PPCO Twist System

PROFILE
Changing
Ummelina has
become a downtown
Seattle fixture.
with the Times
When Nina Ummel first opened Ummelina International Day Spa in downtown Seattle 27 years ago,
it was the only gig in town, and quickly cornered the
burgeoning market. By 1999 (as DAYSPA noted in our
original Ummelina profile published in the same year),
following a relocation and expansion, it had built up
a clientele numbering an impressive 24,000. “Since
then, spas have been cropping up around here like
wild mushrooms,” jokes Ummel, whose official title
is, fittingly, “chief visionary officer.” “It must be the
all the rain and damp weather!”
Despite increasing competition from in-house
spas at the city’s upscale hotels (“Although, finally,
we weren’t the most expensive place in town!”) and
strip-mall spots in Seattle’s rambling suburbs, Ummel
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and her crew have been able not only to survive but
thrive—even opening a second location in Yakima Valley, an agricultural and wine-producing region around
150 miles south-east of the city, seven years ago.
While Ummelina may no longer be the only option
for Seattleites, the spa maintains name recognition
throughout the Emerald City, and as Ummel notes,
it isn’t uncommon for concierges at those high-end
hotels to send guests to her for what she calls a “truly
unique experience.”
In the spa’s nearly three decades of operation, Seattle
and its residents have changed repeatedly, yet Ummel
has had the almost uncanny ability to stay ahead of the
trends and times. Her secret? You might say it’s the core
principles and ideals behind Ummelina that will likely
PHOTOS COURTESY UMMELINA INTERNATIONAL DAY SPA
Nearly three decades after opening, Ummelina International Day Spa is still
rising to the occasion. By Shari Goldhagen
Ummelina’s rituals and journeys have been almost equally
embraced by both sexes.
ensure its place as one of the Pacific Northwest’s top
spas for the next 27 years—and beyond.
THE ORIGINAL ORGANIC
For Ummel, who grew up on a farm in a Mennonite
community in Indiana, natural ingredients were paramount to her vision from day one. “My background
was all about herbs and healing,” she shares. “When
I was a kid, I learned that if I got a splinter, I shouldn’t
dig it out but instead put the right salve on at night
and it would come out on its own in the morning.”
As Ummel began concocting her own skincare and
beauty products, she incorporated that early knowledge, shying away from chemicals and preservatives
and focusing on elements of “land and sea”—especially seaweed, which finds its way into a good chunk
of the spa’s eponymous product line.
In recent years, the industry has caught on, as
clients clamor for “green” treatments and tonics.
“When I started, that option simply didn’t exist in this
country. Now the choices are everywhere, so it’s easier
to find suppliers and ingredients for our formulas,”
says Ummel, adding that “there’s more to running a
truly eco-friendly spa than simply slapping on a fancy
label or coat of moss-colored paint”—something
she hopes eco-conscious consumers appreciate. “It’s
different to have an owner who truly believes in the
organic, natural approach than one who is simply following the trend. It’s about how the business is built,
how the staff and clients are educated, about their
core policies.”
Indeed, nature can be felt in every area of both
Ummelina locations, where earthly features inspire
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the names of key interior spaces: the Desert (dry heat
sauna), Rainforest (steam torrent showers and jetted
hose) and Well (staff dispensary, where the various
salts and essential oils are stored and mixed).
THE EVER-EVOLVING CUSTOMER
A great point of pride for Ummel is the scores of
original customers who have followed her through
the years and expansions and who still come in for
regular treatments. “I’ve always stressed the concept
of ‘preventive’ care rather than ‘pampering,’” she
says. “When people can see the difference in their
body or skin, they understand the importance of return visits and don’t just regard us as an unnecessary
luxury.” Several loyal clients have even brought in
their children and grandchildren for a first spa experience, making Ummelina truly generational.
Long-time clients aside, Ummel has seen some
major shifts in what people are looking for in a day
spa, especially since the recession began. “One of
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the things we’ve noticed
in recent years is that not
everyone wants the full day
experience anymore,” she
says. “For our Yakima spa,
it’s still about a retreat, but
in the city location, a lot of
people want to stop in during their lunch or as a break
from shopping… they want
to spend a half hour here,
not four hours.”
Ummelina still boasts a
range of extravagant, ultraluxe packages—or “journeys” as they’re called—
such as the Full Moon (7
hrs./$585-$610), which features a hydro
treatment, sea salt scrub, massage, facial, seaweed mani-pedi and light fare
in the adjacent Tea Spa. But it has also
added several shorter treatments with
price points at $60 or under, including
an Asian-inspired Aromatic Foot Bath
Ritual (15 min./$20), a scent-infused
bath known as the Aromatic Waters
Ritual (30 min./$45-$55), several halfhour massages and various manicures
and pedicures.
In addition, Ummel acquired the
space across from the main facility of
the Seattle location and turned it into
the Tea Spa, where customers can
stop by and enjoy a cup of one of 26
hand-blended herbal teas, as well as an
Aromatic Handwashing Ritual ($10 per
Clients take time for tea after their treatments.
person) or instructive Cross-Cultural Tea
Ritual ($20 per person), both of which
can be booked by sole spa-goers or by
groups. “We’ve found that people—
women especially—have trouble getting
off the clock and stepping away from
their responsibilities, so we wanted to
open things up and provide quick ways
for people to be able to relax,” says
Ummel. “We want to serve as a retreat,
whether you’re spending $300 or $20.”
Another change in the client base
over the years? The level of testosterone. A full 40% of Ummelina customers
are male, an audience that Ummel and
chief of operations Meghann Lawrence actively court, with specialized
Even pre- and post-treatment periods are therapeutic experiences.
1.800.562.5377
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rituals and packages just for the boys,
including the Safari Journey (2¾ – 4¼
hrs./$310-$330), featuring an aromatic
hydro treatment, a “Shavel” shaving
ritual and a seaweed mani-pedi.
“When we expanded to our current
location (in 1997), I intended for the spa
to appeal to both men and women—the
design focused on nature and wasn’t
feminine or pink in the way a lot of
the European-style spas were,” says
Ummel. “I also purchased equipment
specifically for men: extra-wide massage
tables, larger chairs, multi-jetted showers positioned for taller people, as well
as robes that fit. We want men to really
feel welcome here, not like they’re an
afterthought.”
Similarly, Ummel was way ahead
of the field when it came to anticipating the growth of couples’ treatments,
which have become some of Ummelina’s top sellers. The entire Yakima
Valley location was designed to accommodate solo or duo treatments.
And both spas allow men and women
to share common areas—lounges and
changing rooms—which not only boosts
a couple’s enjoyment quotient but also
maximizes space. “If 40% of our clients are men, having separate facilities
means that only around half our clients
can use any given space!” (Ummel notes
that anyone with reservations about
what goes on in those shared areas
need not worry, and clients are clearly
advised that couples’ treatments are to
be “scentual not sexual” experiences!)
OPERATIONAL SHIFTS
Of course, it isn’t only Ummelina’s clientele but also its employees who have
evolved over time. Although a few of the
spa’s 40 staff members have celebrated
a decade or more with the company,
Ummel has noticed a definite change in
new hires.
“Massage training in Seattle was
always pretty comprehensive, but for
facials and nail care, the education has
really improved,” she shares. “We used
to have to train estheticians for a month
because very few of them knew how to
analyze the skin or understood how it
worked in conjunction with the body’s
systems. And, we used to spend at
least three weeks training manicurists.”
Although management still takes time
to make sure newbies are familiar with
the spa’s high-tech equipment and herbal emphasis, most Ummelina employees
now carry multiple certifications and can
perform a variety of services.
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Year opened: 1986
Size: 5,600 sq. ft. (Seattle); 3,700 sq. ft. (Yakima Valley)
Facility: 7 multi-purpose rooms; 2 baths; lounge area; Global Remedies store; Tea Spa (Seattle);
4 treatment rooms; 2 baths; lounge area; Global Remedies store; Tea Spa (Yakima Valley)
Staffing: 40
Most popular treatments: Celebration Massage (30-90 min./$60-$145); Aromatic Hot
Stone Ritual (60-90 min./$120-$160)
Average service ticket: $130
Product lines: Bucky Hotties comfort accessories; LOMA hair care; Ummelina skin and
body and aromatherapy products; teas
remained steadfast is Ummelina’s “tribal” method of management, in which
employees at all levels learn from each
other and work in a circular fashion.
“In some spas employees expect the
spa to bring clients to them, but here
we operate on the premise that it takes
everyone personally doing what we call
‘guerrilla’ marketing, which is just our
way of saying everyone gets out and
spreads the word!”
One of the biggest changes for any
business operating in the past 15 years
has been the techno explosion, and
Ummelina has been no exception. Ten
years ago, Ummel partnered with Lawrence to help beef up the spa’s online
presence and update its marketing strategies. Currently, Ummelina sells 35% of
its treatments and 15% of its products
via the Web. It even enjoys a popular
Facebook page and Twitter feed, though
Ummel isn’t keen on all aspects of the
brave new social media world. “With
the recession, the spa marketing environment has been flooded with Groupon and other such offers to get people
in the door,” she shares. “But in my experience, this type of marketing breeds
a non-loyal client—people just looking
for a deal.”
With her proven record of success,
Ummel is looking toward the future,
even as she recognizes that the current
economic climate makes it an uphill—
yet exciting—battle. “My love is education and product development, so I’m
looking to do more in that direction. We
want to expand the wholesale distribution of our product lines and introduce
more spa cuisine,” she says. And where
will she be in 27 years? “Well, by then
I’ll be close to 90,” she reflects, “so
hopefully I’ll be checking into the spa
and reaping the benefits myself!”
Shari Goldhagen is a New York City-based
freelance writer.