Martha Tilaar Spa offers relaxation, healing

By I. Christianto

JAKARTA (JP): Be careful when visiting spas, the popular places for relaxation, healing and beauty. Instead of getting relaxed, healed or beautified, people may get the contrary, a fatal negative impact, due to careless treatment.

Most spas in Indonesia, as in other places around the world, offer water or water-related treatments to their customers. Sometimes the so-called spas do not conduct evaluations to find out the best treatments for a certain customer, as everybody suffers from different conditions, physically and emotionally.

But people can enjoy the best service at the newly open Martha Tilaar Spa, located at Tanjung Lesung, Banten.

Diany Pranata Chandra, vice general manager of Martha Beauty Gallery, said that the spa was run professionally, allowing customers to undertake evaluations.

"Evaluations are very important to find out the best services for a customer," she said.

The original meaning of spa is spring water containing minerals or a site where people go to enjoy the water-healing properties. Spas have a log history, and in ancient times, people would bathe in sulfuric water, believed to be beneficial to the skin and the general health.

It is believed that a secret spa treatment comprising a herbal and floral bath concoction was the key to exquisite human beauty.

Some literature states that spas derived from a place in Belgium. Here was found warm spring water, and local people named it pouthouns, believing various disease could be cured here.

Nowadays, many places offering treatments with water claim themselves as spas. But people use the word easily now, such as day spa, destination spa, city spa, spa in a hotel, luxury spa and so on.

Screening

In a hectic lifestyle, spas have become an effective way to restore energy and to minimize stress, maintaining both physical health and a mental balance. It is not surprising that the number of places offering spa treatments has significantly increased.

Diany said that a spa, meaning sante par aqua (a place for treatment with liquid), must offer evaluations as to services using water or oil with aromatic substances.

"Some people are allergic to certain substance, therefore, the volume of each substance used in the treatment has to be very precise," she said.

She said that there were people who could not take too much lavender for their low blood pressure, while pregnant women were not allowed to take treatments with nutmeg oil in two consecutive weeks.

Those applying lemon oil must avoid direct sunlight, otherwise they will suffer irritations, she added.

Also, she said, some people have been complaining after having treatments at spas because these places did not give evaluations or interviews to find out the optimum therapy with proper doses.

"But at Martha Tilaar Spas, customers will undergo evaluations to get the best services," she said.

Diany said that there were now two spas wholly owned by Martha Beauty Gallery, the service arm of Martha Tilaar Holding Company, founded by beautician Martha Tilaar.

She said there were also spas in Bali, Semarang, Ciater and Brunei, operating under franchising scheme with Martha Beauty Gallery.

Aromatic

Product manager of PT Tiara Permata Sari, the manufacturing affiliation of Martha Tilaar Holding, Sri Sudiati, said the spas used Dewi Sri Spa and Oil of Java products, which were manufactured by a company of the same holding company.

She said that Dewi Sri Spa was a series of products made of rice extracts to care for the body and scented with exotic oils to nurture the senses.

Combining health and beauty care, Dewi Sri Spa offers four programs: relief, sensual, whitening and body contour, she said.

There are several varieties of Oil of Java products, including aromatic facial products and physical and emotion treatment products.

Facial treatments include acne oil, antiwrinkle oil and spot oil. Physical and emotional treatment products include relaxing oil, love oil, pain of relief oil and carrier oil.

All of the products are created from Indonesia's valuable native plants and herbs, Sri said.

Culture

"Indonesia is so rich in such plants and herbs. Since ancient times, Indonesians have applied spa culture using traditional herbs," Sri said.

She said that Indonesia's spa culture, including beauty care and bathing cultures, occurs throughout the life cycle.

The two cultures, she said, were the periods of babyhood, childhood, puberty, wedding and marriage, pregnancy, postnatal and lactation, menopause and final passage.

In addition, massage, which is part of the body treatment at spas, has also been practiced for centuries in Indonesia, she said.

Diany said that Martha Tilaar Spa offered hairstyling, hair care, facial care and make up, body treatments and manicures and pedicures.

"We are also supported by various experts, including nutritionists, aromatherapists, psychiatrists and dermatologists."

She said that the newly opened Martha Tilaar Spa at Tanjung Lesung was also supported by a physician who worked in a clinic at the complex.

"The spa at Tanjung Lesung will also offer special services in sensual exercises, a kind of gymnastics for couples, as we see that many newly weds spend their honeymoon there," she said.

She said that rates at Martha Tilaar Spa, Tanjung Lesung, range from tens of thousands of rupiah to millions of rupiah, depending on the services and kind packages required.