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investment [ and ] we recently invested in a new software program.”
With its growth and success, Forever Laser Institut is constantly working to ensure consistent quality of service and treatments. In such a large, multi-disciplinary team, this can sometimes be a challenge. Varone says the spa focuses on training team members to deliver high-level service and gathers feedback from clients to see where improvements can be made. When hiring team members, Forever Laser Institut first turns to word-of-mouth to find qualified candidates.
“ For administrative positions, we have found that targeted ads are also very effective,” Varone adds.
Future Plans As Forever Laser Institut looks toward the future, the spa is analyzing markets in various parts of the world for possible expansion, although nothing has been decided yet. In the more immediate future, the medical spa is taking on two new doctors— plastic surgeon Dr. Luc Botter and aesthetic medicine specialist Dr. Sandrine Gept-Locher.
“ We are therefore adapting our treatment rooms to allow for the new medical approaches and procedures they will be introducing,” says Ada. She adds that investment in the best new technologies has been constant since Forever Laser Institut’ s opening, mostly as a result of Dr. Polla’ s frequent travels to attend numerous congresses and meetings of interest in aesthetic medicine.
Industry Trends As a trailblazer in the medical spa industry in Switzerland, Forever Laser Institut’ s leadership keeps its finger on the pulse of developing spa trends. The idea of“ slow and sustainable beauty,” a concept coined by Dr. Polla where clients are encouraged to embrace noninvasive but regular aesthetic programs versus drastic, one-off treatments like plastic surgery, is one movement that is growing among his clients. He also sees the spa industry moving towards a multi-medical approach, integrating the expertise of doctors with different specializations in treatments. As the relationship between the medical field and industry of aesthetics continues to grow, he believes that more individuals now realize that being healthy and looking good goes hand-in-hand. New techniques and devices in medical aesthetics are changing in reaction to these trends and working to treat patients’ ailments with more than just prescriptions.
“ Medical aesthetic doctors have become something like modern shrinks; patients trust them with their desires, insecurities and needs, requiring a global vision and response from their doctors,” Dr. Polla says.“ We are talking about a long-term relationship between the patient and the doctor. With adapted and personalized treatment programs, a medical spa has the ability to improve an individual’ s health as well as appearance.” ■
ABOUT THE SPA
Spa type: Medical spa Spa open date: 1997
Space in square footage: About 6,500 square feet
Number of treatment rooms: 17
Interior designer: Greek artist and architect Andreas Angelidakis
Number of full-time spa staff: Around 20( four receptionists, three doctors, two nurses, eight beauticians-therapists, one accountant, one marketing, one client coordinator, one cleaning-maintenance, one spa director)
Method of staff compensation: Fixed salary and percentage on turnover( revenues) and sales( cosmetic products)
Staff training: Partially internal and external( eg: laser hair removal, specific massage techniques)
Annual budget for marketing: 200’ 000 CHF( about $ 218,078)
Guest ratio( women vs. men): 85 percent vs. 15 percent
Contact details: Forever Laser Institut 56 Rue du Rhone 1204 Geneva, Switzerland
Website: forever-beauty. com
16 PULSE ■ January / February 2012