Keeping employees healthy and happy is one big opportunity which the Hyderabad-based spa chain O2 Spa has chosen to tap.
Eyeing the huge potential in corporate wellness, the company, which currently has a chain of 60 spas, has tied up to offer its wellness solutions with the likes of Google, Control S, and temporary engagements with Flipkart and Deloitte.
Having raised $11 million from Banyan Tree Fund, a Mauritius-based PE fund, as a top spa chain, O2 plans to invest $15 million, which includes internal accruals, to facilitate this expansion.
Founded by techies in 2008, it currently has 60 centres across 17 cities, and plans to take this up to 150 outlets by end of year. In addition, it is set to expand its chain of spas in West Asia from 9 to 19 by the end of this fiscal, when it expects to close with revenues of ₹120 crore, up from ₹78 crore last fiscal.
Ritesh Reddy Mastipuram, Founder and Managing Director – O2 Spa, told BusinessLine that “Checking attrition, keeping employees happy and using the available infrastructure in IT parks is something which companies look to. And engaging an experienced partner enables them to better manage their gyms too. As a part of this initiative, we expect a number of corporates to join this initiative.”
“Worldwide, the spa industry is one of the fastest growing and is recognised for its contribution towards wellness. In India, majority of the industry remains unorganised and the Indian consumer is just waking up to the wellness and spa concept,” he said.
The expansion plans, include addition of about 30 outlets in tier I and 60 outlets in tier II cities in India and more than 10 outlets abroad this fiscal.
O2 Spa operates in five different formats that include airports, malls, luxury hotels, standalone properties and luxury trains (railways). It has tie-ups with some of the leading hospitality chains and expects to ramp its network along with them.
Swapna Reddy, Co-Founder and Director, O2 Spa, said: “While deciding on our strategy for growth, we decided to venture abroad. The positive response enabled us to scale up to nine outlets within a short span of two months. The O2 Skills Academy in Hyderabad helped expand easily.”
“We are considering launching our own products related to spa soon,” she said.
All outlets are company-owned, company-operated. O2 Spa chain is engaged with 10 airports and 25 star hotels in India.