**Editor Note** This article was published by Sarah Frank of Peterborough This Week but we had to share the exciting news with our readers and clients! Big things are in store for The Urban Spa.
After spending two years of building up a solid client base in East City, The Urban Spa is planning to triple in size and double its team of staff.
It’s a bold move but spa owners Jean-Guy Francoeur and his wife Kerri Holley say they’ve been booked up at the spa for some time and they need the space.
In fact, Mr. Francoeur says the business has seen rapid success since it first opened its doors in Peterborough– something he credits to the spa’s ability to cultivate a culture that makes clients feel at home while offering a unique experience.
“Right from the start, we knew we had to be different,” Mr. Francoeur says. “And we are — this is different than the average spa. We play lounge music, not Enya… we offer lattes at no extra charge and we don’t have magazines, we have iPads.”
The spa recently had all of its online platforms redesigned to become more mobile friendly and now nearly all of their bookings come in from their website of Facebook.
The focus on the digital side of the business has been extremely beneficial, Mr. Francoeur says, adding that equipping each of the treatment rooms with iPads allows the client to pick their own music and to cash out without having to line up at the reception area.
When coupled with European inspired design elements and a complete list of spa services, Mr. Francoeur says that the spa offers the whole package.
But it didn’t come together all at once, he says. 
“We really did it gradually,” he says, adding for the first year, there was something new at the spa every month. “It’s not how I’m used to doing things but what’s come out of it is really the perfect recipe.”
He and his wife moved to Peterborough from Toronto, although the couple previously ran six massage therapy clinics in Ottawa.
“We loved Peterborough right away,” he says. “Now we are here to stay.”
When it came to starting up a new business, he adds they knew they wanted to keep it small to focus on their clients and staff.
“We protect our culture,” he says. “We hire slow and fire fast… the people who started with us are still here.”
Mr. Francoeur says it would have been easy for he and his wife to consider the fact that there are already successful spas operating in Peterborough and opt out of starting up another one.
But he advises small business owners and entrepreneurs to use Peterborough’s strengths as motivation, not limitation.
“Use the local resources, use the Peterborough Economic Development,” he says.
“Build something that enhances the local culture… be different and make a difference.”
The Urban Spa currently is planning to hire on about 10 more staff as it prepares to expand under the name The Urban Spa 2.0, which will have a New York inspired atmosphere.
But more space and more staff won’t take away from their personalized approach, Mr. Francoeur says. They’ll continue to protect their culture.
“When we get to know you and you come in, we’re going to be waiting for you with your latte the way you like it and with your music stations ready to go,” he says.
