Spas will have to fend off increasing competition from retailers such as Target and Gap, as they step up sales of bath, beauty, and at-home spa products. The trend is fueled by mass market interest in luxury goods, and by harried consumers who don't have the time or inclination to go to a spa.
'Ten years ago, most Americans hadn't even heard of a spa outside of a small group of higher-income consumers,' says Tom Vierhile, director of Product Scan Online a division of researcher Datamonitor. 'Today, you can get spa products everywhere.' (See SpaTrade.com, 2/19/06 'Self-Prescribed' Home Spa Products Pose Industry Challenges").
Gap has hired Annette McEvoy, a founding executive of Bath & Body Works, to help launch a new personal-care collection for GapBody. Today, Bath & Body Works is one of Limited Brands' biggest divisions, with $2.1 billion of sales and 1,600 stores nationwide. In March, discount store chain Target introduced its own bath and body line, with 20 new items ranging from high-end spa products to a personal-care line for men.
'Ten years ago, most Americans hadn't even heard of a spa outside of a small group of higher-income consumers,' says Tom Vierhile, director of Product Scan Online a division of researcher Datamonitor. 'Today, you can get spa products everywhere.' (See SpaTrade.com, 2/19/06 'Self-Prescribed' Home Spa Products Pose Industry Challenges").
Gap has hired Annette McEvoy, a founding executive of Bath & Body Works, to help launch a new personal-care collection for GapBody. Today, Bath & Body Works is one of Limited Brands' biggest divisions, with $2.1 billion of sales and 1,600 stores nationwide. In March, discount store chain Target introduced its own bath and body line, with 20 new items ranging from high-end spa products to a personal-care line for men.