Spa Ceylon expands to Japan to win more global biz

Bansei Group Chief Executive Toyohiko Murakami, Japanese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Kenichi Suganuma, Minister of Tourism Development and Christian Religious Affairs John Amaratunga and Spa Ceylon Ayurveda Managing Director Shiwantha Dias

By Hiruni Dabarera

Re-strengthening the bilateral trade relations between Sri Lanka and Japan, Spa Ceylon signed an exclusive distribution contract with Bansei Ayurveda Co. Ltd. yesterday, under the patronage of the Tourism Development and Christian Religious Affairs Minister John Amaratunga, in a bid to win more global business.

“This partnership signing is one of the many developments proposed by Bansei Holdings co. during my visit to Japan. I would like to extend a courteous invitation to Japanese citizens to visit Sri Lanka and purchase these luxury spa items from Spa Ceylon,” declared the Minister. 

He also commended the good work of Spa Ceylon in promoting tourism and boosting export earnings. 

“Many of the foreigners who arrive in Sri Lanka are quite interested and invest significantly on Sri Lankan Ayurvedic Products. Unfortunately, quite recently, this sector received several negative feedbacks owing to adverse impact on foreign users. We, the Tourist Development Ministry, are committed to ensure proper standards are maintained,” assured the Minister. 

Spa Ceylon, the world’s leading Luxury Ayurveda Brand, currently holds stores across 40 locations in 10 countries (Singapore, Korea, Turkey, India and Malaysia) and hopes to expand to over 100 locations within the next two years. Their partnership with Bansei Ayurveda Co.ltd which is a subsidiary of Bansei Holdings Co. (a 108 year old company which includes several well-established companies that have been operational in the financial, capital and securities sector in Japan) is aimed at tapping the Japanese luxury market for spa and spa-related products by opening 15 stores in Tokyo. 

Speaking to Daily FT Ceylon Spa chairman Shiwantha Dias stated how this initiative is very important for their business expansion as Japan is a keen and strategic market. He also observed the difficulty in expansion for brands like Spa Ceylon coming from non-traditional source countries like Sri Lanka. “Sri Lanka is not very well known for its personal care products,” he noted.

“What is quite significant through this business partnership is the availability of our products in premium locations in Japan. We are privileged to open a store in the Ginza Shopping district which is one of the most expensive shopping districts in the world. Although we have forecasted only 15 stores at present we expect a high growth in demand for our products in the Japanese market,” the chairman further elaborated. 

Spa Ceylon is hoping to expand to Pakistan and Australia during this year. However, they have not yet entered the European market but state how Italy is certainly in the cards. 

“We believe that the South-Asian market is equally important as the European or American. It consists of a notable purchasing power and they travel a lot now. Next year we are hoping to venture to China,” asserted Dias. 

According to him the challenge the business is faced with at present is finding correct retail locations as they do not have third party retail stores. Yet, the boutique is an essential part of their business as he believes that it is what promotes the good image of their brand to the consumers. 

Since there is already a strong demand in Japan for Spa Ceylon and the strategic fit between the strong branding and product range that Spa Ceylon offers along with the home market expertise that the Bansei Group brings, this partnership is expected to be quite successful. 

Pix by Bhanuka Kirinde