Mala McAlpin A great resource for spa owners, managers, and staff.
The latest how-to guide for spa management is just about to launch – introducing “The Spa Manager’s Essential Guide”, about to be published out of the UK. Available from September, the new book is authored by industry figure and specialist consultant for medispas and hot springs alike, Michael Wallace, co-written alongside Melanie Smith, associate professor at Budapest Metropolitan University, Hungary, and international health tourism researcher, consultant and speaker.
With 20 years’ experience in operational management in the spa and fitness industry, Wallace says the book contains “all the basic day-to-day information on how to run a wellness, beauty or thermal spa operation successfully. It focuses on those areas that industry leaders have identified as critical and missing in today’s spa leaders.”
The 12-chapter book covers topics including customer care, leadership, effectively selling and marketing a spa business, finance, management, health and safety, treatments, potential challenges, trends, design, and developing new spa concepts. These incorporate tips, advice and stories from over 50 international spa CEOs, trainers, consultants, managers and doctors, and has been endorsed by the European Spa Association.
“We were inspired to write the book as there are no other textbooks on the market that combine both product knowledge and operational management essentials (based on hands-on experience) in one book,” says Wallace. “We hope it will not only help lift the spa and wellness industry standards but also inspire the next generation of spa managers. This is an excellent core text for all students on spa management education programmes, as well as for existing and aspiring spa managers and professionals in the industry.”
Before founding his own business, Michael Wallace Consulting (specialising in hot springs and medical spas), Wallace worked as group spa director for Danubius Hotels Group for 18 years – the largest hotel group in Hungary, with 56 hotels across Hungary, Great Britain, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Romania. He now not only consults but speaks and lectures at a number of conferences and colleges respectively around the globe.
“The Spa Manager’s Essential Guide” will be available from 1 September 2020.
