Carrer Opportunities in Health Spa and Resort Management

 

A Wellness concerned person should have

• Professional Attitude
• Calm under Pressure
• Personal Hygiene/Grooming
• Warm & Open Personality
• Time Management
• Desire to serve.

Career Opportunities

Individuals with specialized training and education in Health, Spa & Resort Management can expect a variety of career options and levels of leadership available to them in the industry, either directly working in a spa or working for an industry vendor or support service company.

 

• Assistant Team Leader
• Assistant Spa Manager
• Spa Coordinator
• Spa Software Trainer
• Spa Director
• Assistant General Manager
• Spa Manager
• Fitness manager
• Yoga Instructor
• Resort Manager
• Resort Supervisor
• Hotel or Resort operations director
• Event Planner
• Housekeeping manager

According to FICCI reports, Wellness services in India are projected to generate more than three million jobs by 2015. And definitely will have bright future ahead as wellness industry in growing in every sector whether its education, health, spa, hospitality etc.

FROM SPA TO SUCCESS

The Indian market of spa and wellness is witnessing great transformation in terms of locations also. Preferably, the spa owners have started penetrating into tier-II and III cities as these markets provide similar potential as their counterparts in the metros. Not only this, the spa and wellness centers are also exploring new venues for rejuvenation like malls, airports and hotels in different formats and models. These may vary from 15 to 30 minutes foot massage express spa to aday spa, or from medi spa to ayurvedicpanchkarma center, preferably suiting upon the customers.

According to recent FICCI PwC study, the wellness market in India is about Rs 490 billion and wellness services account for 40 per cent of this market. Spas, alternative therapies, ayurveda treatments and beauty services are expected to grow by 30 per cent. Despite the current economic slowdown which has impacted several sectors, the Indian wellness services market is expected to remain optimistic and has the potential to sustain its annual growth.

Challenges to overcome

The beauty salon and spa industry like any other industry faces certain challenges. Some of these challenges that are plaguing growth potential are lack of skilled manpower, unorganised training institutes, increased operational costs, etc.

Talking about the challenges in the wellness industry, RajanBawa, MD, Spa Treat says: “As far as our manpower is concerned we have sub divided it into the following categories. hair stylists, beauticians and body spa therapists. We provide one celebrity hair stylist to each of our franchisees. For beauticians, we provide in house training in Bhopal and our body spa therapists are further classified into three sub categories that we provide to all our franchisees.”

Apart from these, Spa Treat also faced challenge of initial funding, for which some financial institutions came forward in good measure and gave wings to the dreams of the brand.

 

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MOVING THE INDUSTRY FORWARD

This section outlines a number of industry-level initiatives that could be pursued by the

Global Spa Summit, regional industry associations, and other industry organizations inorder to launch spas toward the forefront of the wellness movement.

 

1. Develop a harmonized understanding of wellness terminology and concepts in relationto the industry

Although it is not necessary for all spa stakeholders to define wellness in exactly the same way, it would help reduce consumer confusion if, at the industry level, spas started thinking about and talking about wellness in a more coherent and harmonized manner. We recommend a few core principles:

• We recommend embracing the idea of wellness as being multi-dimensional and holistic, incorporating dimensions of physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, social, and environmental wellness. This interpretation resonates with both the traditional and modern intellectual thinking regarding wellness; provides flexibility to various segments of the spa industry to pursue ventures under the wellness banner; and supports regional variations and interpretations.
• We recommend embracing the concept of the illness-wellness continuum, developed by wellness pioneer Dr. John W. Travis. This model has been used as a framing concept for the wellness industry in this report, and it can be an effective tool in helping people ―get‖ wellness. It also allows individual spa entrepreneurs to map their customers and their product and service offerings along the continuum. One spa might decide to target healthy core wellness users, while another might find a niche in providing healing services to breast cancer survivors. Each customer is at a very different place on the spectrum, but the goal of any wellness provider will be to move that client to the right, to the highest level of wellness that customer can achieve.

2. Promote and support ongoing conversations on wellness in the spa industry, as well as with other wellness sectors

 

Wellness opportunities are growing rapidly and will continue to change as they are shaped by societal and economic forces.

• The GSS or other regional/international industry associations could sponsor ongoing wellness symposiums for the spa industry – even perhaps forming a ―global wellness institute – which might include periodic seminars, working groups, or education courses to facilitate conversation and learning about the various facets of wellness, as well as how different spas (or businesses in other wellness sectors) are interpreting the concept and bringing it to life.
• Another valuable area of ongoing debate will be opportunities for the spa industry to collaborate with the beauty and anti-aging industry around wellness. In our interviews, we found wide disagreement about which elements of beauty and anti-aging should be considered as ―wellness. Perhaps efforts could focus on the areas where all can agree. All else equal, a ―well person is more beautiful, and effectively younger. Regardless of whether cosmetic dermatology products and services, or cosmetic surgery, fall under the ―wellness banner, they will be more effective and longer-lasting if the consumer is practicing other wellness lifestyle behaviors. Eating well and exercising will enhance the effects of liposuction. Adequate hydration and sunscreen use will prolong the effects of anti-aging skin treatments.
• Yet another opportunity is to facilitate dialogue with the conventional medical industry by inviting medical doctors to experience spa facilities and programs, with the goal of introducing them to the idea of how these kinds of establishments can support consumers in making the lifestyle changes that doctors often recommend.

3. Build a body of evidence-based consumer research that connects spa to wellness

There is a dearth of research on consumer segments, interests, and preferences for purchasing wellness-related offerings, and much of the research that does exist tends to focus only on the United States. In-depth consumer and marketing research – such as consumer surveys, focus groups, and so on – can be expensive and difficult for all but very large spa businesses to pursue. A critical mass of public sentiment and customer testimonials stating that an approach or treatment ―works– or makes consumers feel better, feel younger, or look better – can send a powerful message for potential new wellness consumers, especially if partnered with scientific studies Consumer research could be sponsored by regional/country industry associations, focusing on wellness consumers within specific markets and regions, and would be of benefit to many spa stakeholders, both within the region and beyond.

4. Facilitate and publicize evidence-based/scientific research on wellness approaches

Research in the conventional, Western medical and bioscience community follows wellestablishedprotocols and procedures, focused around what is known as the ―scientificmethod. For the conventional medical community to widely accept, recommend, andprescribe spa-based treatments, they will need to ―see the data delivered byrigorously designed clinical trials, and then see the data duplicated in additional, similar trials. With the medical community on board, employers, insurers, and publichealth officials are likely to follow suit, which will offer spas increased access toinsurance reimbursement and wellness programs funded by employersandgovernments. Recognition by any and all of these opinion-leaders, in turn, has apositive influence on consumers.

 

5. Support new industry research to raise awareness of and attract investment inwellness opportunities

Additional research is needed at the industry level to help spa business owners,investors, and others understand and pursue wellness industry opportunities. It can alsohelp the spa industry tap into larger pools of investment dollars, tap into governmentand public sector programs and funding, and become more confident in takingadvantage of wellness trends.Industry research areas that could be supported or facilitated by an organization likeGSS include the following:

• Establish better benchmarks and metrics to report and track the financial performance of spa (and other wellness-related sectors and businesses like yoga, CAM, and so on). It continues to be difficult to attract institutional investors to wellness-related sectors because of the lack of data, the difficulties in establishing standardized performance indicators, and the resulting challenges indemonstrating what the opportunities are. Establishing better metrics for spa and other wellness sectors would facilitate higherlevels of investment and attention,leading to increased consolidation and specialization in the wellness industry.

Sponsor the development of Harvard-style case studies that explore examples of successful approaches and business models for developing, marketing, and selling wellness offerings through spas. This kind of research could raise awareness among spa business owners and investors about how the spa industry is already tapping into wellness trends, what kinds of financial returns or other results are being achieved, and also encourage creativity in exploring new wellness-oriented business models for the spa industry. Such case studies could also be employed as educational tools within spa management and hospitality management educational programs.

6. Connect with wellness-related public sector organizations to leverage their resources

Several key sectors within the wellness cluster – including tourism as well as segments related to health and medicine – are actively promoted and managed by public sector agencies at the regional and national level. The spa industry has not traditionally had close connections with the public sector, and it often suffers from a lack of recognition by the public sector as an industry that provides valuable jobs and services. The spa industry would be well served by seeking to forge a closer connection and dialogue with government agencies that are overseeing key wellness segments.

7. Teach spa therapists to understand and promote wellness

Spas that seek to develop more holistic and wellness-oriented service offerings fortheir customers will most likely require a stepped-up level of education and awarenesson the part of their spa therapists. Essentially, spa therapists will need to learn to ―talkthe talk – that is, they must understand the deeper principles and broader context ofwellness beyond the spa industry, as well as how spa fits within wellness-enhancingapproaches, and then be able to communicate these ideas to their clients. The GSSand other industry organizations could work with major spa therapist training schoolsto provide guidance on new curriculum that would address wellness concepts andteach spa therapists how to educate their customers in holistic wellness principles andbehaviors.

8. Educate spa management on wellness concepts and business savvy

According to many spa stakeholders, one reason the spa industry has not yet actively pursued wellness market opportunities is that spa management, business owners, and investors are not necessarily well-attuned to wellness trends and/or do not yet have the business savvy to grow their business into these kinds of opportunities. Since spa is still a relatively new industry, it has not yet reached the level of managerial/entrepreneurial professionalization that exists in other, more mature industries (such as the hotel/hospitality sector), and many spa managers come from atherapeutic background and not a business background. Industry leaders, workingthrough GSS or other channels, could work more closely with the handful of spamanagement training programs/universities that exist to help shape the curriculum toreflect future market needs – for example, incorporating a ―wellness theorycomponent into the coursework; providing additional education on trends andoperational approaches in other wellness-related sectors (e.g., fitness, medicine,corporate wellness, etc.); and providing more extensive coursework on businessdevelopment, promotion, and marketing.

 

 

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