The Spa and Sauna Co. Wins Aqua 100 Award

Friday, March 15th, 2024

The Spa and Sauna Co. has won the 2024 Aqua 100 award from Aqua Magazine, recognizing the best pool and spa dealers in the industry. The company has grown from a one shop location in San Jose, California, to six convenient showroom locations and several dedicated warehouses, serving Nevada and California. The Roots of the company go back to the Early Days of the Portable Hot Tub Industry itself, with company co-owner Shelley Clark’s father, David Ingram, building one of the first Portable Spas. Shelley Ingram-Clark started with the family business in 1983. Scott Clark began working in the hot tub industry in the late 1980s, selling hot tubs at a Hot Spring Spa/Finnleo Sauna dealership in the Bay Area. Scott and Shelley opened their first store in Reno in 2002. Today, The Spa and Sauna Co. includes many convenient store locations in Nevada and California. The Spa and Sauna Company has won awards for their customer service, innovation, and innovative products.

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By Laura Varnon, Marketing & Special Projects Manager

The Spa and Sauna Co. won the 2024 Aqua 100 award from Aqua Magazine this year! The award recognizes the best pool and spa dealers in the industry. To date, over the past several years, 60 spa and pool dealers have won this award.

The Spa and Sauna Co. submitted a written application, photos, and a video, explaining its History, Core Philosophy, Customer Service, Store Design, Charitable Contributions and more. An independent panel of judges evaluated and selected this year’s winners.

“Each company should be very proud to have been selected as an inductee into the AQUA 100, as the national competition evaluates each business on a variety of measures,” says AQUA Magazine Executive Editor Scott Webb. “This is a very high honor in pool and spa retail, and we are very proud to shine a light on their success and hard work.”

Read Excerpts from Our Nomination Below

Spa and Sauna Co. History

The Spa and Sauna Co. has grown from a one shop location, originally in San Jose, California, to a business with six convenient showroom locations and several dedicated warehouses, serving Nevada and California.

The Roots at The Spa and Sauna Co. run deep. In fact, they go all the way back to the Early Days of the Portable Hot Tub Industry itself, with company co-owner Shelley Clark’s father, David Ingram. Back in 1976, in El Cajon, California, Ingram, one of the Pioneers of the Hot Tub business, started building one of the first Portable Spas. Since those early days in the Hot Tub business, we have taken pride in offering the Best Overall Customer Experience to our Hot Tub customers.

Shelley Ingram-Clark, David Ingram’s daughter, started with the family business in 1983. She has rolled fiberglass, worked in manufacturing, handled accounting and marketing, and later worked as a sales rep. She knows the hot tub industry inside and out.

Later, in 1999, the Ingram family sold Caldera Spas to one of the largest manufacturers of hot tubs today, Watkins Manufacturing, now known as Watkins Wellness. Watkins Wellness is The Spa and Sauna Company’s primary spa and swim spa manufacturer.

Scott Clark began working in the hot tub industry in the late 1980s, selling hot tubs at a Hot Spring Spa/Finnleo Sauna dealership in the Bay Area. In 1990, he opened his own store, in San Jose, called South Bay Spa and Sauna, marking the beginning of The Spa and Sauna Co. as it is known today.

Scott and Shelley met when Shelley visited his store as a sales rep. They married in 2000.

After a brief period working traveling spa shows, the family and business settled in the Reno area in 2002 and opened their first Reno area store together, The Spa and Sauna Shop.

Quick growth occurred between 2013 and the present, with new store locations opening every couple of years, initially in the Reno area, and later in different geographical regions serving California and Nevada.

  • Reno Hot Spring Spas – Reno (2013)
  • The Spa and Sauna Co. – S. Reno (2015)
  • The Spa and Sauna Co. – Sparks (2017)
  • The Spa and Sauna Co. – Santa Cruz (2019)
  • The Spa and Sauna Co. – San Jose (2019)
  • The Spa and Sauna Co. – Carson City (2021)
  • The Spa and Sauna Co. – Las Vegas (2023)

These days, even with many convenient store locations and several warehouses to operate, you’re just as likely to find Scott moving hot tubs or setting the showroom floor, as you are to find him talking to team members or planning for future endeavors. It’s easy to see his passion for all parts of the hot tub industry.

Scott and Shelley’s children are involved in the business, too. Nick Clark participates in the hot tub industry, while Joey Clark is now the Service Technician Supervisor in Reno. Jacob Clark works within the service department in the Reno stores as well, and Carlee Clark stops in from time to time, but is still attending school.

Core Philosophy

The Spa and Sauna Company’s Core Philosophy is to Enhance our customers’ Space, Homes and Lives with the Premier Home Leisure and Wellness Products, while embracing innovative ideas, processes and technology and serving our customers with integrity, effectiveness, and competency.

Customer Service

Our entire team takes customer service seriously and we’ve won awards for it over the years.

We have a dedicated customer service team of two Customer Engagement Reps who follow up with our customers after their hot tub purchase to make sure they are having the best possible customer experience, from sales through delivery and into their ownership experience.

The Spa and Sauna Co. also receives many 5-star reviews from customers on Google.

Store Design

Our stores have a similar feel, regardless of which city you might be in. The layout of The Spa and Sauna Co. stores makes sure that dozens of hot tubs can be viewed at all times. Whether you are in a store in Reno, Sparks, Carson City, Las Vegas, Santa Cruz or San Jose, you can tell you are in a Spa and Sauna Co. store.

Team Philosophy

Our team follows the philosophy of Marcus Sheridan, “They Ask, You Answer.” We try to provide as much information about hot tubs as possible in the store, and through our website, blogs and video content.

Our marketing team has won many awards, including the Alice Cunningham Marketing Award from Caldera Spas and Hot Spring Spas two years in a row, including its inaugural year in 2019 and again in 2021.

Other Activities – Charitable Giving

Our team enjoys giving back to the community. This year we donated two hot tubs to veterans and a hot tub to a local Make-A-Wish child. We also participate as a Toys for Tots drop off location at many of our locations, sponsor local sports teams, and donate to organizations such as Big Brothers and Big Sisters and the Children’s Miracle Network, and more.

Since 2018, we have donated a total of six hot tubs to veterans through the Hot Tubs for Heroes program. Our entire team gets to vote on who those recipients will be, and appreciates the opportunity to support our local veterans.

Future Plans

We intend to continue to Enhance the Spaces of our customers’ homes for many years to come.

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Hot Spring Spas Wins Readers Choice Award for 2020

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2021

By Laura Varnon, Marketing Coordinator

Even in a year as unusual as 2020 was, Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz has won the Santa Cruz Sentinel’s Readers Choice Award for Best Pool & Spa Dealer for 2020.

This is the 8th year in a row that the award has been given to Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz.

This year’s award is special because Hot Spring Spas saw a huge spike in demand for hot tubs and swim spas due to people spending more time at home in 2020 than ever before.

“We are thrilled to have been awarded this win again, especially during the year 2020,” said Spa and Sauna Company Owner Scott Clark. “We would like to thank our team, our customers, the community, and the Santa Cruz Sentinel for this award.”

Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz carries and services Hot Spring Spas and Endless Pools swim spas, and Freeflow Spas.

The Santa Cruz Sentinel runs a yearly Readers Choice online poll. In the poll, Sentinel readers weigh in on the best of everything throughout Santa Cruz County.

One of the reasons Hot Spring Spas earned the award is because of the dedication of their many long-time team members, who are committed to providing extraordinary customer service year after year.

Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz has received dozens of awards from manufacturers and local newspapers over the years, along with the other stores within The Spa and Sauna Company family of stores. To read more about The Spa and Sauna Company and see all of our awards, click here.

More than ever, we know that the hot tubs we provide to the community are truly making a difference in people’s lives by providing stress relief, relaxation, wellness benefits and family time.

“We truly enjoy serving the Santa Cruz community,” Clark said. “We look forward to many more years of excellent service and offering the community only the best in Hot Tubs and Swim Spas.”

To contact us in Santa Cruz, click here.

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The Spa and Sauna Co. Wins Two Sundance Awards

Thursday, February 11th, 2021

By Laura Varnon, Marketing Coordinator

The Spa and Sauna Company earned two awards in 2020 from Sundance Spas at their virtual dealer conference this year.

Despite the challenges that the year 2020 presented, The Spa and Sauna Company was awarded The Sundance Gold Club Award for Exceptional Sales Performance and the Exceptional Customer Service Award.

The Gold Club award recognizes dealers whose Sundance Spas sales volume ranked in the top 10% of dealers nationwide.

In a letter from 2 directors of sales at Sundance Spas, Bett Sitton and Paul Garratt wrote: “Your hard work and dedication to the Sundance Spas Brand has earned you special recognition…Congratulations on your success in 2020.”

In a year when The Spa and Sauna Company embraced selling hot tubs over FaceTime and other virtual apps, not having as many hot tubs to display, working with customers while socially distanced and wearing masks, and an increasing in demand for hot tubs, this award truly means a lot.

The Spa and Sauna Company has also earned both of these awards previously, too.

“We’d like to thank Sundance Spas for these awards and their support this year, and we look forward to what 2021 will bring,” said Company Owner Scott Clark. “We’d also like to extend a big thank you to our entire team, especially our sales and customer service teams.”

To read more about The Spa and Sauna Company and see our full list of awards over the years, click here.

The Spa and Sauna Company began carrying Sundance Spas in late 2013 at its Reno area stores. It is one of several high-end hot tub brands that the Spa and Sauna Company is proud to offer.

Other hot tub manufacturers decided not to present awards in 2020, due to the unusual circumstances the year presented.

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Santa Cruz Store Wins Readers Choice Award Again!

Tuesday, February 18th, 2020

By Laura Varnon, Marketing Coordinator

It’s official – Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz has won the Santa Cruz Sentinel’s Readers Choice Award for Best Pool & Spa Dealer for 2019.

This is the 7th year in a row that the award has been given to Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz.

This year’s award is special because Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz, along with Hot Spring Spas of San Jose, were acquired by The Spa and Sauna Company in early 2019.

“We are thrilled to have been awarded this win again. To have retained this long-time award is an honor.” said Spa and Sauna Company Owner Scott Clark. “We take pride in carrying the highest quality hot tub brands and serving the Santa Cruz and San Jose communities. We would like to thank our team, our customers, the community, and the Santa Cruz Sentinel for this award.”

While Hot Spring Spas has always carried Hot Spring Spas and Endless Pools swim spas, this year brought the addition of the value-line of plug-and-play hot tubs, Freeflow Spas.

Many improvements to the showrooms have been made over the past year, including a full renovation to the décor in Santa Cruz, and a relocation of the showroom in San Jose.

The Santa Cruz Sentinel runs a yearly Readers Choice online poll. In the poll, Sentinel readers weigh in on the best of everything throughout Santa Cruz County.

One of the reasons Hot Spring Spas earned the award is because of the dedication of their many long-time team members, who are committed to providing extraordinary customer service year after year.

Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz and San Jose have received dozens of awards from manufacturers over the years.

This award is special because it is from the community we serve. We know that the hot tubs we provide to the community are truly making a difference in people’s lives by providing relaxation, wellness benefits and family time.

“We truly enjoy serving the Santa Cruz and San Jose communities,” Clark said. “We look forward to continuing the legacy of excellent service, and will continue to sell the best in Hot Tubs and Swim Spas.”

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Santa Cruz Store Wins Readers Choice Award

Thursday, February 21st, 2019

By Laura Varnon, Marketing Coordinator

Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz has won the Santa Cruz Sentinel’s Readers Choice Award for Best Pool & Spa Dealer for 2018.

This is not the first time the award has been given to the Santa Cruz showroom. It has been awarded to them every year since 2013, making this the 6th consecutive time the showroom has received the award.

Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz and San Jose, which were acquired by The Spa and Sauna Company in early 2019, have been a part of their respective communities since 1976.

The Santa Cruz Sentinel runs a yearly Readers Choice online poll. In the poll, Sentinel readers weigh in on the best of everything throughout Santa Cruz County.

One of the reasons Hot Spring Spas earned the award is because of the dedication of their many long-time team members, who are committed to providing extraordinary customer service. Despite a change in ownership, Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz and San Jose have maintained the same team.

“We are thrilled to have been awarded this win,” said Spa and Sauna Company Owner Scott Clark. “We take pride in carrying the highest quality hot tub brands and serving the Santa Cruz and San Jose communities. We would like to thank our team, our customers, the community, former owner Patrick Carstens and his VP Lynda Sisk, and the Santa Cruz Sentinel for this award.”

Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz and San Jose have received dozens of awards from manufacturers over the years.

This award is special because it is from the community we serve.

“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve the Santa Cruz and San Jose communities,” Clark said. “We look forward to continuing the legacy of excellent service, now that Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz and San Jose are part of The Spa and Sauna Company family.”

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Santa Cruz Store Wins Readers Choice Award

Thursday, February 21st, 2019

By Laura Varnon, Marketing Coordinator

Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz has won the Santa Cruz Sentinel’s Readers Choice Award for Best Pool & Spa Dealer for 2018.

This is not the first time the award has been given to the Santa Cruz showroom. It has been awarded to them every year since 2013, making this the 6th consecutive time the showroom has received the award.

Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz and San Jose, which were acquired by The Spa and Sauna Company in early 2019, have been a part of their respective communities since 1976.

The Santa Cruz Sentinel runs a yearly Readers Choice online poll. In the poll, Sentinel readers weigh in on the best of everything throughout Santa Cruz County.

One of the reasons Hot Spring Spas earned the award is because of the dedication of their many long-time team members, who are committed to providing extraordinary customer service. Despite a change in ownership, Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz and San Jose have maintained the same team.

“We are thrilled to have been awarded this win,” said Spa and Sauna Company Owner Scott Clark. “We take pride in carrying the highest quality hot tub brands and serving the Santa Cruz and San Jose communities. We would like to thank our team, our customers, the community, former owner Patrick Carstens and his VP Lynda Sisk, and the Santa Cruz Sentinel for this award.”

Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz and San Jose have received dozens of awards from manufacturers over the years.

This award is special because it is from the community we serve.

“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve the Santa Cruz and San Jose communities,” Clark said. “We look forward to continuing the legacy of excellent service, now that Hot Spring Spas of Santa Cruz and San Jose are part of The Spa and Sauna Company family.”

The post Santa Cruz Store Wins Readers Choice Award appeared first on Hot Tubs, Swim Spas, Sauna Dealer Reno, Sparks, Santa Cruz, San Jose.