This collection of posts on Vision Spa Retreat - beginning with the latest inspired by recent developments in spa and beyond in late 2011, and followed by a seven more from 2008 and 2009 - looks at effects of the current global economic and environmental crises and reflects on how this relates to spa.
Will spa take root in an ecological economy? (October 2011)
Vision Spa Retreat supports the missions of Green Spa Network in committing to making a difference to the planet, Slow Money in leading us into an era of nurture capital, SLOW LIFE in promoting sustainable tourism, and NaturalLogic in translating this into sustainable business models. May the seeds of more spa-retreat venues that subscribe to these ideas begin to germinate, grow and flourish.
Green marketing: 'Aspiring to a dream' after 'Deflating a myth' (November 2008)
I've been learning a lot about 'green marketing' recently and what that means from the varying points of view of consumers, companies, marketing professionals, and those in the business of providing information resources to niche groups. My particular interest is in how this relates to the spa world but it runs deeper. Here, I want to explore what supports the need to go green, why I'd like to see it become a primary consideration rather than a 'selling point', and what it might take for green to be taken for granted as a sustaining and sustainable way of making a living and doing business.
Economic blues: asking deeper questions (December 2008)
This week's Splash e-newsletter for the aquatics industry addressed the topic of 'Attracting Patients in a Down Economy' and suggested that it would be beneficial to look at how other aquatic disciplines are approaching this concern. Particular reference was made to the spa industry and a recent blog post from Susie Ellis (spa guru) of Spa Finder giving her top 10 list of new spa trends for 2009. I too had seen the list and have been thinking about what it might mean in the context of 'economy' and 'choice'. What might spas and aquatic therapy clinics, both service-oriented, have in common when it comes to attracting custom?
Spa culture: timely opportunity for a paradigm shift (December 2008)
This image shows two deer stranded in a river while the forest burns around them. For me, it conveys well the current challenges we face in deciding how best to survive economic and environmental crises. These deer know that the water may save them. Could a new vision of spa play its part in helping us to survive? For this opportunity to be grasped, we must go beyond superficial style and develop authentic integrity in providing true spa (sanus per agua - health through water) services.
Spa culture meets corporate culture: a force for positive change (January 2009)
Long before colonization of the New World, Native Americans gathered at thermal mineral springs for physical health, spiritual, and social purposes. In Europe, the Romans were cultivating spas as places for both play and politics. And in ancient Greece, people went on spa sabbaticals to receive healing dreams from the gods that offered solutions to otherwise intractable problems.
Our own society is now recognizing the value of adding spa culture to its social and business settings, to meetings and events. It's an interweaving that, if fully realized, could provide us with solutions to our own personal, social, and environmental issues by immersing us in an inclusive and informal setting where all three aspects of human life are recognized as being inseparable.
Corporate social responsibility: how does spa biz show up? (February 2009)
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the spa world is a topic I'll be looking at in more depth on this blog. Though my main focus is on small businesses, the influence and potential leadership role of the larger corporations is significant. I want to highlight those who are showing the way. There is a majority in the spa world still who have nothing to say on the topic of sustainability (including environmental and social responsibility) and others who talk the talk but may not be walking the walk.
Spa industry lemons (March 2009)
Is the spa industry in general more concerned with profit than with people and personal and environmental health? Unfortunately, some of the reactions (from industry voices and in professional networks) to the current economic recession would seem to suggest that this has been so.
Recession and spas (September 2009)
A look at what is happening in our culture in general, how this might relate to spa, and how we might respond - not in terms of surviving as businesses but rather in order to support cultural change and contribute to our survival on the planet. What is needed now - more than adaptations or limitations on business as usual - is a reevaluation of what role spas have played (and could play) in our culture; and a re-examination of why people work in and go to spas.
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Sara Firman is available as a speaker or consultant to * spas, retreats * wellness centers, training centers * communities that care about water and health. Topics including but not limited to: * spa-retreat as a tool for positive change * water as an indicator of health and well-being. Email
