SPA INDUSTRY POISED
The Thai spa industry should maintain high growth despite the global eco¬nomic slowdown because of the coun¬try's image and quality service, the Commerce Ministry and the Thai Spa Association said yesterday.
The Thailand Health and Beauty Show kicked off yesterday at the Impact Arena, Muang Thong Thani, highlight
¬ing the spaservice industry and new healthcare technology. The show con¬cludes on Sunday.Commerce Minister Chaiya Sasomsub said Thai healthcare and beauty serv¬ice had high potential to grow as Thailand has become known as a hub of quality medical, beauty and health¬care service.
"People are now more concerned about healthcare. The Thai service industry should grow because of increasing awareness of good health and beauty," he said.
The Department of Export Promotion said the health and beauty industry is expected to increase its exports by 20 per cent to US$3.7 billion (Bt130 bil
¬lion) this year. Thai spas recorded more than 4.6 million visits annually, of which 80 per cent are foreigners.Andrew Jacka, president of the Thai Spa Association, said the country is known as the leading spaservice provider in Asia.
Thai spa and healthcare is on the path of growth. The industry is expected to grow by 6 per cent each year from 2008 to 2010, valued at $390 million. Thailand has about 2 per cent market share of the world
's spa industry that is valued at $60 billion.Despite lower margins compared with other countries such as the United States, the Thai spa industry has the quality to boost its market share in the world market amid increasing recogni
¬tion from foreign visitors.Asked about the impact of the world
's economic slowdown, Jacka said Thai spas should focus more on domestic clients as they can have greater fre¬quency of visits, although their spend¬ing may be lower than foreign clients."Although people are likely to spend less on luxury goods, spending on spas and healthcare should increase as people focus more on caring and nurturing their bodies and minds. Thai spaservice providers should do more promotion to increase domestic clients," he said.
He said the spa industry had played a crucial role in pushing Thailand's tourism sector and the economy.
Jacka urged the government to provide more financial support to the sector to increase education and set up specific study programmes to serve rising demand of the industry.
The Thai spa industry is the world's seventh largest employer in the industry, hiring more than 48,000 therapists and skilled labours.
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