134 AsiaSpa November/December 2017
Chami Jotisalikorn, Author, Journalist and
Communications Consultant
Chami Jotisalikorn is a journalist and author
of over 10 coffee table books on Asian spas,
interiors, and luxury travel. Her blog Barefoot
Luxe is Asia’s top luxury travel and wellness
blog. She contributes to newspapers and
travel and spa guides and is a Wellness Travel
Expert for Spafinder USA. She works as a
communications consultant for niche clients
such as boutique hotels, spa and wellness
retreats, and designers.Susie Ellis, Chairman and CEO, Global
Wellness Summit
As chairman and CEO of the Global Wellness
Summit (GWS), Susie Ellis guides this gathering
for top executives around the world that takes
place in a different country each year. Ellis is
also chairman and CEO of the not-for-profit
Global Wellness Institute (GWI), a world
authority and think-tank for wellness-related
industries. Susie Ellis is recognised as a leading
authority on spa and wellness worldwide and
is especially known for her annual Spa and
Wellness Trends Forecast. She is the recipient
of the International Spa Association’s Visionary
Award.Faridah Ahmad Fadzil, Founding President of
Malaysian Association of Wellness and Spa
Faridah Binti Ahmad Fadzil is the co-founder of
Tanamera, a natural range of spa and lifestyle
product. Apart from overseeing Tanamera
Malaysian and export business, Faridah
travels extensively to give talks internationally.
Faridah’s passion for the Wellness and Spa
industry have led her and her colleagues to
set up the Malaysian Association of Wellness
and Spa in 2010 and was the association’s
president from 2010 to 2015. She was also
recently elected as a committee member for
Asia Pacific Spa and Wellness Coalition.Nealy Fischer, Founder and Director of The
Flexible Chef
Nealy Fischer is the founder and director of
The Flexible Chef, a global lifestyle brand
that offers creative solutions to become more
confident, savvy, and chef-like in your kitchen
and your life. Fischer has been a leader in the
wellness industry for more than two decades,
designing and leading immersive cooking
events, luxury yoga retreats, and women’s
wellness empowerment programmes around
the world.Najwa Green, Director Spa Services &
Products International, PT Élan Quality
Hospitality
With 30 years consulting for renowned global
and local brands in the hotel, banking and
airline industries, Green is undoubtedly one
of the most qualified professionals in her field.
Implementing and maintaining extremely
high standards for numerous award-winning
luxury brands, she takes great pride in creating
bespoke and innovative spa treatments. She is
passionate about training, skills development
and specialises in customised programmes to
bring out the best in therapists and all levels of
industry personnel.Samantha Foster, Director, DSM and President,
IHWA
Foster is on a mission to make the world
happier and healthier, and as one of Asia’s
leading wellness consultants, she is excited by
the Wellness industry’s fast-growing ability to
change lives. She specialises in creating and
managing bespoke health resorts and wellness
centres, drawing on the full spectrum of healing;
from ancient systems of traditional medicine
through to cutting-edge functional medicine
and biohacking. A passionate educator,
writer and speaker, Foster is also the founding
President of not-for-profit International Health
& Wellness Alliance (IHWA).Andrew Jacka, Director, Spa Origins
Jacka is a veteran of the Asian spa industry,
celebrating a career spanning 40 years in
hospitality. He heads up two not-for-profit
organisations: Global Wellness Day Thailand,
and the Singaporean-based Asia Pacific
Spa & Wellness Coalition (APSWC) which
organises the industry’s annual Round Table.
His Bangkok-based Spa Origins specialises
in the provision of spa consultancy services
(part or whole project) working from concept
through to operational opening and beyond
as is appropriate.ASIASPA AWARDS JUDGES
Maggie Gunning, Spa Consultant
Maggie Gunning has gained much of her spa
experience in Asia and Europe, honing her skills
in all aspects of spa health and consultancy.
Clients range from large international hotel
groups through to luxury, boutique hotel
spas. Gunning’s areas of expertise include
market feasibility, full concept and branding
development, technical services, financial
performance forecast as well as pre and post
opening services.Johnny Chang, Founder & CEO, Spa
Solutions Training & Management
Consultancy
Founder and CEO of Spa Solutions Shanghai,
Johnny Chang has more than 20 years of
international hotel spa and spa products
branding experience in China. He acts as a
bridge of East and West, offering all-round spa
and product brands development consultation
and training services to turn their passion
into reality.Jo Foley, Freelance Writer, Editor and Media
Consultant
Jo Foley has been visiting, writing about and
reviewing spas on four continents for almost 30
years for publication as diverse as the Financial
Times, Vanity Fair, Departures and the Daily
Telegraph. She has also consulted on spas for
groups including One&Only, The Dorchester
Collection as well as a number of stand-alones.
She has enjoyed much pampering, endured
many fastings and retreats and explained the
need we all have for time, space and peace of
mind which is offered in some of the best holistic
healing centres across the world.