Singapore, 26th April 2007 – Intelligent Spas has conducted the inaugural survey of spa facilities in Taiwan and found 317 spa facilities currently open and operating. The research identified the market is dominated by day spas, which account for 81% of all spas in Taiwan. The report, entitled Spa Industry Profile Taiwan 2006-2008, features over 400 quantitative statistics on the Taiwan spa market, plus supporting qualitative trends and observations from spa owners and managers. It is a valuable tool for businesses competing in, or supporting Taiwan’s spa industry, to more accurately develop and plan spa-related products, services, campaigns and initiatives.

Some key industry totals and averages extracted from the report include:

• Intelligent Spas identified 317 spa facilities located in Taiwan.
• 81% of spas are stand-alone day spas and 6% are spas located in hotels and resorts.
• 48% of all spas were located in Taipei.
• The average indoor area of spa facilities was 457 square metres.
• 43% of the total spa space was allocated to treatment rooms.
• Spas contained 7.8 treatment rooms on average.
• 96% of spas provided a relaxation room.
• Stone therapy was practised by 74% of spas.
• Baths with water and/or air jets were offered by 58% of respondents.
• One hour body wraps were priced from NT$2,563, on average.
• Herbal tea was the most common complimentary food or beverage item provided by spas, with 90% offering it to visitors.
• 59% of respondents observed clients were increasingly demanding high quality services from spas.

“The reliable response rate enabled spa benchmarks to be calculated for stand-alone day spas and spas located in Taipei, enabling more accurate benchmarking and analysis” explained Julie Garrow, Managing Director of Intelligent Spas (www.IntelligentSpas.com), the only 100% independent research company specialising in the spa industry. Some findings include:

• Day spas were larger in terms of indoor space when compared to the average of all spas.
• Day spas contained more treatment rooms.
• Spas in Taipei were designed with less treatment rooms compared to the average of all spas.
• Jacuzzis were less commonly available in Taipei spas.

Source: Intelligent Spas, Spa Industry Profile Taiwan 2006-2008

About the Research

The research primarily aimed to establish reliable industry benchmarks for key infrastructure and operations indicators, encourage businesses to better understand, service and support the spa industry, provide accurate data for the media to reference and generate greater awareness of the spa industry to promote growth in visitation numbers.

The comprehensive profile of the Taiwan spa industry includes survey results relating to spa types, locations, business models, capture rates from primary facilities such as hotels and resorts, infrastructure, supporting facilities, therapies, treatments and programs offered, plus current industry trends. A selection of key survey findings are also broken down to identify benchmarks for day spas and spas located in Taipei. Qualitative observations from spa owners and managers are also summarised. Supporting sections provide a detailed description of the research methodology, an overview of the value of industry statistics and useful facts and information about Taiwan, including an overview of the tourism industry.

The new Spa Industry Profile Taiwan 2006-2008 report is available for purchase and immediate download from www.IntelligentSpas.com.

How to Use Spa Industry Statistics as a Business Tool

Like any other small, medium or large business, it is imperative that analysis and planning activities be conducted to minimise the risk of failure. One of the first questions to ask yourself is "how is my business doing?" and this can easily be answered by comparing your spa’s performance against industry averages. The overall industry average for your country is a useful guideline, however where the survey response rates are high enough, industry averages may be broken down further to enable more accurate analysis by calculating, for example, industry averages for your particular type of spa and industry averages for your spa’s specific location.

Unique and common facilities and service offerings may also be measured and analysed to assist the planning for the business’ future. Consider: At what point does a facility or service offering change from a consumer novelty to a consumer expectation? If for example, a high proportion of spas offer a relaxation room, one may assume as spa consumers become more experienced, they may come to expect a relaxing area within a spa and be disappointed if they do not have the opportunity to enjoy that type of facility before and/or after their spa treatment.