Honor Roll

A Soothing Space

Taras Tikhomirov

Co-owner

Spa Lux

Tulsa, OK

2008 DAYSPA Top Honor: Design

Spa Lux is the pride and joy of its owners, Taras and Cynthia Tikhomirov, who opened the business nearly a year and a half ago. Its opulence brings to mind world-class spas around the globe, yet the Tulsa, Oklahoma, facility has found a niche in an unlikely region of the country.

The Tikhomirovs (see inset photo) settled here after Taras, who came to the area to work in the oil industry, chose not to follow his job to Houston. But that decision has turned out just fine. "We're one of the only high-end urban day spas in Tulsa," Taras says. "What we offer wouldn't be that different in New York or Los Angeles, but here it's unique."

How have you been affected by the economy?
We've been doing well so far, even with the economy the way it is. We've only been around during the recession, but our cash flow has steadily grown from month to month since we opened. I'm originally from Russia, and my wife and I have traveled all over the world to see what works elsewhere. We realize that we can be competitive only if we bring something different and provide the best experience to our clients—and it seems to have caught on.

What service is the most profitable at your spa?
Massage is by far the most popular menu item, and we don't just offer the typical options. We have deep-tissue, sport, hot stone, reflexology and Thai massage. Since we opened, we've probably gone from 70% to 80% massages. Authentic Thai massage and craniosacral therapy are definitely not things you can find everywhere, especially with people who are properly trained to do them.

Since you won the award for Top Design in DAYSPA's Top Honors last year, how do you plan to decorate for the holidays?
Cynthia typically brings in different items for the season, such as flowers or other small things, but we don't do a lot of big changes. We don't want to look like we have any congestion. We like the clean, simple, luxurious look, so the less clutter the better. And little touches of color in the form of unusual flower arrangements or candles do the job better than anything.

How would you describe your management style?
Every therapist at Spa Lux is a team member, so training and enforcing our numerous protocols never stops. We like our clientele to have a total spa experience from the time they walk in to the time they leave, so every move and word of our staff has to be perfect. We also encourage the sharing of information; for instance, those who know reflexology or other techniques can help teach those who don't. Plus, we hold meetings with everyone in which we discuss better ways to serve clients and be more effective overall. There's a lot of work that goes into it, and we want to have the reputation of being the most luxurious place to go in Tulsa.

What do you envision for your business in the future?
There are two affluent areas in Tulsa. Right now, we're in the south part of town, which is one of them. We've been negotiating with a development group concerning a retail space between here and downtown where we can open a smaller version of Spa Lux and call it something else. There, we will create a boutique-type facility, which will introduce some cutting-edge technologies available only in the top international spas.

To read about all of the 2008 DAYSPA Top Honors winners, please check out the article from our December 2008 issue.

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