Hot Spas in LA: Century City Fitness Club & Spa, Obagi Skin Health Institute and Voda Spa – One is Extremely Hot! By Susie Ellis

After the ALIS event (American Lodging and Investment Summit), I had just enough time to visit three spas in the LA area before my flight back to New York. The first was a quick peek at Century City Fitness Club & Spa by Equinox (formerly the Mystique Spa), then a visit to Obagi Skin Health Institute in Beverly Hills and finally a massage at the new Voda Spa – a new Russian Bathhouse.

Here are my quick impressions:

Century City Fitness Club & Spa: A lot of fitness, a little bit of spa. I understand they are announcing a new “flagship” club and spa soon which they will then roll out to several existing facilities as a model for future Equinox Clubs. It seems like a good strategy to combine fitness and spa …however, it may be a challenge to make it work well. If the Century City location is any indication, these are two different markets and putting them together isn’t all that easy. Think cruise ships adding discos…..that didn’t really work. In my opinion it will take an entirely new model. Looking forward to what Equinox unveils

Obagi Skin Health Institute: My friend Bob Henry built this and he kept telling me about the concept with videos playing in the windows at night, etc. I couldn’t picture it and finally got to see it myself. The fountain he created…basically the word Obagi in huge glass-like letters with a fountain underneath each and lit beautifully. Bingo. He created a tourist attraction on the corner of Canon Drive and Dayton Way in Beverly Hills. A great example of how to make your architecture a marketing piece that works for you on an ongoing basis.

VodaSpa: Perfect example of one of the trends we predicted this year called “The Urban Spa Explorer” – or ethnically rooted spa experiences. VodaSpa is a 15,000 square foot Russian-inspired oasis which very successfully blends the Old World tradition of the Russian banya (one is 220 degrees F – extremely hot!) with a sleek new contemporary décor. Already Jennifer Aniston, John Travolta and the like have been guests. Their photos are outstanding – worth a look.

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