offering different services to different
customers. For example it is a resort
spa for the conference guest who may only have time for an ala carte treatment,
yet it also appeals to the leirsure guest who wants to enjoy an ala carte
treatment, a half day spa package or a multi-day themed spa get-away. The local community can use it as a “day spa”
that provides everything from an hour to a full day “spa vacation”
experience. The spa can be a
membership-based “club spa” for the local community. This way you have more options to market the
spa and be more profitable.
In
the US
spas are becoming part of up-scale residential communities so that people can
“live the spa life” and increase their lifestyle balance, productivity and
creativity. More and more people want
to live and work in communities with spa and lifestyle programs that enhance
their quality of life with fitness and wellness activities and health
enrichment programs. The spa will be a
new type of social and business center or club where people can network and at
the same time take care of themselves. Spas will be the new centers for
personal enrichment offering life-enriching seminars and programs that focus on
activities such as wine tasting, art, music, cooking, pain management, healthy
aging
A future
trend is to make spas more affordable and accessible so that people will take
spa treatments on a regular basis rather than just on a special occasion
basis. This will see an increase in spa
utilization and therefore more profits.
A lot of people have never been in a spa for anxiety of the
unknown. If spas expect to grow their
business, they need to think about how to attract the non-spa-goer by
overcoming various barriers to entry.
It is
important to create spa experiences that will touch people physically,
socially, emotionally, intellectually and spiritually. Staff will need to be trained to be
“experience makers” and they need to be
taught and empowered to customize and personalize the spa treatments based on
the person’s needs, interests, time and budget so that they create an
experience that makes guests return for more.
An
emerging trend is creating a spa brand.
This is becoming increasingly important as spa users will base their
decisions on the strength and reputation of the brand. It will be critical that consistency becomes
the defining factor.
Another
growing market is the medical spa which integrates spa services with
conventional and complimentary therapies and treatments. Dermatologies and plastic surgeons have
been jumping on the bandwagon offering higher level spa services and care.
Finally,
spas goers are concerned about taking care of themselves and the
environment. They appreciate it when the
spa has green policies regarding organic products, cleaning agents, utilities, etc.
Current
spa operators here in Greece
view spas as a support service rather than a proper business entity and many do
not employ a full-time manager.
Therefore many spas are underperforming because of the lack of good
management practice and commercial knowledge.
Many spa owners are former therapists who may be good at giving a good
massage but do not have business sense.
Therefore, as mentioned before, spas need to employ managers who are
business savvy with an excellent knowledge of spa products and services. The need for a standard approach to
qualifications at all levels is becoming more important. Therapists need to be highly qualified in the
various treatments and in retail sales as they should recommend products and
increase profitability.
Successful spa management
requires good business and administrative skills combined with customer service
skills. Spa managers are responsible for keeping the spa operational, much like
hotel or resort managers. They train and manage employees, keep inventory,
order supplies, create work schedules, resolve customer service issues, handle
some accounting and manage the marketing and advertising of the spa.
Thus, spa managers should receive an education comparable to hotel
management including operations, business and accounting courses.
It takes special people to work in spas, those who enjoy and believe in the future of the wellness industry, who possess excellent customer service skills and those who care about providing exceptional experiences to spa goers. These are the men and women who will make outstanding spa managers.
2)
Until now, what interest has been shown in the new
course?
We were pleased to receive a
number of enquiries from current spa employees wishing to upgrade their
positions and enrich their knowledge. We
also received commendations from companies that sell products to the spa
industry, mentioning that from their experience they know there is lack of
management expertise in many spas. A few
of our current students have also expressed an interest in following this
course. It takes special people to work
in spas, those who enjoy and believe in the future of the wellness industry,
who possess excellent customer service skills and those who care about
providing exceptional experiences to spa goers.
These are the men and women who will make outstanding spa managers.
The future belongs to spas that make a point of remaining aware of consumer behaviour and preferences and marketing their services accordingly.
3)
What do you believe are the
prospects in the future?
According to a recent Spa
Industry research study, spas will continue to be a thriving business sector. Given the increasing perception that spa
services contribute to overall health and the fact that stress seems to be
dominating most people’s lives now-a-days, this is hardly surprising. The future belongs to spas that make a point
of remaining aware of consumer behaviour and preferences and marketing their
services accordingly.
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