Relax on Cloud Nine: Celebrating 25 Years of Membership
By Danielle Wiseman, The Staten Island Chamber of Commerce
Relax on Cloud Nine is a full-service, luxury health and wellness spa that offers massages, facials, waxing, body exfoliation treatments, and yoga classes. Doreen Zayer, owner of Relax on Cloud Nine, makes it her personal mission to help people find their physical, mental, and spiritual centers, ensuring that clients walk out feeling as relaxed as the spa’s name suggests.
Zayer, and her team of dedicated professionals, have made an immeasurable impact on the Staten Island community through their healing. “Self care is absolutely vital, and I feel fortunate that I get to share methods of self care with my friends, family, and community,” says Zayer.
A longtime lover of healing, Zayer initially became interested in massage therapy as an exchange student in London, where she got her very first massage and was blown away by its effects. Upon returning to the United States, Zayer received multiple massage therapy certifications in the state of California. A traveler at heart, Zayer took a two-year break to serve in the Peace Corps, where she was able to practice different types of body work techniques. When she finally settled back down in Staten Island, her family’s home for over four generations, Zayer started studying to obtain her New York State massage therapy license, and in 1995, she opened Relax on Cloud Nine.
“I really wanted to open a spa on Staten Island, but at the time massage therapy wasn’t mainstream yet,” says Zayer. “So I decided to open in the Staten Island Mall, where everyone could see the kind of work we were doing and know that we were legitimate.”
Relax on Cloud Nine’s clientele exploded through word of mouth, as Staten Islanders realized that they could receive high-quality massage therapy without having to leave the borough. Eventually, Zayer outgrew her space in the Staten Island Mall, and rather than renting a new space, she decided to purchase and transform a 1920’s Victorian, three-family home on the corner of Clove Road and Martling Avenue. In 1998, Relax on Cloud Nine opened in its new and improved, permanent home.
“I opened Relax on Cloud Nine because I wanted to work for myself, but I also opened it because I wanted to create a collaborative community for massage therapists,” reminisces Zayer. “It was important to me that I could offer my employees simple IRA matching, health benefits, and all the other perks that would come with a traditional job. The best feeling in the world is watching people completely transform, mentally, physically, and emotionally, when they leave a Cloud Nine session.”
In addition to massage therapy, Relax on Cloud Nine now offers a plethora of wellness services ranging from esthetician work to yoga classes. “All of my employees are either a New York State licensed massage therapist and/or a New York State licensed esthetician,” adds Zayer. “However many of our massage therapists have gone on to obtain additional certifications, so we offer services like lymphatic drainage, cranial sacral, and deep-tissue, and we are the first spa on Staten Island to have their entire staff certified in prenatal massage.”
This year, Relax on Cloud Nine is celebrating its 25th anniversary with the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce. Zayer joined the Chamber in 1998, when she moved out of the mall and opened her location on Clove Road. “Being a part of the Chamber of Commerce gives you credibility as a business,” says Zayer. “I joined the Chamber to help legitimize Relax on Cloud Nine because we were operating out of a private home. I wanted to show Staten Island that we were a part of the business community.”
Zayer is an incredibly active member of the Chamber, making sure to attend events whenever she is able to leave the massage table. From member meet-ups to Small Business Saturday, Relax on Cloud Nine is always there. “Over the years, I’ve found that the Chamber is such a helpful resource for pointing small businesses in the right direction,” emphasizes Zayer. “The Chamber always put me in contact with whatever city agency I was having an issue with, and I know that I can go to the Chamber whenever I need them.” Zayer is also a former member of Business Guild 1.
We are proud to celebrate 25 years with Relax on Cloud Nine, and we look forward to many more years of partnership.
