Ms. Bulls Dixon

Spas, Health & Fitness

Spa Trend Predictions for 2006

By Gayle Bulls Dixon, Owner/Founder, Breathe Spa Management Company

We still see a great deal of confusion from hotel owner/operators that view the spa as simply one of the amenities, such as restaurant, pool or fitness center. However, when you look at the leaders in the hotel industry, such as W, who bought the Bliss Spa Company and brand, you see that they are embracing the real benefit that the right spa brings to a property.

Spa companies that are just beginning to create a brand are behind the curve. In order to be strong enough to meet the market demand that is present today, the spa brand company that will be successful should be experiencing the changes of a 3-year or older company. Anyone newer will be struggling with the solidification of the operational model that will insure profitability for the owner while managing the brand development and growth that the marketplace will be demanding.

Many spa owners will want to look for a spa brand company as their operational expert to support the ever increasing needs associated with the challenges of remaining competitive in this new environment. Look for a consolidation of spa brands in order to establish standards that consumers trust as they make their choices of spa locations. With the support of a brand company, an owner is also supported with marketing, collateral, treatment design, staff hiring/training, and efficiency of budgets while purchasing required products, etc., all expensive and critical components of having a successful, profitable spa.

What awaits the ever-more-savvy spa connoisseur in 2006 and beyond?

The number of spas in the U.S. has topped 12,000, with spas offering a dizzying variety of services that address everything from weight loss to stress relief to skin revitalization and more. Looking ahead, we believe that spas will become more focused - rather than offering a little bit of everything, spa operators are going to specialize and become expert at the services they offer, whether it's Ayurveda or male specific treatments or whatever. With the number of spas only continuing to grow, spas are going to specialize and consolidate in order to survive.

And diversify they will! Watch for these very interesting developments in the year(s) ahead.

Medical Spas.
With less time available to them, people are seeking out spas that can blend traditional medical expertise - such as executive physicals, cosmetic treatments, dentistry and dermatology - with spa luxury at one location. According to the International Spa Association, the medical-spa niche grew by 109 percent between 2002 and 2004, faster than any other segment of the U.S. spa industry. The organization says that 471 U.S. spas currently offer medical treatments - from Botox injections to medical diagnosis and treatment by staff physicians.

Our plan for Breathe Spa is to add several such spas in the next few years, offering beauty-driven treatments like Botox, restylene, and chemical peels. In order to accomplish this, we have added a medical doctor and nurse aesthetician to our corporate staff in order to be qualified to provide these treatments. We're balancing and soothing within while beautifying the surface.

Niche Markets: Man Spas and more.
Men now account for a third of all spa-goers in the U.S., which is translating into a wealth of endeavors for marketing spa services exclusively for men. Look for men-only spas, or for traditional spas to begin catering more aggressively to men with more than "men's facials," adding amenities like gyms and weight rooms, boxing robes, bars, cigar rooms and barber services.

A growing number of spas are targeting another hot market: teenagers. In addition to the manicures, pedicures and hair treatments typically sought out by teens, spa operators are custom tailoring spa services that emphasize maintaining the health of the skin, body, and self-image. Plus their discretionary income makes them extremely appealing to spa operators. Some resorts offer spa camps for kids starting as young as five, and spa sleepover parties, and mother/daughter and father/son spa packages.

Exotic treatments and practices.
Many spas offer yoga, tai chi, shiatsu, Thai massage and other Asian disciplines that incorporate meditation, relaxation, breathing and exercise. A number of spas are going even further, offering more exotic Asian treatments and also introducing options that have roots in Native American culture. For instance, the Lake Austin Spa Resort in Austin, Texas, offers a "Manaka tapping treatment," where pressure points are gently tapped with a wooden hammer and peg. The spa at Miraval in Catalina, Ariz., offers a "Restore your heart" treatment which includes a stone massage, comprised of heated black basalt stones and cool white marble stones applied to the body; and a "smudging ceremony, in which dried herbs like sage and sweetgrass are burned and disseminated throughout the room with a feather. And, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts have opened a boutique spa called Sasura, which includes a "sasura ritual," a Japanese-inspired process of renewal complete with a gong, the scent of lotus blossoms and a green tree wrap.

Retirement Spas.
Will spa facilities replace golf course communities as the next sought-after retirement address in days to come? Up-and-coming residential properties in the country's most affluent areas are creating premier spas as part of healthy living activities such as golf, tennis, hiking, biking, fitness rooms and classes, healthy cuisine and more. With people living longer and active well into their later years, spas offering therapeutic services, age-diminishing treatments, wellness programs and general fitness programs will be well-received.

Cleansers & Creams made from local ingredients,
Watch for spas to develop their own skincare products that incorporate the naturally hydrating, restorative, exfoliating or detoxifying properties of local plants, fruits and other elements of the landscape, like blueberries, cucumbers, ground sea shells or peach pits, dried desert sage, natural sea salt. For Breathe Spas, we have also hired a product expert who is leading a full redesign of services based on the products that are leading the industry.

Spa Cuisine.
Led by the recent launch of Nestl'e's new Spa Cuisine line of frozen foods, consumers will be able to prepare spa-inspired fare in their homes and workplaces. A proliferation of spa cuisine cookbooks and classes gives the devoted all the help they need to create the kinds of zesty, healthful, balanced foods they would find at their favorite spas. From Breathe Spa, look for cooking classes and a grouping of spa cookbooks to be made available in the first half of 2006.

Spa Design Comes Home
As spa-goers become more and more dedicated to and convinced of the many benefits of spa treatments, we will see many people furnishing their homes to replicate the soothing spa environment, with spaces dedicated for fitness, meditation and massage. Of course you would expect to see spa-like transformations in the bathroom, with the addition of hydro-therapeutic showers, Jacuzzi tubs and mosaic tiling. But the use of subdued lighting, flowing water and ambient noise all combine to recreate the subdued and soothing spa atmosphere - which is becoming increasingly appealing to retirement-aged baby boomers focused on healthy living. Spa facilities will replace golf courses as the must-have luxury real estate amenity in the days to come.

As a former Fortune 100 executive, leadership consultant and entrepreneur, Gayle Bulls Dixon’s business acumen and wellness philosophy find an uncommon melding in the Breathe Spa concept, which she created in 2002. Already a partner in Dixon Entities, which owns and manages real estate investments including the Daufuskie Island Resort & Breathe Spa off the coast of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, Ms. Dixon was perplexed to find a lack of qualified spa management companies that satisfied her requirements for service, partnership, vision and profitability. Ms. Bulls Dixon can be contacted at 415-789-5224 or gayledixon@dixonentities.com Extended Bio...

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