The Experiential Edge: With The Norfolk Mead
- Eleanor Loveday
- 23 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Traditional country charm meets modern elegance at The Norfolk Mead, a luxury hotel and spa set in eight acres of picturesque gardens.
When we visited to speak to Emma Bond, Head of Marketing, we were quickly enveloped in a sense of calm and tranquillity, a feeling of escaping from the outside world despite the short 20-minute drive from Norwich.
This feeling is not accidental. It’s at the core of The Norfolk Mead’s visitor experience – and we were keen to understand how it’s created.
Settling into plush armchairs in the newly refurbished Georgian Room, we talked with Emma about how ‘experiential’ matters to The Norfolk Mead.
The conversation is part of our Experiential Edge series, designed to give businesses the tools and mindset to unlock the power of experience.
We’re very grateful to Emma for taking the time to share with us, and we think you’ll take plenty away from what she had to say. Let’s get into it.
A changing tourism landscape
Owners Anna and James opened The Norfolk Mead as a hotel and events venue in 2013, with the onsite spa opening in 2024. Emma explains that the spa was a strategic response to shifting consumer behaviour following the pandemic. With more people choosing staycations and luxury experiences over international travel, the demand for luxury wellness grew quickly.
The rise of ‘wellness tourism’, coupled with direct customer feedback and market research, made the spa a natural next step. The business has reported strong successes since its opening, with a significant growth in footfall and new audiences reached.
Innovative product experiences
From their research, The Norfolk Mead also identified a desire for unique, quirky experiences. We’ve seen it from goat yoga, to themed Airbnb's (a personal favourite is the Shrek’s swamp Airbnb)I And while The Norfolk Mead do offer mud baths, their experiences have taken a slightly different route... developing the UK’s first beer spa and prosecco spa.
Taking a tried and well loved format (you can find plenty of beer spas in Central Europe) and bringing it to the UK, meant The Norfolk Mead weren’t developing an idea completely from scratch, instead bringing something with proven popularity to the UK.
The novelty factor is an attraction, appealing to customers who want to try something different, as well as those drawn in by the attraction of a treatment popular in some of Europe’s best spas. Emma also explained that it’s invited a new demographic, with the beer spa in particular appealing to men.
What’s more, Emma and her team have optimised the website for search terms around ‘beer spas UK’, with keyword-rich content, FAQs and designated pages, and digital PR to help them rank number one for relevant searches.
We did discuss that the business can’t rely on being the only UK beer spa – it's only a matter of time before competitors want a slice of the pie (or sip of the pint). We chatted about how else they’re developing the visitor experience, in ways that can be owned by The Norfolk Mead...
Partner events
New for 2025, The Norfolk Mead ran their first ever Spa Retreat – a popular event that they are bringing back in January 2026.
The Retreat package offers a luxury experience for customers, pushing value perception with the promise of feeling refreshed and renewed after the two-day retreat.
The itinerary was filled with a range of wellness sessions, from sound baths to Pilates, run by dedicated experts in each field. Emma explained that the range of sessions was a significant draw for customers, and something they had excellent feedback on. In fact, the 2026 ‘Hello Glow’ retreat will have an even bigger range of classes and trending activities, like colour analysis and pottery painting.
Partnering with external service providers has increased reach and awareness of The Norfolk Mead – with the business benefitting from wider social share, collaborative marketing and access to new audiences.
Human experiences
In a highly competitive market, we asked Emma what’s really makes The Norfolk Mead unique. In her view, it’s down to the people.
The Norfolk Mead place a big emphasis on the people they hire, looking to recruit the best of the best. Emma explains the genuine care that each team member has, wanting to do their best work and make every visitor feel special.
Emma describes a strong brand experience as “personal and effortless.” It’s about anticipating needs before customers voice them, ensuring every detail contributes to a sense of calm, comfort, and belonging.
Because ultimately, as Emma shared, “people remember how they felt, not just what they did.”
5 learnings from The Norfolk Mead, to help you find your own experiential edge:
Use market and customer insight: The Norfolk Mead have used research into changing wellness sector to inform their spa offering, along with consistently seeking customer insight to help improve the visitor experience.
Product innovation can help you lean into quirky and unique experiences, giving you a competitive advantage.
Partnerships & collaboration can add value to an experience, while extending your audience and customer base.
Personalisation goes a long way: the most memorable experiences feel effortless, tailored, and human. Service is often the differentiator customers talk about long after they leave.
Focus on emotional connection. People remember how they felt, not just what they did – so craft brand experiences around the emotions you want to evoke.
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