Store Spas: Oases for Pampering Face and Body

Spa enthusiasts who can’t always take off for a week--or don’t have the cash for a major trip--now have an easy alternative: department store spas.

These spas (treatment centers for face and body) are worlds apart from salons where hairdressers and nail- and skin-care technicians share common quarters. These spas are calm, tranquil--and used for skin care only. Department stores, savvy to the appeal of private-time indulgences, are adding the facilities in cooperation with prestigious cosmetic companies.

The treatment centers are sequestered in separate quarters, creating a serene ambience far from the madding pace of the counters. Patrons can undress in private rooms, slip on plush robes, listen to relaxing new-age music and stare at cloud-painted ceilings. Although women represent the bulk of spa business, some facilities, such as the Estee Lauder Spa in Robinson’s South Coast Plaza, report a clientele composed of about 30% men.

I. Magnin Beverly Hills’ Institut Jeanne Gatineau, which opened in mid-October, is L.A.’s newest in-store spa. The French skin-care line, acquired by Revlon 10 years ago, offers both consumer and salon-only products, which are still made in a factory on the outskirts of Paris. Licensed aestheticians, trained in a French method in which only human hands touch the face, offer eight treatments ranging in price from $50 to $65.

The first Estee Lauder Spa opened at Robinson’s South Coast Plaza in October, 1986. Since then, nine others have opened nationwide. Dianne Osborne, national vice president of marketing for Estee Lauder, says the locations were selected partly because of their “one-stop shopping” appeal.

“Creating an accessibility in department stores is important,” Osborne says. “Even though spa retreats are popular now, most of us don’t have time to take a week. Time is the new currency. In a department store, where you’ll be shopping anyway, you can take an hour and a half to rejuvenate.”

At Robinson’s spa centers, patrons can choose from a variety of body and facial treatments, as well as waxing and makeup services. Prices range from $10 for an eyebrow wax to $225 for a series of six facials. They also offer “spa express” for $80, a 2 1/2-hour appointment tailored to an individual’s needs.

The Lancome Institute Beaute treatment centers, in select Broadway stores and in Robinson’s Santa Barbara, offer a variety of massage, waxing and facial treatments. Nordstrom’s Christian Dior spas, in South Coast Plaza and South Bay Galleria among other locations, offer facials priced $55 and up. The 1 1/2-hour facial includes cleansing, massage, steam treatment, a mask and daytime makeup (if requested). Most aestheticians discourage makeup on freshly treated faces.