Libsyn Directory

Live from The Global Wellness Summit in Dubai: Five Experts on The Future of Wellness and Spa Management

Release Date: 11/26/2025

Is "New Year New You" The Wrong Approach? An Interview with Jennifer Walsh

StarrCast

What if the pressure to reinvent yourself every January is actually pulling you further away from who you already are? In this episode of StarrCast Podcast, host Lisa Starr sits down with Jennifer Walsh to explore why remembering your natural intelligence matters more than optimizing your life, your body, or your productivity. Together, they unpack how presence, ancestral wisdom, and human connection offer a more sustainable path to wellbeing in an increasingly artificial world. What You’ll Learn: Why the “new year, new you” mindset can create unnecessary guilt and burnout How...

From Farm to Five-Star Spa: Michael Madreiter on Building Puradies in the Austrian Alps

StarrCast

In this inspiring episode of The StarrCast Podcast, host Lisa Starr travels to the breathtaking Austrian Alps to explore how strategic wellness development is transforming mountain destinations. Against the dramatic backdrop of Leogang's limestone peaks, Lisa visits Puradies eco-resort and sits down with owner Michael Madreiter to discuss the property's stunning Heaven Spa expansion and the remarkable story of how this region has achieved consistent double-digit growth through thoughtful spa and wellness investment. Michael shares the 185-year family farming legacy that informs...

Darkness Retreats, Sensory Reduction, and the New Trend of Nervous System Recovery

StarrCast

What happens when darkness becomes the environment for insight, recovery, and self regulation? In this episode of the StarrCast Podcast, we explore the rise of structured darkness retreats and why they are gaining traction across wellness, hospitality, and performance focused audiences. Guests Ananda Jey (AJ) and Diederik van Middelkoop unpack how controlled sensory deprivation is being reinterpreted as a tool for nervous system regulation, psychological clarity, and long term wellbeing. Listeners will gain a grounded, experience driven understanding of why darkness retreats are moving...

Creating the Next Generation of Wellness Hotels

StarrCast

What happens when four of the most respected voices in global wellness hospitality gather in Milan to dissect the future of spa, hotel, and guest experience design? This episode brings together Matteo Brusaferri, Emlyn Brown, Lynn Curry, and Laszlo Puczko for a rare, insight-packed conversation recorded live at the Wellness Hospitality Conference. From evolving guest expectations to seismic shifts in design, investment, and operational strategy, this dialogue explores how wellness is redefining the fabric of hospitality worldwide. Listeners will walk away with a sharper understanding of the...

Inside The Rise of "Soft-Cold" Snow Rooms in Modern Wellness, with guest Sara Brenninger

StarrCast

What happens when one of the world’s leading snowmaking innovators brings winter indoors, and transforms wellness in the process? In this episode, I sit down with Sara Brenninger, the visionary shaping the future of indoor snow experiences at TechnoAlpin. We explore how engineered snow, biophilic design, and cold-contrast experiences are reshaping wellness architecture, guest rituals, and the business models behind next-generation spa environments. What You’ll Learn: How indoor snow technology evolved from slope-making to multisensory wellness environments Why soft-cold modalities are...

Live from The Global Wellness Summit in Dubai: Five Experts on The Future of Wellness and Spa Management

StarrCast

What happens when four global leaders in wellness, integrative health, and spa innovation come together to discuss the future of wellbeing? This week, The StarrCast is proud to bring you an amazing roundtable of experts, live from The Global Wellness Summit in Dubai: Dr. Kathryn Dundas is a leader in integrative health and clinical wellbeing, known for her evidence-based, assessment-driven approach to personalized care. Kirsty MacCormick is a global spa and wellness strategist recognized for building operational systems, signature experiences, and high-performing teams across luxury...

How Emotional Intelligence and Personalization Are Creating Human-Centered Hospitality, with Magdy Abdelaty

StarrCast

What happens when luxury hospitality, holistic wellness, and human transformation intersect? In this conversation with Magdy Abdelaty, we explore how modern wellness leaders are redefining the guest journey through emotional intelligence, culture-driven design, and deeply personalized experiences. This episode reveals why wellness is shifting from a service to a philosophy, and what the next generation of spa and wellness leadership must embrace to stay relevant, regenerative, and meaningful. What You’ll Learn: Why wellness no longer belongs in a silo, and how to embed it across the entire...

How Four Seasons Costa Rica is Designing the Future of Spa, with Arnaud Dieutegard

StarrCast

Can a spa director also be a systems thinker, a creative artist, and a human performance strategist? In this episode, Arnaud Dieutegard, Senior Director of Wellness, Spa & Retail at Four Seasons Costa Rica, shares how he’s reimagining resort wellness, from creative leadership and culturally rooted experiences to peak performance programs grounded in science. Listeners will hear how one property is using data, design, and disciplined creativity to move beyond “amenities” and build a truly transformational wellness ecosystem for guests. Arnaud traces his journey from a wellness-focused...

How Chiva-Som Is Redefining Evidence-Based Wellness, with Dr. Jason Culp

StarrCast

What happens when science meets soulful healing? In this episode of the Starrcast Podcast, Dr. Jason Culp, Director of Research & Development at Chiva-Som International Health Resort, reveals how integrative wellness is evolving beyond luxury into a global movement rooted in evidence, empathy, and everyday choices. From Thailand’s pioneering Chiva-Som to the rise of holistic health leadership, this conversation redefines what it means to live well, and lead well, in a world driven by change. What You’ll Learn: How naturopathic medicine bridges the gap between science and...

Adam Tanaka on Wellness As Part of Civic Infrastructure

StarrCast

What if wellness could be scaled like culture? In this episode of Starrcast, host Lisa Starr sits down with Adam Bamba-Tanaka, Chief Operating Officer of Therme Group U.S., to explore how the global company is redefining bathing culture for the 21st century. From Bucharest to Dallas, Tanaka unpacks the intersection of urban design, sustainability, and social wellness, revealing how Therme is creating civic-scale wellness destinations that merge architecture, technology, and community. What You’ll Learn: How Therme Group is transforming ancient bathing rituals into modern wellness...

More Episodes

What happens when four global leaders in wellness, integrative health, and spa innovation come together to discuss the future of wellbeing?

This week, The StarrCast is proud to bring you an amazing roundtable of experts, live from The Global Wellness Summit in Dubai:

Dr. Kathryn Dundas is a leader in integrative health and clinical wellbeing, known for her evidence-based, assessment-driven approach to personalized care.

Kirsty MacCormick is a global spa and wellness strategist recognized for building operational systems, signature experiences, and high-performing teams across luxury hospitality.

Rod Derifield is a senior executive in wellness operations whose expertise spans business development, facility programming, and experience-led wellness models.

Anke Brendt is a specialist in emotional wellness, coaching, and organizational transformation, focused on human-centered placemaking and staff wellbeing.

Together, we unpack the systems, strategies, and mindset shifts shaping how clinics, resorts, and wellness brands deliver transformative results. From data-driven health optimization to the rise of emotional wellbeing programs, you’ll hear diverse perspectives that reveal where the industry is truly heading, and what it takes to stay ahead.

Whether you're designing wellness experiences, operating a destination spa, or navigating the intersection of healthcare and hospitality, this conversation offers clarity, direction, and grounded insight into the evolving landscape.

What You’ll Learn:

Why emotional wellbeing and mental resilience programs are becoming essential pillars of modern wellness
How clinics and wellness centers can use data, diagnostics, and assessment-driven programming to increase impact
The rise of integrative health models that bridge lifestyle medicine, psychological support, and spa therapies
Operational insights on staffing, training, and culture-building across multi-national wellness organizations
The next wave of consumer expectations, from personalization to preventative health to holistic recovery

Episode Highlights:

00:00 – What is driving the next wave of global wellness growth?
05:20 – Emotional wellbeing: Why it’s no longer optional for wellness brands
12:10 – Integrative health: How clinics merge diagnostics, lifestyle medicine, and therapeutic care
18:45 – Operational excellence: Training, staffing, and culture in multi-location wellness organizations
27:30 – Creating psychological safety for guests and staff in high-touch wellness environments
35:40 – Personalization at scale: Where data, assessment, and programming intersect
42:10 – Predictions for 2025: Consumer shifts, market trends, and new wellness business models

Tools, Frameworks, or Strategies Mentioned:

Assessment-led wellbeing program design
Emotional wellbeing and psychological safety frameworks
Pre-arrival diagnostic models for personalization
Integrated clinical-spa hybrid operating structures
Team culture and leadership development systems

Closing Insight:

“In wellness, people don’t just need care, they need connection, clarity, and a system that supports who they want to become.”

Looking for expert advice in Spa Consulting, with live training and online learning?

Spa Consulting: wynnebusiness.com/spa-management-consulting

Live Training: wynnebusiness.com/live-education

Online Learning: wynnebusiness.com/spa-management-courses

What You’ll Learn:

Episode Highlights:

Tools, Frameworks, or Strategies Mentioned:

Closing Insight:

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