Mala McAlpin The Global Wellness Summit (GWS), the foremost gathering of international leaders in the $4.2 trillion global wellness economy, wrapped up its 13th annual conference after a spectacular week of education, news and developments.
Despite the conference being relocated to Singapore just weeks before the event due to civil unrest in Hong Kong, attendees weren’t deterred, and continued to pour in from around the globe.
After a couple of pre-summit excursions beginning October 10th, the official conference kicked off bright and early at Singapore’s Grand Hyatt on October 15th with a choice of wellness activities (yoga or Tai Chi) or formal breakfast for delegates staying at the hotel. Susie Ellis, Chairman & CEO, Global Wellness Summit, opened the day alongside Mark Vondrasek, CCO of Hyatt Hotels Corporation, before a keynote address on wellness around the globe.
The packed-out programme across the three main conference days consisted of a number of rapid fire sessions, panel discussions, and interactive “Ask the Expert” style table topic discussions over lunch. On the first evening, guests were invited to attend the ‘Evening Event-Dine Around in Singapore’ – to experience Singapore’s authentic hawker food scene, and on the second; treated to an evening event to “dance the night away”.
Speaker highlights included Anna Bjurstam from Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spa, Dr. Marc Cohen from the Extreme Wellnes Institute, Jeremy McCarthy from Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, Rick Stollmeyer from MINDBODY, Masahiro Fujita from SONY, and Ronna Chao from Novetex Textiles Limited, just to name a handful.
Plenty of exciting innovations and announcements were made throughout the three-day programme, including the Shark Tank of Wellness Student Competition, a new global textile recycling program for spas and hotels by the Noel Asmar Group, as well as the location for next year’s event – which will be Tel Aviv.
In making the announcement, Susie Ellis, GWS chair and CEO, told delegates, “We’re thrilled to announce that the Summit will take place in this extraordinary location—one with deep spiritual significance and also firm roots in wellness, including its proximity to the Dead Sea, one of the earliest known wellness destinations.”
The dates for the 14th annual invite-only conference will be November 10–13, 2020, and registration is now open.
