PANELISTS ( LEFT TO RIGHT ) AALIYA BASHIR , CARLOS CALVO RODRIGUEZ AND KATLYN HATCHER RESPOND TO MODERATOR MICHAEL TOMPKINS .

DEFINING INNOVATION AS successfully implementing new ideas that introduce value for your customer , Michael Tompkins asked panel members to identify spa innovations they have focused on recently .

Aaliya Bashir shared her work with detoxification . “ Detox was a bad word — usually associated with drug use — but now you see it everywhere , like on toothpaste ,” she said . Aaliya also pointed out “ consumers are now more educated about detoxification . Now , people are getting more aware that detoxification is an everyday thing . Everything we put inside of ourselves needs to come out .” She sees a direct benefit of innovating around the concept of detoxification within the spa : “ People are coming to the sauna a couple of times per week .”

Katlyn Hatcher commented on marketing a shared spa facility .“ We have a very large spa , so , in addition to men ’ s and women ’ s lounges , we have a co-ed lounge ,” she said .“ It wasn ’ t innovative , so we rebranded this area our Fireside Lounge , with custom beverage and snack menu and personalized name cards .” The magic was in the presentation .“ It was always a wonderful amenity we had — but we made it into an experience ,” she said . “ Looking at what you ’ re currently doing , from a new perspective — is a great start to innovation .”

Carlos Calvo Rodriguez saw the innovative value of vulnerability .“ When we hear about innovation in general we think we have to be creative and outside of the box ,” he said .“ But more than that , being innovative is being comfortable with being uncomfortable . It doesn ’ t have to be something completely new as long as it ’ s something new for your audience . It ’ s being vulnerable about trying something you ’ re not used to . At the end of the day there ’ s only two options — it will work or it won ’ t . You know your audience , you know what your guest wants — just add something a little different than what they expect .” n

EDITOR ’ S NOTE : Scot T . Gillies , executive editor at ISPA , sat in on this panel presentation and chose the above highlight to share .

JULY 2023 n PULSE 29