Jeremy McCarthy promoted by Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group

Jeremy McCarthy’s role at Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group (MOHG) has evolved to encompass leisure and wellness into his remit.

The new group director of leisure, spa and wellness, McCarthy’s title reflects the growth of the resort and leisure business within the Mandarin Oriental group.

Speaking exclusively to European Spa, he explained: “MOHG has always attracted a significant leisure demand, and has in recent years been adding new resorts to the portfolio.

“These new resorts have pushed us to expand our focus and expertise beyond spa, fitness and wellness into other areas inclduing beaches, water sports and family programming.”

Rapid expansion and growth

Planned new resorts include Mandarin Oriental Canouan, Mandarin Oriental Lago di Como, Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental Abu Dhabi and Mandarin Oriental Jumeira Beach Dubai.

This year, MOHG will be opening two new resort destinations, the first in Costa Navarino, Greece and then later in Muscat, Oman.

The company has also just announced a new London site, set to open on London’s South Bank in 2028. This will be the third London hotel and spa in the group.

MOHG’s highly-anticipated Mayfair property will open in London’s iconic Hanover Square later this year.

Merging wellness and leisure

McCarthy believes the evolution of his role mirrors a wider merging and melding of spa, wellness and leisure.

“I think it’s only natural, as the industry evolves, that we push to broaden the scope of what we do in the search of better guest experiences,” he explained.

“The industry has already come to realise spa is only a small subset of the wellness experiences guests are looking for. Now we’re realising wellness is also just a small subset of the broad range of meaningful experiences guests seek when they travel.

“Wellness continues to be a massive driver and an area of key importance for MOHG, but travellers today are also looking for social, cultural and educational experiences.

“We have to think more holistically about how we can create the best experience for guests.”

MOHG’s key focus

“One key trend we are focused on right now is innovating around kids and family programming,” continued McCarthy. “Parents don’t just want their kids entertained, they want them to have meaningful experiences that help them learn and grow.

“We try to create ‘flow’ experiences for younger guests that are so engaging they completely forget about video games for a while.

“Another shift we see coming out of Covid is the demand to be outdoors and connected to nature.

“Wherever possible we’re creating outdoor opportunities – this means creative planning with our designers and architects to make sure restaurants, spas, fitness centres and kids’ clubs all have elements connected to nature where this is feasible.”

Growth and investment plans for leisure

Over the last few years, MOHG’s portfolio has grown from 10 per cent resorts to around 25 per cent.

“In the coming years, this trend will continue. In future, we will have a more balanced mix between resort and urban. There are a lot of resort destinations around the world where we still want to be,” said McCarthy.

“Even in our urban locations, you will see a commitment to deliver resort-like leisure experiences.

“We also continue to grow and strengthen our wellness offerings. We have the largest percentage of Forbes Five-Star Spas of any hotel group, and those spas serve as a base for a growing team of talented wellness experts.

“The feedback from our guests on our wellness offerings is something I’m very proud of.”

The Forbes Five Star Spa award was granted to a record 15 of Mandarin Oriental’s hotels in 2023, more than any other hotel group.

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