Serena Spa Opening its Door at the Marriott Bengaluru Whitefield

SERENA SPA which is a part of Heaven on Earth Wellness family since 2016 is getting all set to open its doors at the Marriott Bengaluru Whitefield in September. This brand is especially developed for luxury resort and five-star hotel properties with elaborate spa facilities. The design is contemporary Indian with a strong local element subject to location.

BW Hotelier spoke to Jesper Hougaard, Executive Director at Heaven on Earth Wellness to know his views on the Indian Spa market. Speaking specifically about Serena Spa, Hougaard told us, “Serena Spa was founded in Maldives in 2000 with the basic brand philosophy on the rich Indian wellness traditions.”

“At that time the Indian market was dominated by Ayurveda hospitals and independent clinics and we did not find a market for high end spas with emphasis on a combination of Indian traditions and International quality standards. However, to test the waters we opened our first spa in West Bengal at the end of 2004 and we soon found an interesting market opportunity,” said Hougaard.

Hougaard believes that inspite of deeply rooted in Indian wellness traditions, Serena Spa’s services are a contemporary interpretation of traditions, mixed with international inspiration.  Adding to this Hougaard said, “Right from the onset, we have ensured that our systematic training yields the same high quality service irrespective of where or by whom it is delivered.”

According to Hougaard, It is difficult to estimate the size of the Indian spa market. “Many attempts have been made, but it is an unorganised and unregulated sector so the definition of what constitute a spa is rather fluid – is a beauty parlour with a makeshift massage table behind the curtain a spa or is a car spa a spa?” he said.

Stating the annual growth rate, Hougaard said, “We have experienced an organic annual growth rate of approximately 20 per cent in our definition of spa, i.e. hotel and resort spas, airport spas and day spas. However, a new market which also includes the definition of spa – the wellness industry – is growing much faster.”

Hougaard is very bullish about the Indian spa market in hotel/resort and airport segment and is planning to double the footprints over the coming two years. He also feels that the market for stand-alone day spas is limited due to the high estate costs. “The Indian market is presently unregulated; there have been many attempts to unify the spa sector with common quality standards, such as the NABH accreditation but although the standards exist, the implementation has been unsuccessful,” he told us.

Serena Spa has recently been launched at Crowne Plaza in Barcelona, and is coming up at the Marriott Tang Plaza in Singapore and are looking at expanding across India, South East Asia and Europe.