Bridging the gap

Calcot and Spa has recently expanded its fitness offering as the relationship between wellness and fitness becomes increasingly closer. Ellen Cummings spoke to Francesca Rowland to find out more

Set in 220 acres of picturesque Cotswolds countryside, Calcot and Spa is a haven of slow-paced tranquility, but while it may be best known for its quaint farmhouse guest cottages, beautiful spa and idyllic surroundings, Calcot has a new jewel in its crown. The recently opened Grain Store is a dedicated space for fitness and wellbeing, containing a modern gym, workspace, café and three exercise class studios.

The new addition was born out of a desire to increase capacity for both Calcot’s memberships and the spa itself, as creating the Grain Store has enabled Calcot to extend its spa space with a bigger lounge and a deep relaxation room for clients to use after their treatments.

Francesca Rowland, spa director at the Calcot Collection, explains, “We’ve always had a waiting list for memberships and after Covid we saw an influx, so we recognised the rise in demand for both the spa and gym facilities. To increase our capacity for membership, we wanted to create more of a dedicated space.”

Making memberships work

The new spaces have enabled the business to take on new members and increase the number of spa day guests, as well as creating the opportunity for new membership tiers – bronze, silver, gold and platinum. Bronze includes the gym, silver includes gym and exercise classes, gold includes gym and spa facilities, and platinum includes all of the above.

“We created the different tiers so that we can manage the footfall because although we can take extra members, it’s important that we don’t overcrowd the space,” Rowland explains. “One of the reasons for doing this was to make the spa more serene and tranquil, and we need to protect that.”

The Grain Store is also helping to bring in a different demographic, which the Calcot and Spa team intuitively anticipated. “Before the Grain Store, the membership demographic was people in their 50s and 60s. During the design phase, we recognised that this would likely change, so this featured firmly in the gym design in terms of the layout and equipment, and ensuring that the class schedule catered to varying levels of fitness. We do see a younger demographic coming through now.”

However, the team was careful not to alienate its existing members with the changes. “We knew that the target market would be younger than our previous membership, but it suits all of our members because we retained a lot of what we already had so that they wouldn’t feel intimidated coming into a new space after 20 years. They can still do everything they used to do, we’ve just enhanced it.”

Building and design

The renovation process for the Grain Store and spa took two years to complete, with a budget of £5m. Calcot worked with interior design company Sparcstudio, which also designed the original Calcot and Spa 20 years ago, to create the new iteration of the site. The Grain Store was formerly a working agricultural building and it’s remained true to its original form, with an industrial feel provided by tall ceilings, and concrete flooring and corrugated iron on the walls in the gym.

The gym contains Technogym equipment and a Tanita machine for health assessments, while the three studios allow for a schedule of roughly 84 classes per week including kettlebells, barre, group cycle, Pilates, different styles of yoga and more.

Rowland says that what sets the Grain Store apart is the many ways in which people can use it. “It enables guests and members to create healthier habits. They can pop in and do a 30-minute class before work, but equally a lot of people stay here all day because they can work from the Huddle, which is the dedicated working space, then do a class, go for a swim or play some tennis, then meet friends for lunch in the Hive café. It enables people to put a healthy, balanced lifestyle together because there’s something to suit you at any part of your day.”

Fitness and wellness

While the fitness space is now physically separated from the spa building, Rowland says Calcot is keen to keep a synergy between the two. There is an outdoor path which directly links the two buildings, and wellness practices are included in the Grain Store through holistic classes such as meditation, breathwork and sound healing.

Product houses are also kept the same across both, including skincare brand Proverb – and Calcot and Spa is also the first in the UK to have Proverb equipment on the gym floor, with a dedicated Stretch Pod area. Both the personal trainers and the spa therapists are trained in Proverb’s assisted stretch concept, helping to mesh spa and fitness together. Rowland explains, “It’s proving to be really successful. Members can have their assisted stretch delivered by their personal trainer alongside their fitness programme, which helps with flexibility, recovery and injury prevention. This carries over to the spa where therapists can deliver the stretching in a more relaxing environment. It was a bit alien to the PTs at first because they’re not used to being so hands-on but once they did their training, they fell in love with it.”

The spa has also refreshed its treatment menu by partnering with Comfort Zone – a choice Rowland credits to the Italian brand’s sustainability practices and results-driven treatments – alongside its existing offerings from CACI and Jessica.

Brand ethos

Of course, it was important that the new spaces matched the Calcot Collection’s overall brand ethos. Rowland says, “Wellness has always been a really important part of Calcot because the spa was built 20 years ago, so building on that is just enhancing what guests can enjoy as part of their experience. We joke with the general manager now that we’re a spa with a hotel on the side!”

The business recognised that fitness is a crucial part of a wellness offering. “Fitness and wellness are booming,” continues Rowland. “Previously, we used to take our physical and mental health for granted, and some people felt like it was a luxury to invest in it. Now people are treating it as a way of life – it’s a necessity, not a luxury. That’s what we’re hoping to achieve here.”