Editor's letter: why sharing our expertise helps the sector as a whole

If current global politics is anything to go by, the world is done with experts. In the run-up to this summer’s Brexit referendum, UK voters were told by the then justice secretary Michael Gove that “people in this country have had enough of experts”. And the rise of Trump in the US appears to be, among other things, a reaction against a political establishment perceived as viewing itself as superior and knowing better than everyone else. In this industry, however, we happily still seem to quite like our experts.

Not because they’re infinitely greater than the rest of us, but because they have knowledge and experience that could provide useful tips and examples for others following a similar path. And because sharing that expertise could be helfpful not only for individual businesses but for the sector as a whole. That’s certainly the idea behind the World Spa & Wellness Convention, which returns on February 26-27 next year.

The convention will see top industry names come together in London for two days of keynote presentations, panel debates and roundtable discussions on a breadth of issues affecting the industry. Topics will range from how to manage the stress levels of your team and the best way to incorporate fitness into your business, to leading your industry and establishing a great relationship with your hotel general manager or owner. For the full programme, see page 29.

Experiences and ideas we can learn from and that can help propel the industry forward is also the concept behind the Global Wellness Summit, held for the 10th year in Austria last month. The summit, which covered everything from wellness communities and architecture to mental wellbeing and the economics of happiness, also revealed the latest statistics for the global wellness industry. For more on this, see our news story on page 11.

Other content in this issue includes our feature on cultural differences when it comes to what spa-goers want and expect from the thermal area, on page34.

Editor – Nora Elias. 

You can read the November/December 2016 issue of Professional Spa & Wellness here.