I recently returned from the 2018 ISPA Conference & Expo in Phoenix, where I got the chance to talk about, and advocate on behalf of, our amazing members. My session was called “Recruiting, Hiring, and Supporting Massage Therapists,” and I can tell you there are plenty of people out there looking to do the first two of those three things. One statistic I heard at the conference is that there are an estimated 38,000 open jobs for massage therapists in the spa industry.
During its September conference in Phoenix, the International SPA Association (ISPA) released its full annual findings of spa industry indicators, reporting a record high in total spa industry revenue at over $17.5 billion in 2017.
In the September/October 2018 issue of Massage & Bodywork magazine, Michael’s got a great article here about specializing (or niching) in your massage business.
But … most massage therapists get a little punchy when we first suggest this technique. It can be a tough concept to grasp and a little scary to execute.
ABMP and the Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation (COMTA) kicked off an exclusive partnership at the 2018 ABMP School Forum, where COMTA Chair Cliff Korn and Executive Director Dawn Hogue awarded a COMTA-Endorsed Curriculum Program scholarship to ABMP Premier School Santa Barbara Body Therapy Institute (SBBTI).