Opening/Starting/Putting Up/Beginning Your Own Spa, Massage Center or Wellness C enter by yunesa@yahoo.

com 1 Opening/Starting/Putting-up/Beginning Your Own Spa, Massage Center or Wellness C enter (With Emphasis on Philippine Setting) by Eunice www.yunesa.blogspot.com For several years now, a lot of people are asking me about how to start and what are the steps to make before starting their own spa, massage center or wellness center. I will give you seven (incidentally, my favorite number) MUST and NEEDE D major steps in order for you to be well-prepared in starting your own spa, mas sage or wellness center. BEFORE, and I would like to stress, BEFORE you start yo ur own spa, massage clinic or wellness center. Although not step-by-step and dog matic, this article will approach the issue in contemporary style and focus on t he major things that you should be doing before opening or starting the business . The first and foremost step is for you to identify what type of business will yo u be engaging in. Remember, that starting a business is like accepting a marriag e proposal; you should know what you are getting into. Here in the Philippines, there is a saying that goes hindi yan parang kanin na isusubo na kapag napaso ay iluluwa let us apply that in a business situation, in this field, even if it is p rofitable it is difficult, it will not be easy, and definitely not a walk in the park, whoever said it was di ba? Personally, ask yourself and be able to answer the following questions: Are you putting up a massage center? A spa or a wellnes s center? Let us differentiate the three. A massage center focuses only on massa ge or bodywork therapies. Purely, massages lang ang i-o-offer mo. A spa on the o ther hand is a place where you can get spa treatments aside from massage. Siyemp re kasama na dito ang facials and body treatments. Kung spa ang gusto mong itayo , then identify what type of spa ba ang itatayo mo? Will it be a hotel/resort sp a, medical spa, club spa, cruise ship spa, airport spa, destination spa, home sp a services, atbp. or the most common, the day spa or sometimes referred to as a spalon or a combination of a spa and a salon. A wellness center is a lot more br oad than a spa kasi ang wellness center ay nag-o-offer ng all of the things that I mentioned plus you also offer either fitness and exercise regimens, yoga, mus ic therapy and other activities to enhance the well-being of your clients. Bakit mahalaga na i-dentify mo ang type of business mo especially if you are starting from scratches? Mainly because, the types of services that you will provide wil l depend largely on the type of business na mapipili mo. Of course, the wider th e scope of your services the larger the capital that you will be needing. So, ku ng purely massages lang ang i-o-offer ng business mo mas maliit ang capital as c ompared to a full-scale day spa or a wellness center (So, if you will be offerin g purely massages it will have a lesser capitalization required as compared to a full scale spa or wellness center). Updated 7/14/2009

Opening/Starting/Putting Up/Beginning Your Own Spa, Massage Center or Wellness C enter by yunesa@yahoo.com Secondly, after identifying the type of business that you will be getting into, you have to know the government 2 regulation regarding putting up a spa, massage clinic/ center or wellness center . Directly or indirectly man, you have to know the regulations of the Department of Health (DOH); also the regulations of the Department of Tourism (DOT); Depar tment of Trade and Industry (DTI); and if you are putting up a spa under a corpo ration, eh di isama mo na rin ang Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) plus, dont forget your local government office or mayors office, wherever your establis hment will be located. I will give you a concrete example, kung gusto mong magtayo ng spa, (some) of th e minimum standard requirements in operating a spa establishment in the Philippi nes according to the revised rules and regulations of the Department of Tourism (DOT), would include, but is not limited to: 1. The location should be safe, rep utable and conducive to relaxation. 2. There should be a reception center attend ed by qualified and trained staff with a lounge area commensurate with the size of the spa. 3. There should be clean and separate washroom areas for male and fe male clients. 4. The spa should be able to provide: different types of massages, steam, sauna, water baths and other spa treatments. 5. Locker and treatment roo ms should be separate for male and female clients. 6. There should be suitable f acilities and provisions for the disabled, a well-stocked first aid cabinet, an employees lounge, backroom operations, adequate supply of linens, towels and garm ents, etc. 7. Staff should be trained by internationally recognized institutions or associations; shall be well-groomed, with proper attire and clean. So, there you got a glimpse already of DOTs requirements. Alamin mo rin ang requirements n g ibat-ibang ahensiya ng ating gobyerno (you should also know other government re quirements), like the Department of Health, and other governing bodies, as what I have mentioned above. Third, you have to create your business plan. Nung una (Before), kahit walang bu siness plan okay lang mag start ng business parang before kahit hindi ka nakatap os ng pag-aaral madaling kumuha ng trabaho- not anymore, especially nowadays tha t it is more difficult earning money. Kaya as much as possible, dapat talaga gum awa ka ng business plan. Ika nga, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. If you have partners, sit down with your partners and if you do not have any experience in spa management and operations, sit down together with a spa consultant. The business plan should answer a lot of questions including your expected capitaliz ation, location, marketing, your return of investment, break-even, and a whole l ot of things - especially about financials etc. Your business plan should have a very strong marketing plan. Also, you as an owner or operator should be able to read the numbers. Alamin mong mabuti yung pre-operations na gastusin (Know how much you need even before you operate), yung ROI mo kung kelan, atbp. Then after your business plan Updated 7/14/2009

Opening/Starting/Putting Up/Beginning Your Own Spa, Massage Center or Wellness C enter by yunesa@yahoo.com is finished, have this re-checked by a lawyer and an accountant. This is to ensu re that you are complying with legal laws as well as GAAP (Generally Accepted Ac counting Principles). The accountant will also be able to identify numerical def iciencies ng business mo so you can adjust even before starting and shelling out your hard earned money for capitalization. One of the faults of new spa owners today, is that they invest largely on equipment and products without investing i n their people, not so! You wont go far pag ganun ang ginawa mo. It is not enough for you to train your people with skills and yet, they do not know how to take care of your clients/guests. Maling mali (Very wrong). So, I would really stress out that if you do not know how to operate and manage a spa, go to a spa consul tant (even just for advise) or consider franchising. Of course, if you are consi dering a franchise, you have to investigate and do due diligence. You have a lot to consider also when you go into a franchising agreement, do not just buy a fr anchise and expect the mother company to do everything for you. 3 Marami din ang nagtatanong magkano ba talaga ang capital needed? In actual fact, hindi pwedeng masagot yan with a ball-park figure because it will depend on a h ost of factors like where is your location? Siyempre, if your spa is located in Timbuktu (for example lang) at i-co-compre mo yun sa Day spa in a mall eh di siy empre mas mahal ang capital mo sa mall. It will also depend kung malaki ba yung gusto mong facility like for example, gusto mo sa Timbuktu pero ang lawak naman ng gusto mong facility eh di parang nasa mall ka na rin. It will also depend on the construction costs but to be safe ang pinaka-maliit na home-based massage cl inic (massage clinic lang po ito not spa) ay gagastos ka rin ng 50,000 pesos. Hi ndi pa kasama dito ang operational cost haito lang ay para maka pag start ka. Up to as much as millions and millions of pesos (yes, tama, milyon ang gastos kung full scale spa ang gusto mo). Meron ding nag papa franchise na spa that I have h eard in the provinces na around 50,000 pesos pero wala silang support na ibibiga y sa iyo after you sign their franchise agreement bibili ka lang sa kanila ng pr oducts and that is it. Meron ding branded facial and spa centers na gagastos ka anywhere from 3Million (in Philippine pesos) to around 10 Million. Depende sa iy o kung gusto mo ring mag franchise or what basta ang importante pag mag fra-fran chise ka you know the stability of the company, the support they will give you d uring the operational years of your business, at iba pa. Fourth, is to seek professional help: Maaaring sabihin mo, bakit ko pa kailangan ng professional help marunong naman ako? (why do I need professional help, I can do it on my own) Examples, if you want to put up a website for your spa, contact a web developer/designer. Then since in step #3 you have contacted a spa and we llness consultant already who will guide you in your business idea. The spa cons ultant can recommend products, services and suitable materials for your concept. They will save you an enormous amount of money, time and effort by their profes sional advice. It is better to shell out a minimal amount for a spa consultant t han shell out 100,000 pesos (approximately 2,000U$D) as your capital or even mor e without assurance of getting your profit back in the future. The spa and welln ess operations and management consultant will be able to advice you on technical Updated 7/14/2009

Opening/Starting/Putting Up/Beginning Your Own Spa, Massage Center or Wellness C enter by yunesa@yahoo.com things and matters that only a professional would know. The spa consultant shoul d be your trusted adviser. 4 Then the spa consultant should meet your architect, interior designer or constru ction engineer or whoever is in charge of constructing your business establishme nt. I know that it is tempting to do everything yourself, but it is really best if you are doing more strategic and important things that only you can do. Kasi kung ikaw ang gagawa ng lahat (not unless if you are a spa consultant yourself, but even a spa consultant needs the help of a web designer, architect, engineer, etc. di ba?) mapapagod ka ng husto baka hindi pa nagsisimula ang spa mo eh lawi t na dila mo. If you look at the most successful spas, you will observe that the y do have a team of trusted advisors in place. So dont get stuck doing everything yourself. Leave the professionals to do their job and pay them for it. Fifth, although this should already been laid out in your business plan, you sho uld try services for yourself. Ito ang pinaka masarap at favorite kong part. Sco ut and try your competitors in your location. This means most, if not all, compe titors within 15 miles or 25 kilometers from your location. Try their services, observe the cleanliness, how the staff treats you, the ambiance, what you like a nd dont like about their services, etc. This is also the time to ask questions at the reception area like what are their packages and programs, do they accommoda te group scheduling, how long will be the treatment, the price, etc. Be very obs ervant and take mental notes of your experience with them. Every time na lalabas ka sa spa, massage or wellness center nilawrite it all down in a notebook. This will give you a glimpse of their strong and weak points as well as their operat ions. Sixth, by this time, you should have completed your business plan and should be starting out your pre-opening marketing together with training of your staff. Yo ur staff should be trained on both: their skills/technical training and their cl ient services and referral building. If you decide to hire a trainer for their t echnical skills on massage, facials, body treatments, etc. marami tayong magagal ing na trainers especially sa massage. The resource book on massage, spa and wel lness has the most comprehensive list of training centers in the Philippines and abroad. You might be asking, how much is the training? Training period will be dependent on the number of services that you will offer: the more services that you will include in your menu the longer will be your training and therefore wil l result in a higher cost for training. After this, train your staff in marketin g, advertising, promotions, public relations and client care. Especially if you really do not know how the system works. Marketing is not just ads, flyers and p osters. Hindi sapat ang mga ito (these are not enough). One of the most importan t but often neglected aspect is training staff regarding decorum and proper clie nt handling. However skilled your staff is- if the service is bad, if they dont k now how to communicate with clients or they dont ask for another appointment, wal a rin. In short, if they dont ask, they dont get. So, it is very important that yo ur staff should also be trained on things that would make your clients come back for more. Your people represent you, they are your backbone and clients are you r bread and butter. Be sure to train your staff in Updated 7/14/2009

Opening/Starting/Putting Up/Beginning Your Own Spa, Massage Center or Wellness C enter by yunesa@yahoo.com making your clients remember about their experience, how they felt and making th em addicted to the experience. Your spa consultant will guide you through this. 5 Since we are in the topic of how to open or start a spa, massage clinic and well ness center, I would like to stress that although this is a helpful guide, this is nowhere near being complete and perfect. So, the seventh step before you open your spa, massage and wellness center (in the Philippines), is be prepared for glitches, bumps and turns along the way. If you have done your part and what I h ave told you, you would have seen ups and downs along the way, be more prepared and creative to solve the problem and at least by doing so, you would have reduc ed your risk and eliminated possible big problems that would have come along the way. ================================================================================ ==== The first informational blog regarding spa, massage therapy, beauty and wel lness with a focus on the Philippines. Eunices blog and updates are found in this link www.yunesa.blogspot.com Some articles written by Eunice, which you can vie w, read, download and print for FREE. Just click on the links: What term should really be used? Client, Patient, Customer, At Iba Pa Masseur, Massagist, Massage Therapist, At Iba Pa http://yunesa.blogspot.com/2009/03/client-patient-customer -at-iba-pa.html Is the spa, massage therapy and wellness industry included in the Top Businesses to start in these times of global financial challenges? Find out in this articl e so you can adopt and perhaps change your business into profitable ones: Top Bu sinesses to Start in Uncertain Times/Sluggish Economy http://yunesa.blogspot.com /2009/02/top-businesses-to-start-in-uncertain.html If you are an employer these are the things you should ask, or if you are a prospective applicant, job seeker or someone who interviews people, this article can help you answer and ask/prob e questions: http://yunesa.blogspot.com/2009/02/suggested-interview-questions-an d.html Are you a smart boss, staff or employee? This article will give secrets o n how to become a Smartest Spa, Massage Therapist/Practitioner. http://yunesa.bl ogspot.com/2009/02/smartest-spa-massage-therapist-ang.html Do you want to know t he right type of massage for you? Do you you want to know the common types of ma ssage and how it is practiced? This article will give you the glimpse of massage therapies locally and abroad: The Basics of Massage Therapy (Massage 101) http: //yunesa.blogspot.com/2009/02/basics-of-massage-therapy-massage.html Do you want to know how much capital you need to start your own spa, massage clinic or well ness center? Do you want to know what it is like being a spa owner? Do you want to be (really) prepared before you shell out money into putting up your own spa, massage clinic or wellness center? Do you want to know what steps you have to t ake before putting up your own business in this field? Updated 7/14/2009

Opening/Starting/Putting Up/Beginning Your Own Spa, Massage Center or Wellness C enter by yunesa@yahoo.com How to Start, Begin or Open a Spa, Massage Clinic or Wellness Center http://yune sa.blogspot.com/2009/02/organizing-opening-starting-putting-up.html 6 Are you tired of putting up with sexually charged clients? Do you know how to ha ndle sexual harassment in the spa and massage therapy setting? Then this article will definitely help you: Preventing/ Avoiding Sexual Advances during a Spa or Massage session50 ways of Handling Client Advances http://yunesa.blogspot.com/20 09/02/preventing-or-avoiding-sexual-advances.html Do you want to know about Hilo t, Dagdagay and other indigenous therapies of the Philippines? If yes, then read on! A Wee-bit of Philippine Indigenous Therapies with a Focus on Hilot http://y unesa.blogspot.com/2009/02/wee-bit-of-philippine-indigenous.html Rules and Regul ations on How to Become a Licensed Massage Therapist in the Philippines through the help of the Department of Health, here is the new update: How to Be a Licens ed Massage Therapist in the Philippines http://yunesa.blogspot.com/2009/02/how-t o-be-licensed-massage-therapist.html Licensure, Accreditation, Certification and Assessment http://yunesa.blogspot.com/2009/02/licensure-certification-accredita tion.html On anti-aging and Physical Appearances http://yunesa.blogspot.com/2009 /02/on-anti-aging-and-physical-appearances.html How to renew a Massage Therapy L icense in the Philippines: http://yunesa.blogspot.com/2009/05/license-renewal-fo r-massage-therapy-in.html If you want to be updated of spa, massage and wellness activities and events or be a part of a support group What is Meetup all about? http://yunesa.blogspot.com/2009/06/everybodys-meetup-dito-po-sa-atin.html The most comprehensive resource and information guide on the list of training ce nters, magazines, publications, books and literatures both local and internation al are all available in the book, The Spa, Massage and Wellness Resource Guide an d Career Book. The First Book on Spa, Massage and Wellness Resource Book and Care er Guide http://www.scribd.com/doc/6425282/About-the-Book-Spa-Massage-and-Wellne ss-Resource-Guide-andCareer-Book (this has the most comprehensive list of traini ng centers in the Philippines and abroad with tips from professionals and employ ment opportunities, legal laws and regulations, list of employment agencies, how to choose a trainer, and information that you need in order to succeed in this industry and before you shell out money for your tuition or training, there are a lot of ways you can grab a copy of this valuable information para hindi ka mag sayang ng time and money enrolling in trainings you do not even need. This book will give you the information to start right in the industry with secrets you s hould know and being able to find your rainbow in the wonderful world of massage , spa and wellness. 1. You can order it online via www.Amazon.com at 34.95$ 2. Y ou can order it via a Kindle device at $7.99 3. You can order an e-book copy thr ough my blog at www.yunesa.blogspot.com at $19.95 4. You can also get a copy fro m National Bookstores nationwide at P799Pesos 5. For locals only, you can order it from me at local discounted rates with free delivery at 900Pesos (via LBC or FEDEX Air 21. Anywhere in the Philippines. Please allow 1-5 working days If you are looking for a career opportunity, not just a job in the spa, massage therapy and wellness industry, this book is a must read. Updated 7/14/2009

Opening/Starting/Putting Up/Beginning Your Own Spa, Massage Center or Wellness C enter by yunesa@yahoo.com Also, CDs included in the kit for spa management, practice and operations avail able: The Spa and Wellness Business- Understanding the Basics (PowerPoint format ) Seven Deadly Mistakes to Avoid as a Spa Owner and Practitioner in the Spa Well ness Business (PowerPoint format) Spa, Massage and Facial Therapies 101 (The Bas ics) (PowerPoint format) Business Worksheets for Spa and Massage Business in the Philippines (Excel and Word format/program includes all the financial worksheet s you need in computing for your operational cost, etc.) 7 This article is written by: Eunice Estipona a spa consultant, mentor, advisor, s peaker and lecturer. One of her advocacies is to make healing and information re garding the field of spa, massage and wellness accessible and affordable to ever yone. If you are serious about turning your business or practice around, making the right decisions, getting an unbiased opinion and knowing where to get help, for lectures and other concerns she can be contacted at yunesa@yahoo.com or +639 184745685. To find out how she can help you take your business to the next level , visit her site at http://www.meetup.com/philippinemassagetherapy These along w ith hundreds of resources found locally and abroad are contained in The Spa, Mass age and Wellness Resource and Career Book, the first book of resource information to know more about the Spa, Massage and Wellness Industry in the Philippines an d other countries including the United States, Australia and other Asian countri es. You can view, read, download and print for FREE the books summary at this lin k http://www.scribd.com/doc/6425282/About-the-Book-Spa-Massage-and-Wellness-Reso urce-Guide-andCareer-Book If you are a spa, massage therapy and wellness informa tion seeker the resources contained in the book for you. This book is a collecti on of data and valuable information regarding the spa and massage industry in a global perspective with a focus on the Philippines. Her advocacy in writing the book is to make unbiased information regarding the field of spa, massage and welln ess resources and career, accessible and affordable for everyone. If you are con sidering a career in the massage, spa and wellness industry, this book will prep are you and give you a glimpse of what it is like, the preparation you need to t ake: emotionally, intellectually and financially. In this book, you will learn m ore details in the spa and massage field and the possible paths you can take. Yo u will also learn about local and international training programs offered and nu merous employment possibilities. Giving you much needed information at your fing ertips. You can order it from www.Amazon.com or for local Philippine residents, you can email and get in touch with Eunice at yunesa@yahoo.com. TERMS OF REPRINT You can freely distribute a copy of this article provided, that you follow the t erms of reprint. Be certain to read our TERMS OF REPRINT and honor our TERMS OF REPRINT when you use this article. Thank you. Helpful Link: The Digital Millennium Copyright Act Overview http://www.gseis.ucl a.edu/iclp/dmca1.htm Our TERMS OF REPRINT are fully enforcible under the terms of: The Digital Millen nium Copyright Act http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c105:H.R.2281.ENR: *** Digital Reprint Rights *** * If you publish this article in a website/forum/ blo g, etc. You Must Set All URLs or Mailto Addresses in the body of the article AN D in the Authors Resource Box as Hyperlinks (clickable links). Updated 7/14/2009

Opening/Starting/Putting Up/Beginning Your Own Spa, Massage Center or Wellness C enter by yunesa@yahoo.com * Links must remain in the form that we published them. Clean links should point to the Authors links without redirects having been inserted into the copy. * Y ou are not allowed to Change or Delete any Words or Links in the Article or Reso urce Box. Paragraph breaks must be retained with articles. You can change where the paragraph breaks fall, but you cannot eliminate all paragraph breaks as some have chosen to do. * Email Distribution of this article must be done through Op t-in Email Only. No Unsolicited Commercial Email. * You are allowed to format th e layout of the article for proper display of the article in your website or in your ezine, so long as you can maintain the authors interests within the articl e. 8 * You may not use sentences from this article as an input for any software that steals sentences from others in order to build an article with software. The cop yright on this article applies to the "WHOLE" article. *** Author Notification * ** we ask that you notify the author of publication of her work. Eunice can be r eached at: yunesa@yahoo.com *** Print Publication Reprint Rights *** If you desi re to publish this article in a PRINT publication, you must contact the author d irectly for Print Permission at: mailto:yunesa@yahoo.com ============ ========= ========= ========= ========= ========= The content of this article is solely th e property and opinion of its author, Eunice Updated 7/14/2009