Glenwood Hot Springs Resort Named Outstanding Business of the Year
At its annual gala, the Glenwood Springs Chamber Resort Association recognized Glenwood Hot Springs Resort with the Top Brass Award for Outstanding Business of the Year. The geothermal resort, an involved community partner in Glenwood Springs, also recently diversified its visitor appeal by adding the Sopris Splash Zone—an aquatic adventure area that opened this past summer.
Glenwood Hot Springs Resort is Glenwood Springs’ Top Brass Outstanding Business of the Year. Every year at its annual fête held at the Hotel Colorado, the Glenwood Springs Chamber Resort Association presents the Top Brass Award to honor and recognize a local business for a significant accomplishment in a multitude of areas, including commercial growth and achievement, innovation, creativity and community involvement.
A Team Effort
Accepting the award on behalf of Glenwood Hot Springs Resort was Director of Operations Kevin Flohr, who, when called to the stage, invited the other hot springs staff members in attendance that evening to join him for recognition and applause by an audience of local business owners and leaders. When later asked about the evening, Flohr credited the entire Glenwood Hot Springs Resort team.
“To be honored by business leaders within our community means the world to us. Like everything at Glenwood Hot Springs, though, it’s a team effort,” Flohr said. “The Sopris Splash Zone required the vision of management. It was a massive undertaking and huge accomplishment that adds another dimension to what is available to the Glenwood Springs visitor, but it’s the day-to-day service and professionalism that matters most to guests. It takes everyone from management to maintenance, hospitality to housekeeping, to make it happen. The Top Brass award belongs to every member of our team.”
Commercial Growth & Innovation: The Sopris Splash Zone
After two years of planning and months of prep work, the highly anticipated Sopris Splash Zone opened at the west end of the Glenwood Hot Springs Pool in the summer of 2019.
It is Phase I of a four-phase masterplan, the goal of which was to create new water-centric attractions that celebrate the geography and history of Glenwood Springs, while expanding the range of activities to appeal to today’s traveler, all while maintaining the European spa character for which the resort is famous. The multi-million-dollar new addition enhances the family-friendly experience of the hot springs pool for both locals and visitors, all while complementing a rich 131-year history in Glenwood Springs.
Community Involvement & Leadership
While commercial expansion is vital for renewal and growth within the marketplace, community service and outreach are equally important. Glenwood Hot Springs Resort supports many causes and groups every year throughout the Roaring Fork Valley and Garfield County. Funding comes in a variety of forms, from monetary gifts to in-kind donations to the endowment of higher education scholarships. Glenwood Hot Springs also encourages its employees to be generous with their personal time and resources away from work. When asked about the high number of employees who volunteer outside the workplace, Flohr said, “Our mission is to ‘Make People Feel Better.’ Putting a smile on someone’s face is contagious and addictive. Knowing our staff the way I do, I am not surprised by how many people engage in volunteering.”
Additionally, Glenwood Hot Springs strives to be among the top employers in Glenwood Springs. The company believes that happy, healthy employees lead to happy, healthy guests and offers a variety of benefits for full-time employees.
“We have received recognition in in over 100 publications for the Sopris Splash Zone,” Flohr said. “But because it’s local, because it’s from our business community where we work and live, the Top Brass Award for Outstanding Business of the Year is the feather in our cap.”