Explaining spa TO shareholders

As spa professionals, we understand the importance of profit, but also know it has to be balanced with exceptional service for clients. I believe that if you always aim to achieve both you can be successful within a management team. However, it can be hard to justify the costs associated with delivering this, particularly if your spa is within a hotel that has managers and shareholders who are not focused on the day-to-day running of the spa.

If you want to make actual change in your spa, you must present a clear and concise business plan to your senior management team and shareholders. It should answer any premeditated questions and validate your points when it comes to your spa’s USPs. Your management and shareholders will appreciate this approach because it gets to the point quickly, which is always handy when schedules are busy.

Crunch the numbers

This business plan should include a breakdown of fixed costs and a forecast of net revenue, as well as an outline of margins, benefits to the business and extra revenue the company could make on upselling on the back of the proposal. How long it will take to repay costs and how you would market the proposal are also essential factors to cover.

Once you have piqued their interest, you should show them what your plan looks like or, even better, get them to experience it as this usually seals the deal.

You shouldn’t struggle if you keep up to date with all the reporting but, if you ever think that you will not hit a target, discuss this with your management and shareholders. Constant communication and the ability to be completely transparent are essential.

This should extend to your executive team also, who you should try to get involved with the spa as much as possible. Allowing them to experience the services helps them understand the guest experience and how it can effectively drive sales.

Be realistic

Always remember that the spa may only drive around 20% of the overall revenue, so it’s likely that your colleagues may only want to spend 20% of their time supporting you.

Be ready to put incentives and packages in place and always measure them so you can share the incremental revenue that the spa is driving. If they can recognise how the spa can drive revenue into other areas then they’re likely to give you more of their time.

Lynn Roach is director of The Harrogate Spa at DoubleTree by Hilton Majestic Hotel in Harrogate. The spa is set to open this month.