– How The Country Spa is transforming the client experience.
If there’s one thing I particularly enjoy about my business; it’s the fact that it’s never boring! The beauty business is constantly evolving and progressing in lots of different directions. There’s absolutely no way I can ever get bored with it. My biggest problem is that there’s just so much I want to learn and be able to offer people and not enough time to do it! Being a more mature therapist now, I appreciate just how quickly time flies and how little time we truly have on this earth and how we really need to make every second count.
With that in mind, this summer has seen the biggest changes to The Country Spa since we re-opened after the COVID 19 lockdowns. Our mission has always been to bring you the best quality treatments, but in recent years, I have noticed a growing demand for health-centred, wellness treatments. This has led to us concentrating more on more specialised therapies, drawing on my many years of experiences, not just in beauty therapy, but life also, to deliver truly meaningful treatments that can have a profound positive impact on people’s lives. Treatments such as oncology aesthetics, CBD massages, reflexology, skin treatments, electrolysis and Indian Head Massages can all have tremendous effects on overall health and wellbeing.
A centre of excellence catering for people who take preventative health seriously. That doesn’t mean you have to be a fitness fanatic or avoid cakes and chocolate, but have a desire to keep yourself healthy and comfortable. We all know how burdened the NHS is and how difficult it can be to get appointments, whether it’s for chiropody, physiotherapy, a GP or dermatologist. We’re striving to close that gap between beauty and medical by providing modified treatments that focus on maintaining health. By highlighting the health benefits of our treatments we are empowering people to take action, embrace regular maintenance treatments without guilt because it’s a sensible thing to do!
Let me explain…
Going forward we’re embracing the SERENITY approach:
· Supporting you – we care about you on your journey to wellness. By upskilling in therapies that allow us to help more people such as oncology aesthetics and welcoming other practitioners into the salon (Lisa from LVM Body Alignment and Movement Therapies), we can ensure that you receive the best possible care and advice. If I can’t help you, then perhaps Lisa can. I’ve also been having conversations with a private GP and hope to have consultations available at The Country Spa with her, from October onwards. We will be your health champions – helping you to maintain comfortable feet, good posture, healthy skin and a relaxed mind and body.
· Empowerment – we’ll ensure you have the knowledge, support and products to look after your health at home. Education is a priority at The Country Spa and we want you to have the information so that you can make the best choices going forward.
· Respect – we’ll always treat our clients with compassion and respect. We also respect our environment and choose to use products that align with our ethical values. Staff are encouraged to grow and develop new skills, highlighting our continued respect towards developing the workforce.
· Excellence – there’s no half measures here! If we’re going to do something, we’re going to do it well! That means we’ve had to adapt the treatment menu so that we can focus on delivering our most meaningful treatments. By employing a tiered pricing strategy, we can offer our less specialised treatments at a very attractive price with our apprentice therapist, and the more advanced therapies with me as per usual.
· Natural beauty – this is something I feel very strongly about; maintaining beauty in a natural way. I’m all for beautiful nails and great skin, but it has to be achieved in a natural, holistic way that’s not going to cause harm to the body in any way. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen nails that have been severely damaged due to damaging products or poor techniques being used. Same for skin. A quick fix is never the best solution and often leads to disappointment, discomfort and more expense in the long run. Our treatments may appear to cost more, but we always deliver the best possible solution to ensure the integrity of your skin, nails, feet or whatever we’re working on.
· Integrity – I would never do to you, something I wouldn’t do on myself! Seems like a good policy to me. Even if you’ve asked for a treatment that I don’t believe will benefit you, we’ll do our level best to offer you something else that will benefit and deliver the outcome you desire. If it’s not possible, we’ll let you know. We’re never going to string you along to just get money out of you. The Country Spa depends on repeat business in order to survive and I would much rather be honest and have someone as a long term customer than just a one off visit. This has worked well over the years and we have built up a reliable reputation and repeat business is excellent.
· Tranquillity – nothing restores the body and mind like some peace and tranquillity. You’ll experience both in abundance at The Country Spa. It starts as soon as you enter; soft music, pleasant scents, relaxed mood, welcoming therapists and a cosy salon. Our treatments are all about the experience. There’s no rush here; you’re welcome to stay as long as you need to feel restored and refreshed. There’s always a friendly face and some chat, but only if you want it!
· You – Our focus is entirely on you. We want to serve our customers the best way we can, in sickness and in health. That’s why we’ve decided to alter course slightly. Whatever life throws at you, we want you to know that we’ve got your back. Training and upskilling is a high priority for us so that we can support you even during times of illness. Our oncology training means that I can now treat cancer patients safely which gives great relief for many side effects and comfort to those in a caring role.
You are the reason I have my business. It’s my “happy place” and I’m often out there in the salon even when there are no clients around! I just love the tranquillity there myself and feel fortunate to have such a rewarding career.
As part of our new direction, I schedule time to share my knowledge, experience and skills with Hollie, my apprentice. With youth on her side, Hollie has many years ahead of her to help a tremendous amount of people. What a privilege to have someone so enthusiastic to pass on all my knowledge to.
With this slightly modified version of how we operate, I’m sure The Country Spa will only be in a better place to enhance the health and wellness of our clients and we are very excited about helping you to stay productive, comfortable, attractive and enthusiastic about life!
If you have any comments about our new approach or if you have experienced a shift in your health or thoughts about our treatments and how they contribute to your wellbeing, we’d love to hear them! Please feel free to share in the comments below.