About the Global Wellness Institute
The Global Wellness Institute was formally launched on September 12th at the Global Spa & Wellness Summit in Morocco, and then again for the New York press on September 30th.
Board Members
Pete Ellis
Founder & Chairman Emeritus, GSWS
Chairman, Spafinder Wellness, Inc., United States
Pete Ellis, a founder of the GSWS, has devoted his career to creating better experiences for consumers. In 1994–95, he launched the first automotive buying and research website, Autobytel.com, effectively revolutionizing an entire industry. After taking Autobytel public in 1999, Ellis formed Jubilee Investments, which became the majority shareholder of SpaFinder. Under his leadership, it has been transformed from a niche spa information company to the world’s largest spa and wellness marketing and media channel. His Internet technology innovations are part of the Permanent Research Collection at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.
Susie Ellis
Chairman & CEO, GSWS
President, Spafinder Wellness, Inc., United States
Recognized as a driving force behind the evolution of the spa industry from a narrow market sector to the mega industry it is today, Susie Ellis, president of SpaFinder Wellness, is a prominent writer, speaker and analyst and recognized as a leading global authority on spa and wellness. Author of SpaFinder’s annual Spa Trend Forecast and the popular Susie’s Spa and Wellness Blog, Ellis is the recipient of the prestigious International Spa Association’s 2012 Visionary Award and holds a MBA from UCLA.
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Jean-Claude Baumgarten
Chairman & CEO, CREWE Associates
Former President and CEO, World Travel & Tourism Council, France
One of the world’s leading tourism experts, Baumgarten is the recent, past president and CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council, the global authority on the economic and social impact of tourism and travel. For nearly 30 years he held various executive positions with Air France, including serving as Executive Vice President of Corporate, International & Industry Affairs. He is currently Chairman and CEO of CREWE Associates, a management consultancy.
Emanuel Berger
Founder, Berger Hospitality Management GmbH, Switzerland
An expert in luxury hotel management, Mr. Berger serves as a board member for a number of hotel companies and organizations, including the Ecole Hôtelière Lausanne, in addition to providing management and consulting for hotels, spas, luxury goods and event management companies through Berger Hospitality Management.
Anna Bjurstam
VP of Spas & Wellness, Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas, Thailand
Owner, Raison D’Etre, Sweden
Anna Bjurstam has always been dedicated to wellness and has worked in the business for 25 years. With hands-on expertise in wellness and a Master Degree in Business, she has successfully led Raison d’Etre Spas to become one of the leaders in the spa industry. In addition, she has taken over the reigns of Six Senses Spas, which has 30 locations worldwide.
Dr. Marc Cohen
Professor, RMIT University, Australia
Professor Marc Cohen is currently the Foundation Professor of Complementary Medicine at RMIT University, president of the Australasian Integrative Medicine Association. He is a medical doctor with degrees in Western medicine, physiology, and psychological medicine and PhDs in both Chinese medicine and biomedical engineering.
Gina Diez Barroso de Franklin
President & CEO of Grupo Diarq, Mexico
Gina Diez Barroso de Franklin is president & CEO of Grupo Diarq, a Mexico City-based firm with a vision to promote and develop Mexican creativity. Over the last 20 years, the firm has grown to nine subsidiaries with more than 500 employees, running the gamut from real estate development to the creation of the University of Design, Film & Media. Grupo Diarq’s publishing house GYA published the book Harmony, Serenity, Balance: Spectacular Spas of Mexico.
Andrew Gibson
Vice President – Spa and Wellness, FRHI Hotels & Resorts, United Arab Emirates
Mr. Gibson has been appointed to lead and manage the global activities of Mandarin Oriental’s internationally acclaimed luxury spa division. He is a well-known and respected spa professional with 25 years of luxury and diversified hotel and leisure services experience.
Susan Harmsworth
Founder & CEO, ESPA International, United Kingdom
As chief executive and founder of ESPA International, Ms. Harmsworth has revolutionized the luxury spa world from its very inception and ignited a new era in spas of distinction. Since its debut in 1993, ESPA swiftly became the world’s premier, fully integrated spa company; enjoying international acclaim, numerous accolades, and a sophisticated, devoted spa following from the media and international traveler alike.
Mia Kyricos
Chief Brand Officer, Spafinder Wellness, Inc., United States
Mia Kyricos is Chief Brand Officer of the world’s leading spa and wellness digital media and marketing company. She is also Founder of Kyricos & Associates, global strategic advisors to the spa, wellness and hospitality industries. Previously, Mia was Vice President of Core Performance where she oversaw operations of corporate wellness centers, fitness and health-related deployments at Fortune 500 companies. Mia was also the Director of Global Spa Brands & Programming at Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, where she lead spa development, operations and marketing for seven years including the creation of (6) international spa brands for Starwood’s Le Meridien, Sheraton®, St. Regis™, Westin®, W Hotels™ and Luxury Collection™ hotel brands. She has over twenty years of experience dedicated to the spa, wellness and hospitality industries, and simply aspires to help people live well.
Franz Linser, PhD
CEO, Linser Hospitality GmbH, Austria
Franz Linser is founder and managing director of Linser Hospitality, an international consulting firm based in Innsbruck, Austria, and focusing on the hotel, wellness and health industries. One of Frank’s core competences is the tailor-made development of wellness and health concepts, services and products. In 2013, he founded VAYU International, which focuses particularly on the management of medical resorts.
Veer Singh
Founder, Vana Retreats, India
Hoping to create a new paradigm in Wellness, Vana Retreats has set out to bring together the most sincere, authentic and results driven wellness offering, with the best of contemporary high-end hospitality. As the founder of this initiative, Veer hopes to create unique wellness retreats, both in India and abroad.
Professor Mary Tabacchi, PhD
Professor, Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, United States
Professor Mary Tabacchi, PhD, RD, has been active in the spa industry since the early 1980s, when Alex and Deborah Szekely persuaded her to work with the Golden Door and Rancho La Puerta. She created a strong prototype for spa research at the request of the International Spa Association in the early 1990s, the Destination Spa Group, and the Leading Spas of Canada in 2000-2004. Dr. Tabacchi has been teaching spa management and development at Cornell University’s Hospitality Management program since 1985.
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