While Khushboo Vakharia is not Houdini, her spa can wield her magic on your aches and pains. But, is running a spa as stress free as the massages on offer? Dev Goswami finds out more
Khusbhoo Vakharia is the director of Rewa Escape — a concept which combines a holiday with a spa therapy. Intrigued? Read on to find out more.
A spa holiday sounds fantastic! Tell us more about the idea.
With the stress of work life, relaxation cannot be kept aside for an annual holiday anymore. You need to have a place where you can go and think about nothing. Rewa Escape aims to provide stressed out Mumbaikar's a mini-getaway within the city where they can relax, unwind and find themselves and their own points of view.
In your director's message on the Rewa Escape website, you talk about being disconnected from nature and living in a concrete jungle. Tell us about your thoughts on that subject.
A friend of mine visited Mumbai for a day and her only comment was, “I couldn't even see the sky in the narrow lanes filled with tall buildings!” We don't realise, but our exposure to nature in the city is very limited. Many stretches of road in Mumbai do not even have trees, so all we see are tall residential buildings, flyovers and glossy advertisement billboards. This replacement of trees with concrete structures has disconnected us from nature. Nature has a mystical way of making everything right, you can stare into the endless waves of the ocean and find solutions to so many puzzles which are on your mind.
How do you, as a working professional, balance your professional and personal life and incorporate some “me” time in as well?
I am blessed to be living in a joint family, so balancing life becomes easier as my family members pitch in to help me out. Earlier when I had a corporate job, I found it hard to find a balance. So, I consciously decided to become an entrepreneur to have some flexibility. Also, I chose to work in a field that I am passionate about. So, work is fun for me and I don't feel stressed on a daily basis.
Speaking of the spa industry as a career option, tell us what the scope for an India woman in the spa industry is like.
My greatest satisfaction comes from seeing how the lives of people we employ have changed. We consciously decided not to hire Thai or Balinese therapists because I believe that India has a lot of talented individuals who just need the right guidance and opportunity. Most of our team members have studied till the 10th or 12th grade and could not even speak English, but today after going through vigorous training they are confident and skilled therapists who have their own clientele and earn up to `15,000 per month. Going a bit higher, as a manager you can earn up to `60,000 per month. If you look at it from an owner’s point of view, you have to keep in mind that making a profit is a little tough. While, as an industry there is a lot of money, unless you get the right mix of good service and pleasing the guests, you will not be able to turn it into a profitable business for you.
Finally, tell us about your future goals; both personal as well as professional.
Since employment in spas requires vocational skills that can be learnt, my goal is for my business to grow so that we can provide employment and growth opportunities to more and more people. I would love to see my housekeeping boys grow within the company to someday becoming managers! At the same time, we want to provide honest and sincere services to our guests who spend their hard earned money in their search for relaxation. I hope that I can keep a good mix in the future of my professional and personal life as both get more demanding.