Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center

Four Seasons Tenure

• Since 2013
• First Four Seasons Assignment: Director of Spa, Four Seasons Resort Langkawi, Malaysia

Employment History

• Four Seasons Hotel Montreal; Four Seasons Resort Bora Bora; Four Seasons Resort Langkawi, Malaysia; Mazagan Beach Resort, El Jadida, Morocco; Es Saadi Gardens & Resort, Marrakech, Morocco; Sofitel Luxury Hotels, Southeast Asia; Elegance Gontard, Nice, France

Education

• BTS Certificate, Cosmétique, Elegance Gontard, Nice, France

Birthplace

• Hyères, France

Languages Spoken

• English, French

A spa experience is one thing; a wellness experience is another. At Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center, Stéphanie Cherbakow Baron is intent on dazzling clients with both. “We want to give our guests and locals unique treatments that they can’t get anywhere else,” she says of her mission as Spa Director. “We’re providing wellness from the inside, out and, start to finish, with wow factors that go deeper for transformations that last.”

The key to creating a “wow factor” is personalization: addressing whatever a client’s skin, body and psyche needs are, and treating them through nutrition, meditation and movement disciplines such as yoga. “What does one want from a facial? To look in the mirror and see that their face looks great. We’re providing that and more to inspire a beautiful feeling inside as well.”

Baron knows the timing is right for such a thoroughgoing approach to wellness, as people are focused, now more than ever, on taking care of themselves. The property’s award-winning Spa invites clients to do just that. Awarded as Philadelphia’s first-and-only Forbes Travel Guide Five Star Spa, the Spa at Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia provides the ultimate escape for wellness retreats. With more than 700 pounds (320 kilograms) of healing crystals encased into the structure of the walls, guests are encouraged to embrace the sense of calm and relaxation that surrounds them from the moment they disembark the elevators.

Baron’s Spa team is key as well. She strives to be open-minded and keep an open door for her team to feel comfortable while focusing on development and results. “I provide all that I can for people so they can do what they do best. We’re a business and a team, after all, and I can’t expect them to climb the Himalayas if I don’t give them good shoes.”

After earning a beautician degree and pursuing specialized studies in spa management, massage and kinesiology, Baron worked first as a trainer, then as a spa manager for a luxury hotel group in Southeast Asia before taking her talents to resorts in Morocco. In 2013, she was recruited as Director of Spa for Four Seasons Resort Langkawi and four years later moved on to Bora Bora.

She joined Four Seasons Hotel Montreal in the summer of 2021 and was immediately taken with the distinct differences between the various destinations she’d worked throughout her career. With a newfound love for the city and urban properties, Baron decided to join the team at Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia in October of 2023. “Resorts are about slowing down, but a city is a living place.  We want our guests to incorporate a wellness journey into their day-to-day routine to encourage leaving the hustle and bustle of the city behind for a short period of time.”