Editor's comment: making wellness accessible

As consumer demand for wellness continues to grow, beauty and spa businesses of all sizes are finding new ways to carve themselves a niche; drawing on their specific skills and, just as importantly, understanding their limitations to create their own version of wellness.

As Nuffield Health begins its planned expansion into the beauty salon market (see our news story in the November issue), its model involves keeping its beauty, medicine and fitness departments very separate, cross-referring between each but ensuring each has a straightforward offer run by specialists, rather than linking them to promote wellness packages.

Meanwhile, Bannatyne, another major player in the health club market, is investing heavily in nutrition, treatment and relaxation rooms, and gentler exercise options in a bid to tie all areas of the business together, boosting membership retention and allowing the group to promote wellness-focused spa days.

While these versions of wellbeing may be unattainable for smaller, single-site operators, new, more accessible ways for therapists to offer a 360-degree approach to beauty are emerging. Initiatives such as Comfort Zone’s Tranquility Pro-Sleep Massage, which can help clients suffering with stress or insomnia, and Murad’s Method Facial, which encourages therapists to offer motivational tips and recipe suggestions that match clients’ skin concerns, are making wellness accessible to salons.

Nutrition supplements are a growth market and represent a great way for salons to tap into client demand for health-focused treatments, especially when there is an obvious link between a particular ingredient and a specific skin health issue. Our feature in November issue explores that correlation, bringing you an in-depth guide to the ingredients that can improve the condition of acne, eczema, fine lines and damaged nails from the inside out. Whatever your version of wellness looks like, a joined-up approach to health and beauty makes business sense.