Restaurant entrepreneur and former Dragon's Den pundit Simon Woodroffe is branching out to take on the spa industry with his latest venture, YoZone.

The idea, which Woodroffe says is "in the early stages", is to develop a 40,000sq ft spa by London's riverside that will revolutionise the sector.

"I want to innovate and make the spa available to everyone," he said. "Society is changing and spas are becoming as much an alternative social occasion as a wellbeing experience."

The concept is inspired by the bathing cultures of Japan, Scandinavia and Turkey and plans to mix the spa with a café, bar, music and nightclub.

"They should be places people want to go because they are fun - it's not just about peace," Woodroffe said.

"We want to mix elements of spas worldwide and give ours a bit of rock 'n' roll."

The YoSushi founder has partnered with Rob Gregory to develop the concept, which has been in the planning stages for about a year and is predicted to debut in 2008.

By Emily Manson

 

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