Neil Jacobs has stepped down as CEO of Six Senses, after more than 13 years leading the wellness and hospitality brand.
Though his departure marks the end of an era, Jacobs has hinted at the launch of a new business that will continue to explore the intersection of wellness, sustainability, and hospitality.
Jacobs’ journey at Six Senses
Since joining Six Senses in 2012 through private equity firm Pegasus Capital Advisors, Jacobs has helped shape the brand into a global leader in luxury wellness travel. At the time, the company comprised 10 resorts and spas under the Six Senses and Evason banners, plus 18 standalone spas around the world.
Under Jacobs’ guidance, the portfolio has grown to 27 operating hotels and resorts, with another 38 in the pipeline and 12 branded residential developments underway.
Jacobs navigated Six Senses through its sale to IHG Hotels & Resorts in 2019, as well as the global pandemic, all while evolving its wellness concept to meet the needs of today’s conscious travelers.
His vision extended beyond resorts, as he expanded the brand’s reach into urban destinations and launched a suite of new initiatives, including Six Senses Place, a social wellness club concept that is set to debut later this year at Six Senses London.
“Leading Six Senses has been one of the greatest privileges of my career,” Jacobs writes in a LinkedIn post. “From the start, we set out to create something different: a brand rooted in purpose and guided by the belief that hospitality can be both deeply meaningful and genuinely regenerative. We didn’t just build hotels, we built a culture where sustainability, wellness, design, and experience were always in service of something greater.”
Six Senses Kyoto, designed by Blink Design Group
Leaving with a lasting impact
With a background spanning 14 years at Four Seasons and four years with Starwood Capital (where he helped shape the Baccarat and 1 Hotels brands), Jacobs brought a design- and experience-driven mindset to Six Senses. He championed a new service ethos, dubbed “emotional hospitality,” focusing on meaningful, authentic guest experiences while maintaining the brand’s playful and purposeful identity.
Jacobs also played a critical role in building out Six Senses’ wellness offerings by streamlining spa programming across properties, recruiting key industry leaders like Anna Bjurstam, and forming the brand’s Wellness Innovation Team, which spearheads initiatives in biohacking, cryotherapy, female health, spiritual wellness, and more. Plus, each Six Senses property now includes an Earth Lab that tracks sustainability metrics, and 0.5 percent of hotel revenue is dedicated to local conservation and community efforts via a Sustainability Fund.
In recognition of his impact, Jacobs was inducted into Hospitality Design’s Platinum Circle in 2022. He reflected on his vision for Six Senses and the future of wellness in hospitality in an interview with HD.
“Some might assume stepping down means slowing down or retiring. That road is not for me,” Jacobs continues in his LinkedIn post. “I’ll soon be announcing a new venture, one that feels like a return to my own wild origins. A chance to explore fresh ideas, challenge assumptions, and collaborate with kindred spirits who believe, as I do, that hospitality can be a force for good.”
Six Senses Telluride, designed by Rose Ink Workshop
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