Thomas and Ruth Roy, owners of Wellcat Herbs and Quirky Wellcat Holidays (wellcat.com) in Lebanon, PA, originally copyrighted the idea and added it to the registry of national holidays along with more than 70 others of their own creation since the 1980s. These awesome folks (who I don\’t know but, frankly, would really like to) seem to share my love of fun, ease, and simplicity – the philosophies upon which I\’ve built and continue to evolve G+A\’s company culture.
On a Soapbox… Get It?
Without getting on a soapbox for too long (get it), the genesis of National Bathtub Party Day (and all of the other holidays Tom and Ruth have registered) to me embodies the spirit of designing the culture of your dreams (whether for yourself, your family, a team of co-workers you lead, or even an entire company). On the Wellcat website, Tom explains that when he stumbled across the Chase Calendar of Events\’ new holiday submission form at the back of its annual calendar in the early 80s, \”he knew he was in for some creative mirth.\”
\”In for some creative mirth.\”
It\’s such a simple statement, and paradoxically, such a powerful one. Tom didn\’t think to himself, \”I need to corner the niche \’quirky holiday\’ market. I\’ll establish a measurement system not only to evaluate quirkiness levels of each holiday idea but also to make sure that I am churning out an ample number of quirky holiday ideas per quarter to meet our precisely calculated annual quota. And then the Wellcat team will devise a complex and thorough series of market viability tests to ensure the quirky holiday ideas we submit are optimized to resonate with key holiday loving demographics.\” Nope, he just said, \”I knew I was in for some creative mirth.\”
Euphoric Jubilation or Oppressive Melancholy
While measurement and analysis undoubtedly have their places in the development, implementation, and evolution of healthy cultures, at a foundational level, the design of dream cultures begins by defining how we want to feel. Whether you\’re aiming for creative mirth, stimulating intellectuality, euphoric jubilation, or oppressive melancholy*, effortlessly designing a culture experience works best when you\’ve defined what the dream will feel like once you\’re living it. In that way, you can quickly assess whether the ideas you have and the plans you\’re implementing feel like the dream you\’ve had in mind or a nightmare come to life.
For example, had Tom and Ruth begun their quirky holiday culture quest by saying, \”Our culture is about quirky holiday production. We\’re going to author 10-holiday ideas about personal care, 5 about car maintenance, 26 about pet ownership,\” and so on, their path to cultural success would have been quite narrow. Either they would have hit those production goals, or they wouldn\’t have. Beginning with the dream of \”creative mirth\” in mind, however, they opened themselves to a wide array of avenues to success, and subsequently authored holiday ideas for Pet Owner Independence Day (April 18) , Take Your Houseplant for a Walk Day (July 27 – coincidentally my birthday!**), and many more.
So, as you dream of a culture you\’d love (whether personal, familial or professional), consider what feelings are truly at its core… perhaps while enjoying a luxurious bathtub party later today 😉
And to help you all of you bathtub partiers along your journey to cultural (and bathing bash) bliss, enjoy my recommendations to create the ultimate bathtub party experience.
Mal\’s Favorite Bathtub Party Treats
- Just Anything Rituals | These amazing bath products are one of Europe\’s most recent gift to the good old US of A. As always, Europe, well played.
- Turbella Shower Turban | When you want to keep your hair dry and look like an ingenue of Hollywood\’s golden era all at the same time.
- Scandia Towels | Yep, we boujee like that. Don\’t let your bathtub party end once the water\’s gone. Wrap yourself in these luxurious bath towels and sheets to keep the festivities going!
- Voluspa Blanc de Blancs Candle | A Bathtub Party\’s in the air… literally with the help of this candle scent to end all candle scents. Refreshing without being overpowering. Fancy without feeling uppity.
- Chocolatier Jean-Marie Auboine | Treat yourself after all that hard work relaxing with a post-bath num num from my favorite world-renowned Las Vegas-via-France chocolatier!
Happy Bathtub Partying!
Mal, Founder + Creative Director, G+A | An Experiential Design Firm
IG: @mallorygott
*If you\’re cultural dream centers around oppressive melancholy, please get in touch. I\’d be genuinely fascinated to design a culture experience that unique.
**Yes, I absolutely emailed Tom & Ruth to ask whether I might celebrate my birthday with them in 2020. Fingers crossed that I\’ll get the chance to walk with my houseplants and two awesome culture mavens this summer.