Good Spa Guide appoints new director of spa and wellness

Lesley Bacon joins the team to support spas and brands in raising their profile and driving revenues

By Wendy Golledge

02 December 2025

goodspaguide.co.uk

Following its recent acquisition by Luxury Leisure Group, Good Spa Guide has appointed Lesley Bacon as its new director of spa and wellnes.

Bringing more than 18 years of experience in senior spa and wellness leadership to the role, Bacon was most recently head of spa, wellness and health clubs at Hand Picked Hotels. There she oversaw the strategic transformation of multi-million-pound spas across the brand’s 21 properties in the UK and Channel Islands.

Named Hotel Cateys Spa Professional of the Year in 2018, Bacon’s career spans senior roles with Holmes Place Health Clubs, Esporta Health Clubs and Mark Warner/Sunsail Holidays.

She has served as a board member for the UK Spa Association and a judge for the World Wellness Awards, Professional Beauty Awards and Hotel Cateys.

“We are delighted to welcome Lesley to help drive the growth and future development of Good Spa Guide. Her wealth of expertise in the spa industry will ensure the brand remains at the forefront of all-things spa, while she helps support our partners to achieve success.”

Gregor Ritchie

CEO, Luxury Leisure Group

Speaking exclusively to European Spa about her new role, Bacon said: “Having always worked in the hospitality and wellness space, my approach is to stay commercially focused, build brilliant teams and create exceptional experiences.

“The opportunity to champion the sector and help businesses achieve greater success is one I am hugely excited for. My initial focus will be on developing what Good Spa Guide can be for the industry.

“It’s well known for its award and its accreditation, which are two things we’re keen to grow and develop. Both elements are really important to the consumer and valued by the sector – I want to explore how we can grow and improve them.”

From left: Lesley Bacon with European Spa's Sarah Camilleri and Teresa O Farrell from the Dorchester Group

Speaking about consumer awareness of spa and wellness offerings, Bacon said: “Part of my role is to help educate the consumer, to in turn elevate the spa industry and show off the wonderful things we’re offering.

“As part of Luxury Leisure Group we’ve now also got a booking platform, so we can help operators to directly sell through us, something Good Spa Guide has not been able to do before.”

Good Spa Guide Regional Awards

Spas from nine UK regions recently won accolades in the 15th annual Regional Good Spa Guide Awards 2025, revealed on November 24.

The results, announced at an afternoon tea at L’oscar London, were drawn from the Good Spa Guide’s Bubble Rating system, along with the opinion of its Spa Spies.