Woodhouse Day Spa – Castle Pines
Friendship leads to a flourishing business
Friends for 20 years, Desiree Moore (left) and Amber Long (right) have gone from enjoying leisurely spa time together while their kids were young to owning The Woodhouse Day Spa in the Village Shops together in Castle Pines.
Longtime friends Desiree Moore and Amber Long have been the business owners of The Woodhouse Day Spa located in the Village Shops in Castle Pines since April 2011. The two met while working for the same physician’s office 20 years ago. Long has a background in dermatology, and Moore has a background in information technology. Working mothers with young children, they would carve out time to relax together as guests at the Woodhouse Day Spa location in Lone Tree – one of roughly 70 franchise locations nationwide.
When the Castle Pines location came up for sale, Long said to Moore, “Hey do you want to buy a spa?” Moore replied, “Absolutely not!” Long chuckled, “That’s pretty much our friendship. I have an idea. She says ‘no.’ Then she comes around and ends up running the whole thing.”
Desiree Moore pictured with her son, Mason, and her husband, Christian, in downtown Denver.
Moore and her husband, Christian, have been married for 14 years, and they have a son, Mason, who attends Arizona State University. Long and her husband, Jeff, have two daughters – Ashley (18) attends Northern Arizona University, and Ava (12) is in middle school.
When not working, Moore enjoys playing golf, camping and traveling. The Moore family loves to go to Hawaii and Mexico for the beaches, but they also take their camper to the mountains during the summer. The family has two Aussiedoodles named Sadie and Oreo that they enjoy including in their family outings.
The Long family spends as much time as they can at their lake house in Iowa. Left to right: Jeff, Ashley, Ava and Amber.
The Long family loves the water and owns a surf boat. “Everyone in the family surfs very well except me,” Long quipped. “I’m the captain!” They also enjoy camping, hiking and traveling as much as possible. The Longs have a trip planned to Greece next year.
They take their boat to Iowa in the summers where they share a lake house with Long’s brother. Long remarked, “We take it back to a magical place; we are on a quiet lake and there is plenty of room to enjoy all of the lake sports. It is now a July 4th tradition to watch the fireworks on the lake with a bunch of friends, kids and grandparents.”
Having recently completed a 3,000-square-foot expansion of The Woodhouse Day Spa in the Village (upstairs), Moore said, “We are really looking forward to opening the expanded space. We will have two additional quiet rooms, locker rooms and several additional treatment rooms including a tub room and two beautiful couples’ rooms.” It’s a great place to come and relax with a friend.
By Kathy Fallert; photos courtesy of Desiree Moore and Amber Long
