nvironmental awareness and protection
resonate deep within the spa industry.
“Isn’t it ultimately the objective of every
business to provide a product or service
that improves the well-being of their
customer in some form? If we provide that
well-being, how can we ignore the impact
the delivery of that product or service has on the environment?
Without a planet that is well, we cannot be truly well,” says
Szilvia Hickman, senior vice president of Szep Elet, exclusive
distributor of ilike organic skin care.
The Indiana-based company takes this mission to heart.
“We are developing businesses that create products that help
people reduce their impact on the environment while at the
same time improving their own personal well-being,” she says.
Blake and Carmen Gendebien, founders of A Wholesome
Glow located in Canton, New York, share similar views. “We
believe a healthy lifestyle means more than a few moments per
day of environmental awareness. As farmers and spa owners,
we have a responsibility to be advocates for wellness, which
means healthy people and a healthy planet. All businesses play
an important role in educating others of how they can optimize
their own mindfulness to be stewards of sustainability in their
own communities. This inspires people to take important
action and leads to better choices and a better world for future
generations,” says Carmen Gendebien.
Good Business Sense
For many businesses, protecting the environment is not only a
moral responsibility, but also makes good business sense. “For
us, caring for our planet and its inhabitants is a defining cornerstone of our company. How ironic would it be that a company
relying so heavily on the goodness of Mother Nature would
conduct its affairs in a manner that are detrimental to our
source of raw material? One could argue that our desire to
protect the environment is for self-serving reasons, as without
the bountiful of natural ingredients, we wouldn’t have the raw
material to make our products,” says Blue Beautifly CEO Vida
Karamooz.
Shelley Lotz, author of Green Spas and Salons: How to
Make Your Business Truly Sustainable and founder of Vios Spa
Group, states that promoting green initiatives is a necessity in
today’s market, primarily because consumers demand it. “From
using organic products with sustainable packaging to assessing
“Isn’t it ultimately the objective of
every business to provide a product
or service that improves the wellbeing of their customer in