Accor's Emlyn Brown tells spa professionals 'Why Wellness Pays'

Emlyn Brown, global vice-president of wellbeing at Accor, told a recent Peloton wellness event that Accor was “future-proofing” its labour-intensive spa concepts in order to create sustainable profitability.

Speaking to more than 50 hoteliers and spa operators, Brown – whose core focus is to enhance the company’s global luxury wellness offerings – said: “Accor is moving away from pure spa developments – future-proofing our concepts to create sustainable profitability. I think we can speak very openly, particularly in Germany and the UK, that spa is a labour-intensive business.

“We’re seeing a surge of communal bathing globally, and for spa, that’s a great surge to embrace because you can service a higher volume of guests at a lower price point. It’s self-guided, democratised wellbeing that we see as very interesting angle for the future of spa.”

A focus on bathing

Brown went on to outline some of the future developments that the company was working on in Europe and further afield.

“Accor is also opening some incredible locations in 2023, pushing the boundaries of traditional spa and what it means,” he said. “The 2,200sqm spa at Raffles Old War Office in London will include a membership-driven club by a group called Pillar and a partnership with well-known fitness personality Harry Jameson.

“At the Fairmont Hanoi in Vietnam, we’ll be opening a 2,300sqm bathing spa and health club, based on the Asian modalities of communal bathing with a self-guided bathing circuit, including steam and sauna, for either members or as a day spa option. The membership model with a high quality, unique spa will offer higher yield.”

The gathering of spa hotel professionals also heard more from him about the role that wellness now plays in the group’s strategy.

“As the person responsible for the integration of wellbeing throughout Accor Hotels’ hospitality brands, the questions I’m constantly being asked by our owners is why wellness? What’s the ROI for wellness? Why is it important?

“Wellness is a significant business that’s become an indisputable part of our culture. We understand from the Global Wellness Institute that it’s an industry worth $4.7 trillion globally – that’s bigger than the golf, cinema and cruise industries combined. Wellness is not a fad or a trend. It addresses fundamental human needs; people have been trying to cure themselves in some way or form since the beginning of time.

“Covid-19 was our super accelerator. The long-term demand for preventative and proactive wellness activities has been driven forwards at an astounding rate by the pandemic realisation that health is wealth. Guests now seek not only to maintain their wellbeing during stays but to enhance it through nutrition, physical activity and mindfulness.”

Answering and exceeding demand

Brown detailed the popularity of the chain’s wellbeing offer, emphasising the role of authenticity in attracting and retaining guests.

“Four out of five Accor guests are attempting to improve their health and wellbeing every day – that’s 80% of the guests crossing our threshold trying, every single day, to improve their health for wellbeing. That’s pretty powerful,” he said.

“We know wellness travellers spend more money – 45-65% more than the standard leisure traveller. Plus we know the guests who refer the most are the ones who have experienced wellness during their stay. Therefore, we need to be answering and exceeding that demand. A demand that is only going to accelerate as millennials and Generations’ Y and Z come through to become luxury consumers.

“But here’s the dealbreaker. Wellness is heavily personalised. There are many wellness styles and tribes, be that a Peloton convert or an outdoor swimmer or a DIY yogi. Plus, we’re seeing an ever more sophisticated approach from customers, particularly millennials – they can smell when you’re not authentic and, if you’re not, they’ll just disappear.

“We know 80% of guests are going to come in and want to do some form of wellness. So how are you going to offer that authentically? There’s no reason why guests can’t experience wellness in-room; with small, dedicated, digital-driven gym experiences like a Peloton, even a few square meters can still have a significant impact on wellbeing .

“We partner with companies like Peloton who can bring those personalised wellness experiences, make our execution of wellbeing different, and offer guests wellness their way.”