.svg){kind=small}
Day one
The pre-ISPA hike, organized by We Work Well, has become a tradition that I love – spending a few hours in the morning before the conference connecting with nature and networking in a way that feels effortless with old friends and new connections. This year’s hike was at the Garden of the Gods, on a spectacular spring morning with brilliant sunshine and incredible views of the red rocks, also known as ‘fins’, around this beautiful protected preserve.
On the first morning of the conference, Kelleye Martin, our ISPA Chair welcomed the audience of almost 2,000 attendees, sponsors and exhibitors to celebrate ISPA’s 35th year! At 102 years old, Deborah Szekely presented the Alex Szekely Humanitarian Award to Amy Purdy via video conference.
As a former massage therapist, Amy had always dreamed of attending ISPA. She spoke emotionally about being on stage and accepting this award as a full-circle moment for her. At 19, she went to work one day but fell sick with meningococcal meningitis; her feet, hands and nose turned blue, and upon arriving at the hospital she was given a 2% chance of survival. Amy survived but lost both her legs in the process.
“Physically and emotionally broken” Amy explained, she had to let go of her old self and embrace her new reality. Amy spoke lightheartedly about changing her height with different prosthetic legs depending on the height of the guy she was dating and adjusting the size of her feet based on the shoes that she wanted to wear!
After a traumatic first attempt at snowboarding again, she dedicated herself to creating the prosthetics that would give her the range of motion needed to snowboard. Amy returned to work as a massage therapist at Canyon Ranch Las Vegas, with her mom, who also got trained in massage therapy to work alongside her.
Creating the Adaptive Action Sports organization to help others engage in action sports, Amy fought to get snowboarding into the Paralympics, which eventually got accepted. Amy shares that her challenges have become her greatest opportunities and had she not lost her legs, she would not have had the greatest experiences of her life!
Day two
Day two of ISPA’s 35th conference started with Colin McIlheney sharing the US spa industry statistics. In 2024, revenue increased by 5.8%, reaching over 22 billion USD. While revenue per visit has surpassed $120 USD, the majority of the increase is due to the higher number of spa visitors.
Christina Tosi, founder of Milk Bar, spoke about creating moments of joy and wonder when you deliver an unexpected gift. Through Covid, their e-commerce business thrived, it was deliberately named a ‘care package business’, in honor of the care packages she received from her mother throughout her childhood. Seeing the effect that a care package can have on people is what motivated her to create desserts and cookies that can be delivered to people wherever they are on special occasions, and also – just because!
Will Guidara, restaurateur, shared his ‘hot dog moment’ with the audience; a group of four visited his restaurant before heading home to Europe and were talking about the amazing culinary experiences they were able to enjoy in New York, however, they didn’t manage to try a New York hot dog. The restaurant server ran out to a hot dog vendor and brought back a typical New York hot dog and served it to them at their table. These moments happen all the time; are you, and your staff, paying enough attention to deliver this level of service at unexpected moments and wow the customer?
Day three
On day three of ISPA, Kelleye Martin welcomed the audience and showed a short video recap of the conference so far, an exuberant display of energy, positivity and love!
The ISPA Dedicated Contributor Award was presented to Anna Moine, a seasoned spa industry consultant who has helped many brands thrive throughout her lengthy career.
Peter Katz took to the stage with a solo guitar performance of his new song. His music was embraced by a youth mentoring camp group, where teenagers learned his music; they even persuaded Peter to join their organization. He reflected on the idea that while we sometimes party to forget, we celebrate to remember!
Peter moved from music into facilitating connection and conversation with groups of people, when he realized the last time he had spent time with his three siblings, just the four of them. When they gathered he posed three questions:
What is the biggest strength/lesson/wisdom that you regularly draw on in your life that you feel you’ve gained from having been part of this family?
What is something you love about yourself that, no matter what changes in your life, you would want to maintain?
If we have the good fortune of being back here again a year from now, what would you most like to be celebrating?
Peter shares the message of celebration: we become what we celebrate. He encouraged the audience to reflect: What stories should you be celebrating? Can you answer these three questions?
What story can you share of a moment when you felt proud of creating an exceptional experience?
What is something you love about how you show up here at (insert business) and that, no matter what changes, you would want to continue?
If you have the good fortune of being back here one year from today, what would you most like to be celebrating?
Despite the journey you are on, or the challenges you are facing, celebrate ‘joy snacks’ – small moments of joy when unexpectedly good things happen during the day.
By Sara Jones, Editor
