FRIENDS OF HAPPY PLACE: MEET SENSORY RETREATS
At Happy Place, we’re proud to curate a marketplace filled with brands that truly align with our values: purpose-driven, planet-conscious and passionate about people’s wellbeing.
Friends of Happy Place is a feature spotlighting the brilliant minds behind the brands we love. These are the founders who are doing things differently, making waves in their industries and bringing meaningful products into the world
Rooted in authenticity and compassion, Sensory Retreats transforms everyday rituals into extraordinary sensory experiences. Focused on quality, accessibility and renewal, this is a brand delivering products that inspire empowerment and connection, creating meaningful journeys of wellbeing that leave a lasting impact. Let’s find out more.
What is the name of your brand and when was the brand founded?
Our brand is Sensory Retreats, and it was founded in 2019. Sensory Retreats is a holistic wellbeing brand inspired by my 30 years in the professional spa industry, offering luxurious, self-heating products and multi-sensory experiences designed to relax, rebalance and reset.
Sensory Retreats brings the spa experience into your home with our self-heating eye masks, guided meditations and soothing music. Everything we do is dedicated to enhancing your wellbeing journey, offering accessible tools to calm the body and mind.
Who’s behind the brand?
Sensory Retreats was founded by Clare Anderson, a visionary in the wellness industry with three decades of experience in the professional spa industry. Clare is also the UK distributor of the world-famous Lava Shells massage via sister company, Shared Beauty Secrets. Her passion for holistic wellbeing and expertise in self-heating treatments inspired her to create Sensory Retreats, building on over 15 years of expertise in self-heating spa technology to bring professional spa-quality experiences directly into people’s homes.
What products or services do you specialise in and who are they for?
We specialise in spa-inspired wellness products designed to nurture the mind, body, and soul and deliver multi-sensorial experiences. Our range includes award-winning self-heating eye masks, aromatherapy oils, candles and curated treat boxes, as well as guided meditations and crystal sound healing music.
Our target audience is primarily women aged 35-55 who value self-care, relaxation and holistic wellness. These individuals are busy professionals, entrepreneurs, and caregivers seeking moments of calm and balance in their hectic lives.
What is your mission at Sensory Retreats?
Sensory Retreats was born from the belief that self-care isn’t a luxury - it’s essential. After decades in the spa industry, Clare recognised the transformative power of relaxation moments for people. She wanted to make these experiences more accessible, empowering individuals to create their own wellness rituals at home. Sensory Retreats was created to help people pause, reset and reconnect with themselves in a world that never stops.
What are your core brand values?
Our core values are:
Empowerment: Encouraging individuals to prioritise their wellbeing.
Inclusivity: Making wellness accessible to everyone.
Immersion: Engaging all five senses to create deeply transformative experiences.
Innovation: Blending ancient traditions with modern science to deliver cutting-edge wellness
solutions.
Authenticity: Ensuring transparency, trust and genuine care in everything we create.
Mindful Luxury: Redefining indulgence with products that are affordable, restorative and elegant.
What’s the journey been like so far? Any highs or lows?
Our journey has been incredibly rewarding, filled with moments of growth and learning. A standout highlight has been the overwhelming success of our self-heating eye masks, with over 1 million sold to date. These masks have become a customer favourite and a symbol of our commitment to quality and innovation.
Like any brand, we’ve faced challenges, such as navigating the competitive wellness market and ensuring sustainability in our practices, but these have only strengthened our resolve to deliver the best to our customers.
Do you have any favourite products?
Our Sensory Sleep Escape Self-Heating Eye Masks are a customer favourite and an award-winning innovation. Infused with a calming jasmine scent, these masks are expertly designed to soothe tired eyes, reduce stress and promote deep, restorative sleep. Whether you’re unwinding at home or seeking serenity on the go, they create the perfect portable sleep sanctuary.
Launching in so many spas and featured in Sheerluxe, British Vogue and The Standard, these masks are loved by both users and the press. Each mask warms up within minutes, delivering 25 minutes of gentle, soothing heat - ideal for night-time relaxation, midday naps, meditation or travel. Lightweight and compact, they’re easy to take wherever life leads you.
The relaxing jasmine aroma helps ease stress and tension, making these masks particularly beneficial for women navigating peri-menopause or menopause, offering a sense of calm and relief for both the eyes and mind.
As an added touch, every mask includes access to Fast Asleep, a wellness playlist by Myndstream. Simply scan the QR code, press play and let the soothing sounds elevate your relaxation experience.
Do you have any exciting plans for the brand coming up?
Yes! We continually innovate and expand our product range to meet the evolving needs of our customers. A perfect example of this is our latest launch: our new cream vegan wraparound eye mask. This product has evolved over the last two years, starting as a prototype shared with Fearne (originally in green) that inspired us to create something truly unique.
Designed with comfort and relaxation in mind, this eye mask is crafted from sustainable, cruelty-free materials and features sensory-driven elements to enhance relaxation and promote self-care. Beyond this, we’re also exploring exciting collaborations with wellness experts and hope to expand into the corporate wellness space.
We've also teamed up this year with Myndstream to incorporate scientifically crafted music, designed to de-stress the mind and instil a profound sense of calm and balance, as part of our sensory product offering.
Why did you want to work with Happy Place?
Happy Place aligns perfectly with our mission to promote holistic wellbeing and create moments of joy and mindfulness. We admire their commitment to fostering a sense of community and connection, which resonates deeply with our values.
Our journey with Happy Place began two years ago when our founder, Clare, attended the Happy Place Festival for the first time with a friend. At the time, we were exploring the idea of developing a reusable vegan wraparound eye mask - an evolution of our self-heating eye masks - with self-heating and cold inserts for enhanced versatility and sustainability. Clare was fortunate enough to book a meet and greet with Fearne and gifted her one of our very first prototypes.
From that moment, Clare set a goal to one day return to Happy Place as a product owner, sharing her range of wellness products with an audience who values self-care and emotional wellbeing just as much as we do.
This year, that dream became a reality. Not only did Clare get to showcase her range at the festival, but she also had the chance to reconnect with Fearne, who is still loving and using her gifted Sensory Sleep wraparound vegan eye mask. It was truly a full-circle moment - a chance to bring our products to consumers who share the same passion for wellness and mindfulness while celebrating the journey that started at Happy Place.
If you could share one piece of advice to people who aspire to start their own brand, what would it be?
Stay true to your vision and values. Building a brand takes time, passion and resilience, but if you remain authentic and focused on delivering value to your customers, the rewards will follow. Don’t be afraid to innovate and adapt, but always keep your purpose at the heart of everything you do
And finally… how do you find your Happy Place?
For us, happiness and relaxation come from creating moments of stillness and connection. Whether it’s popping on one of our self-heating eye masks for a moment of calm and tranquility, lighting one of our relaxing, aromatherapy-scented candles, enjoying a guided meditation or simply taking a few deep breaths with our rollerball pulse point oil, we believe in the power of small, intentional acts of self-care to restore balance and bring joy to everyday life.
Founder, Clare, loves nothing better than being out in nature, going on long walks with her three dogs and spending time with her family exploring the world and all that it has to offer.
Surrender to your senses
Want to recharge, unwind and embrace the power of truly restorative sleep? Find your ultimate relaxation companion over on the Happy Place Market and learn the art of luxurious, holistic self-care with Sensory Retreats.