may have the symptoms of COVID-19 or have been exposed
to someone who tested positive or is experiencing
symptoms. Multiple experts are encouraging companies
to adopt policies that when an employee experiences any
of the COVID-19 symptoms, they should stay home. The
same should also be true for spa guests. Encourage guests
and employees to self-report if they are feeling ill and
create a safe space for cancellation of appointments and
notice of need for a sick day.
3. Continue to Practice Excellent Sanitation
Provide consistent and complete communications to employees
and guests regarding sanitation efforts. Handwashing
is one of the most straightforward ways to
prevent the spread of the virus, so spas would be wise to
encourage employees and guests to regularly (and properly)
wash their hands.
You will also want to think about addressing sanitation
efforts within the spa and what can be done outside the
spa to help. Inside the spa, you can utilize cleaning techniques
and schedules, require or encourage mask and
glove wearing, and make hand sanitizer available. Consider
exchanging upholstered chairs in the lobby and
other spaces for chairs that are easier to clean—and,
while you’re at it, look at the spacing between the chairs.
You can also encourage actions outside the spa, including
having employees and guests leave bulky purses and
bags at home or in the car and only bring the necessary
items (such as keys, wallet, and cell phone) into the spa.
And, depending on applicable laws, you may also want to
post a sign limiting your liability for thefts from a vehicle
parked on premises.
courage your guests to call from outside the lobby (perhaps
from their car?) to check in when they arrive. Then,
contact them when the technician is ready for the appointment
and escort them directly from the front door to
their treatment room. Consider also prohibiting walk-ins,
perhaps by posting signage on the door to direct those individuals
to call or visit your website to schedule an appointment.
They could even do so from just outside your
door!
5. Retail Space
Think about how best to handle your retail section of the
spa. While the “easy” answer is to remove all products, of
course that has the potential to (significantly) impact your
bottom-line. If you normally display inventory throughout
a common area such as the lobby, you might want to update
the display with photographs and keep the physical
items in a storage room until the time of purchase. This
will minimize the amount of cleaning that you will have
4. Encourage Social Distancing
How will you encourage your guests and employees to
practice social distancing? We have all seen businesses
with taped-off areas to indicate six feet—is there a way to
create those visual reminders in your spa environment?
Do your lobby and other common areas allow and encourage
your guests and employees to be physically distanced
from each other? If not, look at how you might be able to
revise the usage of the space to foster these techniques.
Even those spas with more intimate lobbies and other
common spaces can take steps to foster distancing. En-
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