The most memorable quote for this week is from Enrico Massaro, Head of Consumer and Retail Investment, EAME, Barclays. ‘True luxury consumers don’t trade down’. He was talking about the phenomenal current trading returns at Hermès, going up when everyone else is going down, but his message applies to all aspects of life. lifestyle and hospitality.
Take wellness. All savvy operators are thinking about more meaningful environments and offerings for those who travel and seek at-peace. RAFFLES AT OVO LONDON has opened its Guerlain Spa. In Budapest. HOTEL CORVINUS KEMPINSKI has invested in a significant re-do of Kempinski The Spa, above. Its treatments include the signature ‘The Hungary Holistic’, based on Hungarian mud – this yields mineral, mechanical and thermal effects, an essential part of spa journeys. Several other treatments and facials are inspired by the ancient Irish tradition of seaweed bathing using VOYA (a derivative of ‘Voyage’), an Irish family-owned and -run wellness company.
Kempinski The Spa has been designed by Krisztina Kováts of Haken Design. ‘Everything is a journey’, she explains. ‘It only takes a moment to turn the most mundane weekday into a journey around the world. As we style our home, we travel. We design worlds in every corner and, at the same time, imperceptibly create the warmth that home means.’ The décor is distinctly Japandi, a blend of Japan and Scandinavia design that is rich in natural, sustainable materials and subdued earth colours that create harmony in a smooth style.
It looks right, and that’s a big plus in today’s luxury travel world.
