NEWH - Summer 2019 - 4

GUEST PERSPECTIVE

All Evidence Points to
Health: Adapting Spaces
to Meet Guests' Needs
BY MICHAEL ECKERT-WELL AP, Director of Marketing &
Strategy, Milliken & Company

esearch shows that we spend 90 percent of our time indoors. If you design interior
spaces, it's a statistic that can add some perspective to the importance of the work
you do-because the spaces we spend time in have a significant impact on our
overall state of well-being. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) found that fully 80 percent
of the overall state of our health can be attributed to a combination of our physical/social
environments and our lifestyle/health behaviors. So it makes sense that a dramatic shift has
taken place in the way we think about how design can impact human health and well-being-
and the best part is that everybody wins. Spaces designed with well-being in mind affect 100
percent of the people who occupy them. Everyone has a chance to truly feel better for being
in your space.

Michael Eckert

So where to begin? Familiarize yourself with building standards such as the WELL Building
Standard and Fitwel. These take a comprehensive approach to the ways design, operations,
and behaviors collectively impact occupant health and well-being, and they highlight some
of the key drivers. From factors like improved indoor air quality, lighting, and acoustics, to the
accessibility of clean drinking water and healthy nutrition, these standards are geared toward
improving health and well-being from a holistic, evidence-based perspective.
While the initial focus has mostly been directed at the office, we're now seeing hospitalityspecific programs like Stay Well. Several hotel brands are offering Stay Well rooms, which
are outfitted with improved air filtration, natural memory-foam mattresses, and specialized
lighting and lighting controls. Guests also have access to online programs for sleep, stress,
and nutritional therapy. The goal is to maximize a traveler's experience and minimize the
impact travel has on the human body. It's no longer good enough to expect guests (or
employees) to simply adapt to your space. Your space needs to adapt to them.
Brands aligning with this movement will be the ones who ultimately succeed. But you
can't take a one-size-fits-all approach. Think holistically, but also flexibly, because you need
to consider the varying needs of a broad customer base. Research by the Global Wellness
Institute shows that 89 percent of wellness travel in 2017 was considered secondary wellness
travel-that is, the traveler sought to maintain wellness while traveling, as opposed to
taking the trip expressly for the purpose of wellness. This tells me a baseline expectation is
beginning to exist for business or leisure trips: Help me maintain wellness while away. And
here's the best news: The same study showed that domestic wellness travelers spend at a
178 percent premium over the average domestic tourist. They see the right package as an
added benefit, and they're willing to pay for it.
We find ourselves at the beginning of a real movement. Are you ready?
After nearly 10 years in commercial lighting, Michael Eckert stopped looking at the
ceiling for inspiration and now directs his attention to the floor as Milliken's director
of marketing and strategy. Throughout his tenure in the commercial interiors industry,
Michael has held roles in marketing communications, product management, and
strategy. His current obsession is finding and sharing market insights to help solve
problems you don't even know you have and championing those ideas into solutions. ❙❘❚

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NEWH - Summer 2019

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