Success Story: Andrew Gibson

Andrew Gibson is responsible for the development and execution of FRHI Hotels and Resorts' spa strategy, including defining and implementing spa standards globally across all of FRHI’s leading hotel and spa brands. He has over 25 years of international hospitality experience in the fields of spa, wellness and leisure.

Success Story: Kirk Gregor

Kirk Gregor has been Spa Director at DMB Sports since 2010. He has been a board member for the Arizona State University Spa Certification Program and taught Spa Management at Pima Medical Institute, Cortiva Institute and Southwest Institute of Healing Arts.

Success Story: Marcello Mulato

Marcello Mulato has been the Fitness Manager at Rocco Forte’s Verdura Resort in Sicily since 2015. He has been passionate about sports and fitness since he can remember. Marcello extensively studied Sports Science, and he is on the verge of receiving his diploma to be a chiropractor. Throughout his lifetime he has trained and competed in a number of sporting disciplines, including kickboxing, kayaking, swimming, high jump and volley ball.

Success Story: Christine Fessler

Christine Fessier is Spa Manager at Hotel de Russie in Rome, Italy. Born in Salzburg, Christine has more than 18 years experience in the spa industry, with a particular focus in the luxury spa segment. She started her career in the spa industry at the Hotel Salzburgerhof. After seven years there, she did a “Black Belt-Exchange programme for Starwood Hotels” to improve her language skills in Rome for 3 months.

Success Story: Dorianna Lolli

Born in the USA, Doriana’s family originates from Abruzzo in Italy. Doriana is a medical doctor with two key specializations: gastroenterology and hydrology (the science of mineral water). Doriana has worked in a number of hotels and thermal centers in a range of roles, such as Medical Director, Spa Manager, Spa Medical Manager and Medical Coordinator. In 2017, she joined Rocco Forte’ s Verdura Resort in Sicily as the Medical Spa Manager.

Success Story: Christelle Stockdale

Christelle is a trained yoga teacher, naturopath and wellness consultant and has worked all around the world in various capacities, the last 7 years of which in Wellness and Spa. Today she looks after the day to day running of The Balmoral Spa. Christelle is passionate about holistic health and wellbeing and loves her work in Spa where the de-stressing effects of treatments can be seen immediately afterwards on the relaxed faces of the guests.

Success Story: Amy Goller Keller

Amy Goller Keller is President of Wellness & Beauty Consulting. Amy gained experience as a manager and as a consultant to Adler Spa Resorts, Thermae Meran, Lefay Resort & Spa, Borgobrufa Spa Resort and Rocco Forte Hotels. She participates as a rapporteur at various conferences (Comoprof, IDM, ILSS) and earned a master’s degree in management at the University of Zalzburg.

Success Story: Gia Robinson

Godgia Robinson was born on March 14, 1999 in The Bahamas. She grew up in Turks and Caicos on the island of Providenciales and was raised by two very loving and supportive parents. They helped foster her love for people and their wellbeing. She also has 3 younger siblings who have always been her favourite clients.

Career Development and Job Security

We are living in interesting times. The world is experiencing immense transformation throughout the social, political and personal areas of our lives. Many people are questioning what lays ahead for them with so many looming changes. How does this impact our families, job security and career direction? That mingled with the quest for freedom in a landscape of uncertainty, can be a challenging pursuit.

Success Story: Irene Forte

Irene Forte joined Rocco Forte Hotels in 2013 as quality standards executive. Today, whilst still leading learning and development, Irene oversees the wellness proposition across the group, having launched Rocco Forte Spas in January 2016. Irene was also awarded government funding in 2015 to create a careers and training app for the hospitality industry. Map My Future launched at Rocco Forte Hotels in August 2016 and is now being pushed out to market.

Success Story: Johanna Schneider

Johanna Schneider has been working at The Charles Spa in Munich since 2010. After her education as a certified beautician, make-up artist and podiatrist, she enrolled at The Charles Hotel as a trainee. Very quickly she worked her way up the ranks, becoming the hotel’s Spa Manager.

Benefits of a career in beauty therapy

Do you enjoy pampering your family and friends? Are you like a kid in a sweet shop when it comes to new beauty products? A career in beauty may be perfect for you. The benefit of working in the beauty industry is your job is very varied. From bridal make-up to anti-aging facials, the work of a beauty therapist is limitless.

Hard skills versus soft skills

At first glance one might say that career paths in the spa industry are a bit schizophrenic given that the sensibilities and skill set that make for excellent therapists sometimes may not provide the tools needed for a “bottom line” manager.

Success Story: Ruta Tavoraite-Johns

Ruta moved to England from Lithuania 14 years ago. She started her training at West Thames College. After passing with high grades, she joined the Steiner Academy. She then traveled onboard P&O Australia cruise liners. Two years later, she moved back to London to further her career in the wellness industry, working her way up from therapist to a Senior Therapist role at ESPA life at Corinthia. She then joined Rocco Forte’s Brown’s Hotel as Head Therapist in 2015 and is now the proud and passionate Spa Manager of The Spa at Brown’s Hotel, London.

Success Story: Sherrie Tennessee

Sherrie Tennessee has 15 years of experience in the spa industry including the role of a massage therapist, nail tech, spa owner, speaker, professor, educator and author. In addition, to receiving multiple awards throughout her career, Sherrie’s writings have been published in some highly respected industry outlets, and she has been asked to speak to many public forums.

Success Story: Kate Sornson

Kate Sornson has worked in diverse roles within the health and wellness arena. Her roles have included agent, supervisor and manager in a variety of operations that could be classified as start up to luxury resort spa settings.

Success Story: Whitney Lowe

Whitney Lowe has been a massage professional for 28 years. Professionals and schools use Lowe’s texts, Orthopedic Assessment in Massage Therapy and Orthopedic Massage: Theory and Technique. He is a contributing author to several books and his articles appear regularly in professional journals and magazines.

Four Values to Support Your Success

There are countless options to consider when you choose a career in spa and wellness. You can pick from hundreds of different positions and personalize your role in nearly all of them.

Success Story: Jan Schwartz

Jan Schwartz is co-founder of Education and Training Solutions, a web-based e-learning company that produces online courses for those in the health and wellness fields. She has worked in education since 1988.

Set Your Performance Bar at 100%

Remember when you were in school you needed to get a certain score in order to pass? It might have been 70%, 75%, or in some cases only 65%. What this really means is that it didn’t matter if you didn’t know 30%, 25% or 35% of the material. So how does this translate to the treatment room and your practice? It doesn’t translate well if we use those same bars.

Chief Executive Officer, Mount Batten Centre

Mount Batten Group
c£65,000pa + pension + benefits, Plymouth, UK