This year, to celebrate International Women's Day we interviewed 3 inspiring women from the Sodashi Community. Megan Larsen, Tania Taylor and Chrissy Dress are three successful female leaders who have made an impact in the natural skincare and luxury spa space.
We are beyond excited to share these inspiring stories with you and we hope these interviews empower women and girls around the world to follow their passion and dreams. Discover their unique journeys, the challenges they faced, women they admire and of course, their favourite Sodashi Products.
In this blog post we introduce you to Tania Taylor, founder of Bodhi Wellness Spa Retreat, located in 6 luxurious location across Western Australia.
Bodhi Wellness Spa Retreat is an award-winning luxury spa group and you now have six luxurious wellness retreats across Western Australia. Can you please tell us a little bit about your journey to building Bodhi?
I’ve always had a passion for all things natural and organic. Coupled with this, I’ve been lucky enough to travel extensively and experienced a range of luxurious spa around the world, and I wanted to bring that level of luxury wellness experience back to Perth, based around a natural philosophy. There was nothing like that in Perth at the time.
Our focus on exceptional guest care and a holistic spa offering saw our first spa in Wembley, fully booked with a waitlist of up to six weeks, and my partner Danny and I realised there was a big demand for what BODHI was offering.
We expanded with the opening of our second spa BODHI Highgate in 2015, and in 2017 BODHI Injidup opened taking our offering to the South West region of WA. In 2018 we opened BODHI Westin, at The Westin Perth, launching an exquisite urban retreat, and we also partnered with Qantas, opening a BODHI Wellbeing Studio in the Qantas Business Lounge at Perth International Airport. 2021 saw the opening of our gorgeous BODHI Cottesloe Spa, and we have three new BODHI spas in the pipeline, one opening in 2022 and two in 2023, with further expansion on the horizon.
Life is full of ups and downs, especially when building a business. Are there any particular challenges that you’ve had to overcome whilst building Bodhi?Closing our doors and standing down over 80 team members during the COVID lockdown in 2020 was by far the most challenging thing we have had to face so far. For the whole team, not knowing if we would ever reopen our doors again was devastating.
We focused on communications with the team, keeping them informed of COVID restrictions, and advising on support options. We also have a councilor available for all staff, to access confidentially as needed, as part of our wellbeing offering to the team.
Danny and yourself have been pioneers in the natural luxury spa and wellbeing industry, what has been your proudest moment?
Again although our most challenging time, we were very proud to reopen our doors following the extended COVID lockdown in 2020, and reinstate our entire BODHI team.
And not only were we busier than ever (I believe people need nurturing and connection more than ever in these Pandemic times), we actually expanded the BODHI business opening our Cottesloe Spa, and recruiting new team members.
When growing up what did you dream of becoming?
My dream was always to be a mother, I love children. I also wanted to either work in childcare or as a teacher! And whilst I didn’t go into either of those professions, I’m a proud mum of my beautiful son Ben, who’s now in his early 20s. And I love every step of the journey that is parenthood.
Which influential woman/women do you admire the most?
I have always admired my mother most. She was a hard worker and faced many adversities during her life, and yet always managed to see the positive in every situation.
Also, I admire Sodashi Founder Megan Larsen; her story of formulating natural skincare at home on her kitchen bench, in Perth, and taking it to the global spa market is totally inspiring.
How do you like to support other women?
During our almost fifteen years of BODHI we have seen many of our team members go off and start their own successful businesses. We have always supported and encouraged them with any advice or ideas we can give! I also now visit some of these businesses as a client.
One of the greatest achievements I believe, is helping others to grow and succeed.
Do you have any advice for women would are looking to follow their passion?
If you have a passion, I encourage you to fully embrace it and take the plunge. However, be prepared to put in a lot of hard work, and sacrifices will need to be made. The hardest thing I believe is taking the first step – you’ll need to face some fears and take some calculated risks.
But stepping outside of your comfort zone can be very rewarding, it’s a space of growth and learning - it’s where the magic happens! And imagine doing something you love every single day.
What is your favourite Sodashi product at the moment? Why?
I have to choose just one!! I am a huge Sodashi fan and have been using it for the past 14 years. The Samadara Age-Defying Creme is probably my all-time favourite product. I just love how beautifully soft and nourished my skin feels when I use it, and I love the little moment of self-care when doing the r ose quartz massage with the Creme. It’s a beautiful daily ritual.
Discover Tania's Spa Bodhi Wellness Spa Retreat here.
