— Peter Yesawich
The final day of Conference
THURSDAY was full of highlights including incoming Chairman Deborah Waldvogel taking over the reins from Jean Kolb. During the closing General Session, Waldvogel laid out her plans to help move the association ahead in the next 20 years.
Waldvogel emphasized the importance of working together to“ continually evaluate the resources and services ISPA provides.” Her goals for the coming year include continuing to form alliances to strengthen ISPA’ s global outreach.“ When we
look at the associations and regional groups that are forming every day, the main purpose is to create a community to simply talk, share ideas and challenges, and seek support from others.”
Finding ways to work with health care providers to integrate spa and wellness into everyday medicine is another objective Waldvogel would like ISPA to continue to push. She noted,“ With the debates over health care, the spa industry has a tremendous opportunity to influence the future of preventative health.”
The Visionary Panel closed out the 20th anniversary celebration with insights into the future of the industry. Read more of the panel’ s insights in Jeremy McCarthy’ s article“ The New Time Poverty: Where Will Spas Fit In?” on page 38. ■
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
“ The desire to seek release from stress has never been higher. Spas are competing for a share of consumer’ s time.”
— Peter Yesawich
BEST SURPRISE: The Fife & Drum Corp opened the final General Session of the 20th anniversary celebration.
ONLY ON THURSDAY: The Roundtable Networking & Learning Sessions allowed attendees to connect on topics ranging from customer service to luxury vs. wellness. The annual Week in Review Video played during the General Session and captured the special memories made during the week.
January / February 2011 ■ PULSE 37