THE RISE OF THE WORK-HOME BALANCE: Secret Spa sees a surge in at-home bookings during the working day, as clients make the most of working from home

THE RISE OF THE WORK-HOME BALANCE

Secret Spa sees a surge in at-home bookings during the working day, as clients make the most of working from home

With the Whitehall paper leaked earlier this week, suggesting home working is set to stay, Secret Spa finds that at-home beauty treatments are now being booked during the working day, as clients embrace the ultimate in flexible working and the work-home balance

Peak appointment times move from the evening to daytime hours of 9am - 5pm, as beauty and wellness enthusiasts use app Secret Spa to bring treatments to the convenience and safety of their homes. This is giving clients the ultimate work-home balance, with many multitasking having treatments while they work.

Secret Spa, the mobile hair, beauty and wellness app in London, Manchester, Cheshire and Brighton, has recorded a surge in daytime bookings as working from home becomes the norm for many businesses.

Pre-pandemic, in 2019, 40% of all Secret Spa bookings took place after 6pm with the peak booking time being 7pm, as busy clients rushed home from the office to have their treatments. Since reopening, on 12 April 2021, only 20% of Secret Spa bookings have taken place past 6pm, a 50% reduction on pre-pandemic levels.

Day time bookings have increased by 33% since 2019 with lunchtime bookings up by 46%. In fact, the most popular appointment time for manicures, pedicures, waxing and lashes has moved from after work to 9am in the morning.

Emily Ewart-Perks, Co-Founder of Secret Spa commented: “Working from home and furlough has brought about a move towards day-time booking. Our clients have fed back that without the time spent traveling to the salon they are now able to fit treatments around their work schedule by having professionals come to them. Many have also commented that having a professional come to the home feels not only more convenient, but safer than going to the salon.”

“We see flexible working as an important enabler for the ‘Work-Home Balance’, and the ability to fit stress-free self-care treatments into your working day an important factor. Given the turmoil and change the nation has experienced over the past year, we are delighted to see these positive booking trends emerge, showing we are supporting our clients through this difficult time.”

“Many of our clients have fed back that they are more control of their schedules than ever before, and feel they can fit in treatments around meetings and their work, reclaiming precious free time in the evenings. Many have stated that taking a break in the day actually improves their productivity and seeing a friendly therapist enables them to cope with the solitude of home working.”

“One client Sarah commented: ‘I have two kids and a busy job in finance, I know exactly what my workload is, and if I can break up the day with a treatment, I will, because I know that I can always log on later to catch-up. There are also treatments that can be done at the same time as working, such as a pedicure or having highlights, and as long as I am able to deliver on what needs to be done, and the treatment does not impact on my work, I don’t see the problem in booking during the day. In fact, I prefer it, as I now have my evenings to spend with my husband or with friends.’’

Treatment breakdown:

• Nails - Morning manicures are now the trend, with peak booking times from 9am. Evening manicures are no longer as popular with bookings down 51% from 2019
• Massage - Morning massages are very busy, but the peak booking hour is 5pm showing that clients are booking this treatment to relieve the stress of a day at work
• Tans - Tanning remains a popular evening treatment for many, but there has been a surge in afternoon tan bookings
• Waxing - Morning and lunchtime waxing is now the trend with 9am as the busiest hour.. Lunchtime waxing is up 90% on 2019
• Lashes & Brows - Are no longer popular treatments to have in the evening with the busiest time for the treatments at 9am
• Hair Styling - Early morning blow dries remain popular, however a lunch time blow dry is over 50% more popular than 2019
• Facial - The lunchtime facial has become hugely popular with bookings up by more than double (up 134% in comparison to 2019) and 11am is the peak booking time
• Make-up - bookings have shown less change, as most are driven by evening events during the week

To book treatments, visit secretspa.co.uk or download the Secret Spa app via the App Store

ENDS

For more information please contact: emily@secretspa.co.uk / 07970 793 037

About Secret Spa

Secret Spa is a mobile beauty and wellness app delivering a full range salon and spa treatments at home across London, Manchester and Brighton. Founded in October 2016 by siblings Emily and Rider, they had one mission in mind – to reimagine the way we consume beauty and wellness services by using the latest technology and challenging the need for fixed premises. The resulting service grants even the busiest people seamless access to high-quality beauty & wellness services that make them feel great. Integral to their vision was liberating talented beauty professionals from salons, where they often suffer minimal pay, inflexible working hours and a lack of long-term prospects. As ever-increasing numbers of consumers shift to having treatments at home, Secret Spa remains the only mobile beauty service committed to championing their freelance therapists by placing them at the heart of the business.