Wellness tourism has been identified as one of the fastest growing travel segments. A research report conducted by SRI Inter-national for the Global Wellness Summit (GWS) recently found that it already represents a US$808 billion market.
Consciously and unconsciously, wellness is becoming more significant in our day-to- day lives, in the ways we work, eat, sleep and socialise. As the spa industry evolves, so does the positioning of what we can offer our hotel guests and associates alike. Many brands are evolving their spa divisions into wellness divisions with a focus on wellbeing.
Two years ago, Rosewood Hotels & Resorts’ spa division was revamped, under the leadership of Niamh O’Connell, as a wellness division designed to enhance the guest experience while increasing the percentage that the spas in the portfolio could add to the bottom line.
Part of that evolution consisted of creating a separate wellness offering called Asaya and a rebranding of the existing wellbeing offering called Sense, a Rosewood Spa.
At Asaya at Rosewood Phuket, guests can work with onsite practitioners to create customisable wellness retreats, ranging in length up to 14 days. These programmes promote mindful eating, healthy sleep, inner peace, energy and balance while incorporating meditation and yoga.
Interestingly, part of the success with this launch was ensuring that the hotel staff members were immersed in the concept. So, the entire property participated in the spa’s soft opening, experiencing and receiving treatments as though they were guests themselves.
Staff wellbeing
Wellness should be an emphasis not just for our guests, but also our associates. A more recent evolution at Rosewood is an enhanced focus on Associate Wellness.
According to a joint Harvard Medical and Business School Study, factoring in savings on healthcare costs and absenteeism costs, for every $1 spent on employee wellness, a company will save more than $5.