Day 1: Face & Body 2009

Cindy Arvayo, right, owner of Beautiful By Design, speaks with spa tour attendees.
Cindy Arvayo, right, owner of Beautiful By Design, speaks with spa tour attendees.

On a bright and sunny Saturday in San Jose, California, Face & Body Spa & Healthy Aging Conference and Expo 2009 launched today. Featuring some first-time events, as well as highly regarded education offerings, the conference and expo is certainly off to an exciting start.

Three special a la carte events—a spa tour, a networking luncheon and a winery tour—and the Advanced Education Conference Program kicked off the show this year, allowing attendees a chance to learn more about the spa industry at large and in San Jose. It also allowed them the chance to learn a little bit more about each other.

In the morning, attendees toured a trio of San Jose spas—Ayoma LifeSpa in the Hotel Valencia, Beautiful By Design and Tova Day Spa in the Fairmont Hotel. At each, they were able to ask the spa owners questions, see unique spaces and treatments, and even find connections and answers among themselves. The tour provided an opportunity for many spa owners to see ideas implemented in different ways, in addition to learning about new ideas altogether.

Next up, at the Networking Luncheon, which was sponsored by San Jose-based Jan Marini Skin Research, spa professionals gathered for a bite to eat along with some industry discussion in The Sainte Claire Hotel’s Courtyard Atrium. Introduced by Skin Inc. magazine editor in chief Melinda Taschetta-Millane, Jan Marini’s Mark Marinovich gave a short presentation on the company and its marketing efforts, then turned the floor over to the luncheoners themselves. Tables of spa owners, estheticians and other skin care professionals chatted about their own spas, experiences and business issues, helping one another discover potential solutions.

The Advanced Education Conference Program debuted next with tracks on Business-building, Esthetic Science, Trends and Wellness/Sustainability. Well-known industry leaders and bright newcomers spoke to conference-goers about the issues affecting today’s spas, working with attendees on overcoming any problems, as well as giving them insights into the trends on the spa industry’s horizon. Those at the conference learned the latest on topics such as depilation, holistic skin care, treatment upgrading and more, taking away valuable information available for immediate implementation.

Saturday capped off with a winery tour and tastings at two local California wineries. Sponsored by Eminence Organic Skin Care, attendees picked up gift bags from the organic skin care company, then trekked into the nearby Santa Cruz Mountains to visit Silver Mountain Vineyards and the Loma Prieta Winery. A casual networking event, the tour and tasting offered spa professionals the chance to talk shop—or not—in a more relaxed setting, with some good wine and a picturesque sunset helping to close the day memorably.

All this, and Face & Body 2009 is just beginning! Tomorrow, attendees will be able to soak up more information from industry experts as the Advanced Education Conference Program continues, and get out on the floor among a wide range of some of the industry’s top suppliers as the expo floor opens!

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