Spa makers bubble to top

By Nathan Johnston
FIVE years ago Dandenong business Heritage Spas employed four people and was tucked away in a small factory in Union Road.
The company was 10 years old and had built a solid reputation for quality in the industry through regular displays at trade shows, and word of mouth from satisfied customers.
Between then and now, the company has outgrown its Union Road site and another Dandenong factory, built its employee numbers to 26 in Dandenong and 40 Australiawide, and is selling 1500 spas every year.
It has just moved into a huge new factory and showroom on the South Gippsland Highway in Dandenong, and now has plans to export.
General manager Philip Meyers said the rapid rise followed years of hard work from his father, Graham, now the managing director, who built the business in his retirement.
“My dad had been in the pool and spa industry for 30 years with QuipTron, which was part of Clark Rubber.
“He left at the end of 1990 and was going to retire, but he decided to start his own swim/spa business in Dandenong in a small factory. He then got into portable spas, and has been making them ever since.
“There’s definitely been plenty of ups and downs. There’s been a lot of blood, sweat and tears that have gone into it.”
Mr Meyers (junior) said Heritage Spas had maintained its reputation and its standards from the beginning, steering clear of price wars that had damaged other businesses.
“We survived because people will pay for the best. It’s a once in a lifetime purchase, so you want to do it right.
“We were the first in the world to use steel frames and we use top quality materials.
“We still match many competitors for price because we don’t have the overheads, and if people know what they want, we can do it cheaply.
“This year we’ve done 1500 spas. We’ve increased by 30 per cent every year in the last four years, and that can only happen if you’ve got a good product to sell.”
He said the new South Gippsland Highway location included room for even more growth in the next few years.
“This is the first time we’ve had signs up and a location that people will notice. No one saw us in Union Road.
“We were just seen in the industry as manufacturers but now we have a showroom.”
To celebrate the move to the new site, Heritage Spas is hosting a fourday celebration across the Melbourne Cup weekend, featuring special guests and special deals.