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16 PULSE ■ June 2010
Sundara Inn & Spa was designed according to the
principles of feng shui, allowing for the flow of
positive energy for each guest.
member profile
Sundara Inn & Spa
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June 2010 ■ PULSE 17
Healthy cuisine is part of the daily routine at Sundara.
Wisconsin Dells may bill itself as the WaterparkCapital of the
World, but if you follow a curveddriveway just miles off the main
road, you’ll betransported to a secluded spa tucked away in 26acres
of pine forest. Though critics grumbled
that a destination spa in Wisconsin wouldn’t be successful,
Sundarafounder Kelly Trumbull kept her eyes on the prize. “Many
people thought that the Midwest lagged too far behind, but Kelly
believed that
people in Chicago, Madison and Milwaukeeshouldn’t need to get on
a plane or travel across
the country or across the world; that they deserved a sanctuary
rightin their own backyard,” said Tara Duarte, director of
marketing andleisure sales. Trumbull traveled globally, spotting
trends on both coastsas well as internationally, before creating a
business plan based on ablend of modern wellness and ancient
wisdom.
Sundara’s grounds were designed to leave as small an impact on
theenvironment as possible. Although it was challenging to
construct themain building with eco-friendly principles in mind,
Trumbull remainedcommitted. She made every effort to leave as many
trees untouched aspossible, and to use any materials they could
from the trees they didhave to remove. Sundara belongs to the Green
Spa network and earnedcertification from Travel Green Wisconsin, a
voluntary program thatrecognizes businesses that have made a
commitment to reducing theirenvironmental impact. “We worked with
local architects and usedlocally sourced lumber and stone in
addition to incorporating naturalmaterials from the area, such as
ancient Cambrian sandstone, into thelandscaping,” Duarte said.
Barring plumbing and exterior wall restric-tions, the building
design and furniture placement is completely basedon the principles
of Feng Shui. “Everything is designed to promote theflow of
positive energy,” explained Duarte. In addition, Sundara
servesorganic cuisine prepared using fresh ingredients from local,
sustainablesources as much as possible.
That commitment to sustainability even went into
Sundara’sproduct line – the Cambrian sandstone found at the
property’s excava-tion site is a key ingredient in the products.
“We sent it to a lab andhad it tested and found that the sand was
not only rich in minerals,but also a great exfoliating agent. That
was the start of the Sundara sig-nature line of products,” Duarte
explained. In addition to the SundaraSandstone Body Polish,
signature products include Nourishing Body
B Y YA E L G R AU E R
“That commitment to sustainability evenwent into
Sundara’sproduct line - theCambrian sandstonefound at the
property’sexcavation site is a key ingredient in theproducts.”
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18 PULSE ■ June 2010
member profile
Pools, naturally formulated products and pristine
surroundings add to Sundara's rejuvenating
atmosphere.
Milk, Hydrating Mist, Body Wash, BathSalts and Essential Oil.
Other naturalingredients indigenous to WisconsinDells, such as
strawberry extract andwalnut shell powder, are also used.
The name Sundara is drawn from theSanskrit word for beautiful,
and Sundarainterprets that as beauty flowing fromwellness. In
addition to creating a desti-nation commited to organic and
naturalproducts and using seasonally freshcuisine, Sundara brought
Ayurveda, anancient Indian healing art, to theMidwest. “We think of
pampering asmore than getting a manicure and a pedi-cure and a
facial. It’s really aboutphysically and emotionally taking care
ofyourself and that all starts from within,”said Duarte. “That’s
really the reason weintroduced Ayurvedic services; we felt likewe
needed that depth.” Ayurvedic servi-ces offer a global-inspired
healingexperience for those looking for somet-hing spiritual.
Guests come to Sundara for a varietyof reasons. They’ve taken
time to visitafter losing a loved one, or while goingthrough a
divorce. They’ve come whenthey are about to leave on military duty
orhave returned from a tour of service.Some come simply to escape
the stressfrom work or to find a place to reconnect.All guests are
invited begin their Sundarajourney with a Purifying Bath Ritual,
afive-part, self-guided interpretation of anancient tradition of
physical and spiritualcleansing. It begins with the gently
exfo-liating Cambrian sandstone scrub rinsedoff with a calming
shower. This is followed by an aromatic steam and acooling rinse.
Lastly, guests alternatethree times between a soothing essentialoil
enhanced hot tub and a plunge in acold pool.
Although the majority of guests arewomen, many men come to
Sundara aswell. Duarte recalls reading some intere-sting excerpts
from men in the guestjournals. “One of them said, ‘I learned anew
word during my stay – exfoliation. Ilearned that it’s cool to go to
spa andcool to exfoliate and even Brett Favreexfoliates.’ Another
male guest said thathe enjoyed his ‘hot rock massage.’“
Sundara offers day packages, but over-night guests have a
selection of beautifulsuites to choose from. Guests who can’tget
enough of the suites can purchaserobes, sandals, fireside throws,
featherbedcomforters and pillows used in the suitesto take home
with them. “We got that ideafrom our guests,” Duarte said, “who
toldus they wished they could take the bedsand robes home with
them.”
Sundara works on marketing and pub-licity in various ways. At
the top of thelist is public relations and social media.Sundara’s
Facebook fan page gains about
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June 2010 ■ PULSE 19
VITALSTATISTICSSundara Inn & SpaSpa type: Resort/Hotel
Spa open/renovation date: March2003, villas added in 2006
Consultant used: Eva Jensch, SpaSenseGroup LLC
Spa chef: John Koch
Guest ratio of women vs. men: 70:30
Square footage: 45,000 square feet inmain building, 57,542
including the villas
Number of treatment rooms: 14
Number of full-time staff: 35
Method of staff compensation:Commission
Percentage of revenues spent onadvertising/marketing: 3-4%
Signature Treatment: SundaraSandstone Polish
Product lines used: Sundara SignatureLine, Eminence Organic Skin
Care
Mission statement: In everything we do,our mission is wellness.
We provide asanctuary from stress, a healing touch, akind word, a
place to reconnect. We setan example of love and respect for
theearth. We embrace the joy of wellness inour own lives.
Unique selling point: Adult-only destination spa in the Midwest;
intimateguest experience
Contact information: Sundara Inn & Spa 920 Canyon Rd
Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin
539651.608.253.92001.608.253.9566www.sundaraspa.com
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a hundred new fans a week, but the spaalso utilizes more
traditional marketingoutlets such as television, magazines
andradio. They also carefully maintain theWeb site, a huge
marketing tool featuringsoothing music and stunning photog-raphy as
well as up-to-date informationand a list of current specials
offered.
“We knew that Sundara would be
successful, but I don’t think we realizedjust how successful it
would be and howrecognized it might become,” Duartesaid. “When our
guests speak and voteand we can win awards, that’s what we’remost
proud of, from overcoming all theobstacles of being a destination
spa in areally kid-friendly small town inWisconsin to creating this
nationally and
internationally recognized destinationspa in the Midwest.” From
the looks of it,they’ve overcome those obstacles andthen some.
■
YAEL GRAUER, a recent transplant from the beautiful
Sonoran desert, is a freelance writer based in the
Midwest. She teaches workshops on healing foods and
herbal medicine-making both locally and virtually, and
can be found online at www.dirttime.org.
