Therapist Quality as an Influence of Spa Choice Decisions Amongst Customers in Eldoret Town, Kenya

People visit spas for varied reasons; curiosity, heath requirement or leisure, while others visit spas to transform their lifestyles and recover lost health. The choice decisions clients make in visiting spas is not a recent occurrence because individuals began to tour to spa centers for restoration, health and other purposes all through the long olden times in the 1800s. There is limited evidence of published research on the choice decisions spa customers make in visiting spas in Kenya. Hence, this study helped to examine and understand spa-goers' preferences and considerations in choosing spa services. The study sought to examine the influence of therapist quality on customers' spa choice decisions. The hypothesis 'therapist quality influences customers' spa choice decisions' guided the study. Three hundred and fifty-one spa customers from four different spas establishments were randomly selected to participate in the study. Questionnaires were employed to gather information and analyzed using SPSS. From the 351 questionnaires issued to the spa respondents', 311 questionnaires were filled. The findings were presented descriptively. The study established that therapist quality influenced decisions made by customers regarding their preference of one spa facility to the other. A unit change in therapist quality caused 1.389 change in customers' spa choice decisions. The regression analysis findings also showed that therapist quality had a fairly strong significant and positive relationship with customers' spa choice decisions (r = .751, p-value < .05). The study concludes that therapist quality influences customers' spa choice decisions. The study recommended that spa institutions and operators should introduce pieces of training on the qualities of a qualified therapist for individuals who want to venture into the spa business. The results from the research are to benefit the leisure business industry, the well-being industry, policymakers, the public, the private segment, the government, and other stakeholders.