Spa equipment designers and manufacturers Living Earth Crafts are known for their innovative pieces as well as their customer service, but sometimes, those two qualities intersect, creating products that are truly unique.
Since LEC mills and manufacturers solely within their own factories, they often build products specifically for the resort and hotel groups they do business with. So when Todd Hewitt, assistant vice president of spa for Shangri-La, approached the company about creating a product to expand their foot massage rituals, Living Earth Crafts was ready to act.
“Living Earth Crafts has always been known for our ability to build truly bespoke furniture for our clients,” says Brian Paris, EVP of Living Earth Crafts. “We’ve been experiencing our strongest year ever in international sales, partly because we’ve worked so hard in recent years to deepen our relationships with our customers.”
Hewitt and Paris worked together to strategize on a concept for a foot massage table, which was built specifically for the Asian market, where foot massage is an important part of any spa treatment – often at the beginning of a spa ritual. Hewitt wanted a solution that would allow guests to enjoy a foot soak and massage from the same table as a traditional massage, making the transition from the ritual to the main treatment more seamless for the guest and therapist alike.
“Todd is a unique and brilliant spa strategist – he knows how to deliver exceptional services and is the ideal partner,” says Paris. “It only took a few design sessions, and we started to create this beautiful table, working in harmony with his protocols and service standards.”
The resulting product, created by the Living Earth Crafts design team, is the Pan Pacific Convertible Treatment Table – a versatile, luxurious convertible couch with a plumbed foot soaking tub hidden beneath retractable cushions. The tub easily disappears under the table with the push of a button, meaning that after a foot massage or ritual, guests can relax back on the plush table for the next part of their treatment.
The Pan Pacific also features LEC’s Cloudfill upholstered slipcover; an embedded Caress self-adjusting facecradle; and whisper-quiet height adjustments and electric back-tilt, so it can be used for everything from Chinese foot massage to traditional massage, pedicures and manicures. Upgraded upholstery options are also available, as are flex arms, which allow the table to be used for seated treatments like pedicures.
“This was a piece specifically built for the Asian market, but it’s the perfect example of Living Earth Crafts’ ability to create a bespoke masterpiece for one of the world’s most prolific and highly regarded spa operators,” says Paris.
The product was so successful, Shangri-La is now rolling it out across all its spas around the world. “Living Earth Crafts is my go-to company whenever I need any spa equipment – whether traditional massage tables, pedi chairs or getting them to design something completely new on the market,” says Hewitt. “Their customer service is outstanding, which is what has kept me as a loyal customer after all these years.”
One of the reasons for that exceptional customer service may be that Paris has a unique understanding of the clients’ needs; before becoming a partner in Living Earth Crafts, he sold spa equipment, and before that, he was a Living Earth Crafts client.
“Living Earth Crafts has always been the innovator and listened to my needs,” he explains. “Creating extraordinary solutions has always been in the DNA of the company. As a former spa director, it was vital to have unique, yet reliable furniture for my spa. As a builder and designer, there’s nothing more enjoyable than helping create the perfect spa environment.”
