Michelle Handy recognized a need for day spas in Portland. She has traveled extensively and experienced spas at resorts and in larger cities across the country. As a result, she had a very clear idea about what she thought a spa should be. I want you to feel at home. The greatest obstacle for success is the perception of what it is and being in Maine.
People here are a little more reluctant to do something for themselves.
The first floor at Paradiso is a bustling hair salon. Attractive but a little frantic. Upstairs is the spa, a very quiet and very private area decorated in soothing shades of green. All of the spas I visited have been in their current locations for less than a year. Even Akari, although in the same location on Fore St. for many years, has been renovated due to a fire there last spring.