When you think about making a movie, there’s a lot more to it than just filming the action. Costumes are needed, props, sets, sound and lighting, plus numerous other people behind the scenes. The same is true for a spa. Designers, consultants, products for treatments, candles, soaps, furniture, uniforms, music and retail items are all needed to create a beautiful spa. Along with the mushrooming spa business in Bali, several supporting businesses have blossomed. These businesses range from the cottage industry to much larger organizations.
Before the first spa in Bali even opened its doors, Essentials Spa Products was well under way producing oils and a variety of other spa products with Maureen Treacy their product consultant. She began her career as a naturopathic herbalist. In the eighties she sustained burns to nearly 50% of her body. Despite the doctor’s lack of faith, her indomitable spirit led her to various healing modalities and an osteopath who used natural oils. Maureen truly believes that the essential oils and massage healed her. This twist of fate inspired her to study oils and create exotic and healing concoctions. Shortly after opening, Essentials got their first contract with a department store in the US then later supplied retail products to the Nusa Dua Beach, Mandara, Four Seasons and Elemis Day spas. Essentials factory creates its own brand of bulk and retail products supplying major spas for local and export markets packaged in exquisite bottles and boxes. Being the pioneer of spa products in Bali has led many other companies to copy their products. However, staying ahead of the competition, Essentials creates corporate and wedding gifts. Their newly launched Mini Spa Bar line, beautifully packaged for retail is 100% organic and sure to be a huge success in hotel rooms and retail outlets.
One of the most well known spa product companies in Bali is Spa Factory, which opened in August 2002. The original concept was to provide a mini tour for tourists to see how spa products were made. However, that idea was extinguished after the famous Bali bomb in October 2002. There were few tourists in Bali for a long time after this tragic event and the company would have died too if they didn’t get a large order for products for the Maldives. It was the export market which sustained Spa Factory. Even today 70% of their market is private labels to overseas spas in 28 countries. Maria Satiaputri is the director, whose mother hails from Yogyakarta, which is the heart of traditional Indonesian treatments, which led Maria to start experimenting and creating spa products. From there, Spa Factory was born. Now Spa Factory not only makes treatment products, but also soap, candles and accessories, supplying hotels and private villas with amenities and retail.
They offer four grades of spa products. 1. Generic grade with preservatives for shipping by sea. 2. Natural Dariva, which is 70% natural sources but uses a chemical process. 3. 100% Natural products. 4. Organic, available certified and non-certified. Now Spa Factory has a retail outlet in Singapore, as their business continues to grow.
Herbal Bali was started by Wayan Suaji in 1997 after working as a massage therapist for 20 years. Following in his grandfather’s steps, who was a dukun healer, Wayan became interested in herbs and their healing powers. From his grandfather’s usada lontar he learned to make Boreh, the traditional Balinese paste that rice farmers have been using for centuries to warm sore leg muscles after a day in the rice field. Next he concentrated on making essential oils from Balinese spices such as clove, ginger, kananga, patchouli, lime and lemongrass. After that he created body scrubs with his Balinese version of lulur. Later on he started making soap with natural coconut oil and herbs. In 1999 he started making his own packaging with silk screen designs on colourful paper, which is applied to the boxes. He first started selling his retail products to Hard Rock Hotel, Le Meridian, Ritz Carlton and Four Seasons and still has a strong market here in Bali with retail and wholesale products but he also exports many products now. 30% of his products are 100% natural with the remainder using fragrance oil as opposed to pure essential oils. His cottage industry is still based at his home in Kerobokan with a staff of 12, creating many products from massage oil, scrubs, soap, incense, herbal packs and even some Jamu concoctions.
Banyu Spa Products was started by Erika Dewi in 2002. Her interest in herbs and treatments began when she was a child growing up in Karangasem. Her grandmother taught her how to make herbal health drinks and scrubs to smooth and soften the skin. Later, she worked for Mandara Spas from 1996 – 2001 as a manager. While at Mandara she was certified in basic aromatherapy in 2000. In 2002 she had difficult health problems and used aromatherapy to heal herself. From this experience she became very interested in aromatherapy realizing how powerful the oils can be to balance the body and re-enforce the immune system. This is when she decided to start making her own products using the best quality ingredients as quality is the most important thing that goes into her products. In 2008 she took a long distance aromatherapy course from Australia, ACS Distance Education to enhance her career. Banyu Spa now employs a chemist who maintains quality control and advises on the ingredients to the final products. They supply products and spa accessories like eye pillows, herbal packs, shampoo, hair conditioner and shower gel to local spas and export. One thing very unique about their products is that the products have been infused with bio-energy to make the ingredients absorb into the skin more readily and give energy to the clients. Erika is so proud of her products that she uses them in her home exclusively and never buys products anymore.
The Private Spa is the mother company of Banyu Spa and Perindo Karya, which is managed by Ispi and guided by Erika’s husband Fabrice, the technical adviser. The company started off in 2000, making furnishings and accessories for hotels but became totally spa focused when Erika started her product company. The company now makes spa furniture and accessories. Starting with the portable massage bed, Perindo Karya has become the leader in beautiful massage beds of many styles made from recycled teak to be eco-friendly. They also make reflexology chairs, pedicure chairs, stools, trays and terrazzo bathtubs just to name a few of their products. In 2006 the company began making hydrotherapy and Vitality pools, which is a large hydrotherapy pool with several stations of specially designed water jets to work and detoxify the muscles as in a workout. Except that the water has been Bio-energised to counter-act the negative chlorine effects, turning the time spent in the Chi water into a healing experience also. The company’s latest thing is the Turn Key Project. For anyone who wants to open a spa, this is where to go. They do everything from the concept design, construction from start to finish, supply equipment and furnishings, products, human resources and uniforms. Everything is included until they hand over the key to the door.
One important part of the retail market is the boxes, which now come in a large assortment of sizes, materials, shapes and colours. Inside these gorgeous treasure chests are found soaps, bottles of exotic massage oil, incense, scented bath salts, body scrubs, candles and delicious smelling creams just to name some of the spa treasures. But until 1985 no one was making boxes in Bali. Tabetha was on a sabbatical leave from London and came to Bali for some R&R. But after four months of only having to decide whether to go to the beach or not, she desired to stay in Bali longer but needed something to occupy her creative mind. She looked around for inspiration and decided to try her hand at making boxes. She and her production manager Nengah spent countless hours experimenting with cardboard shapes and sizes, covering them with batik and ikat fabric until they came up with something that was sellable. She started out with a triangular set with four smaller triangles inside. Then she made a square set with 2 small squares and a rectangle inside. Inside the boxes were numerous handicrafts, which sold primarily at hotel gift shops.
25 years ago in Bali, most people didn’t have a phone and Tabetha ran Bali Boxes without a phone for the first 10 years, sending telexes from a communication centre in Kuta to her customers throughout the world. She now has a staff of 40 girls who have been with her for 18 + years to keep the business running smoothly. With so much competition now in Bali, Tabetha doesn’t make as many boxes as she used to; she now focuses on making menus and directories.
To create ambiance in the spa, candles are often used to light corridors, relaxation areas and the treatment rooms. Natural Light Candle Company is well known for their beautiful artistic candles with approximately 700 different designs to choose from. The company was started by Kelly Mangum Marciano in 2004 with the concept of producing high quality candles which promote the art of traditional handicrafts, are beautiful to behold, safe to use, kind to the environment and increase revenue for retail partners. They offer an alternative to paraffin with their own blend of beeswax and sustainable vegetable wax, making them healthier to burn indoors, more eco-friendly and burn twice as long. Did you know that it takes 160,000 bees to produce 1 kg. of wax making it one of nature’s perfect products? This inspires Kelly to put a lot of care and thought into the designs so that each candle is special and hand-made by a family of skilled artisans keeping this traditional handicraft alive. Some of the designs incorporate detailed textures derived from traditional Indonesian motifs plus original sophisticated designs, which are marketable in many countries that they export to. These candles can be found at all Mandara Spas, as well as some of the finer boutique spas in Bali. For those who would like to purchase wholesale, go to their factory on the Bypass in Sanur or look for the new retail shop on Jl. Oberoi.
Besides all the products and equipment necessary to run a spa, one of the most important aspects of a spa is the therapists and how well they have been trained. This is where a spa consultant comes in. Acting as a consultant incorporates several things, concept of the spa, working with the designer and architect, recommending products, developing the menu and training the staff. Usually weeks are devoted to training to achieve perfection in the treatments. Every trainer wants to hear clients say “That was the best treatment I’ve ever had.” If the staff can perform great treatments, success is assured.
