Industry thought leader and consultant Mia Kyricos has been recognised for her contributions to hospitality and wellness with The Cornell Hospitality Innovator Award.

Presented by the Leland C. and Mary M. Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship (PIHE) and the Cornell Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration, the accolade honours “extraordinary leaders who have created, built or sustained contemporary, market-leading innovation in hospitality and travel enterprises”.

Kyricos, who has a long and distinguished career in the spa industry, will receive the award in person at the Cornell Hospitality Icon and Innovator Awards ceremony, hosted on 6 June 2023, in New York City.

“Mia is a pioneer in the spa and wellness industries whose trailblazing work is now defining new health and wellbeing standards across the hospitality industry and beyond,” said Kate Walsh, the E. M. Statler professor and dean of the Nolan Hotel School.

“We’re delighted and proud to recognise Mia and her achievements with this award.”

A passionate champion of the industry, Kyricos has previously been celebrated for her commitment to hospitality and wellness.

In 2019 she was named Leading Woman in Wellness by the Global Wellness Summit (GWS) and received the 2019 Cornell University MMH (Master of Management degree in Hospitality) Outstanding Alumna of the Year award.

Kyricos serves on multiple corporate boards including as a founding board member of the Global Wellness Institute (GWI) and GWS, and now focuses on strategic and brand advisory at her boutique consulting firm Kyricos & Associates, providing guidance to wellness-driven hospitality, tourism and healthy lifestyle companies.

She previously worked as senior vice president and global head of wellbeing for Hyatt and prior to that, as chief brand officer at Spafinder Wellness, where she co-founded the Wellness Travel Awards programme which was issued annually across 40 countries at the World Travel Market.

She has also held leadership roles at Core Performance, the workplace wellness division of athletes performance firm EXOS, and at Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, where she created six international spa brands and signature wellness experiences.