Dan Fryda has spent more than 45 years studying the therapeutic, nutritional, and environmental potential of marine algae while pioneering seaweed-based treatments for the spa and wellness industry. In 1991, he founded Spa Technologies International, a company dedicated to bringing the principles of French thalassotherapy to the American spa market through advanced marine skin and body care therapies.
Fryda began his career introducing electro-acupuncture blended with aromatherapy and seaweed treatments to estheticians and wellness professionals. Over time, he became a leading advocate for integrating holistic spa therapies with emerging marine biotechnology to create effective, science-based treatments that spa therapists could trust and understand. His work and expertise have been featured in numerous beauty, wellness, and spa industry publications.
Throughout his career, Dan has played a major role in introducing French thalassotherapy and marine algae therapies in the U.S. He established his own laboratory specializing in algae serums, anti-aging creams, and advanced marine body treatments. His leadership in marine biotechnology led to his appointment to the board of advisors of Heliae, the Mars Corporation joint venture with Arizona State University, focusing on commercial applications of microalgae. In that role, he evaluated microalgae profiles for nutritional and skincare applications.
A frequent lecturer and educator, Fryda is the author of the forthcoming book The Ocean Within, a culmination of four decades of research and experience exploring how marine algae support skin rejuvenation, detoxification, mineral balance, agricultural sustainability, and environmental restoration. The book examines how seaweed’s remarkable evolutionary adaptations and bioactive compounds may hold important implications for human health, wellness, and the future health of the planet.
In 2022, Fryda was invited to become a member of the board of directors of the New York Spa Alliance. At the end of 2026, he will retire from his position as president of Spa Technologies. His nephew and long-time partner, Dave Mombert, the company’s master formulator and VP of operations, whom he has mentored over the past 15 years, will assume leadership of the company. Here, Fryda shares the role wellness plays in his own life.
What does wellness mean to you?
Wellness is feeling fully alive in each phase of your life. It means having mobility and energy, radiating health, being mentally engaged, and living a life of optimism in which you look forward to the future and don’t regret the past.
What are your favorite things to do to maintain your personal wellbeing?
Waking up each morning looking forward to the day, daily walking and mild exercise, consuming seaweed, and eating healthy.
Is there a specific fitness activity that you love and why?
I love walking outdoors and breathing in the air and being immersed in the trees or along the coast.
What is your favorite healthy food, and do you have a favorite way of preparing it?
Any grilled vegetable
What is your favorite healthy beverage (alcoholic or non-alcoholic), and do you have any insider tips for preparing it?
Pinot noir and non-alcoholic Clausthaler Beer
What is your greatest wellness achievement?
Writing my book as well as introducing and implementing hydrotherapy to U.S. spas, including Canyon Ranch.
What person in wellness do you most admire and why?
There are so many, and it wouldn’t be fair to point to one. However, in the area of skin and bodycare, it has to be Anne Bramham, who founded ASTECC. When it comes to the epiphany that drove me to devote 45 years of my life studying seaweed, I’d have to credit Rene Quinton, who discovered that seawater and human blood plasma are qualitatively identical, proving our ancient marine origins.
What is the best piece of wellness advice you have ever received and from whom?
It has been learning how to breathe properly, and I’ve learned it from many different sources.
What do you think is the most exciting wellness innovation you have recently discovered?
It’s not necessarily recent, but I find contrast therapies stretch your endurance.
What is your idea of balanced healthy happiness?
Fulfilling your passion—whatever it is to you—and having the energy and optimism to embrace it while remembering your family and friends.
What is your favorite place for a healthy vacation or escape?
Roch Roum Spa in Brittany, France
What is your favorite self-care routine?
A seaweed-aromatherapy bath in which I can enjoy the health benefits and inducing myself into a meditative state of serenity.
What is your go-to for de-stressing?
Again, it’s the seaweed-aromatherapy bath. I also find it helpful to project myself two weeks into the future, knowing that whatever I am stressing about will either have been resolved or just behind me by the time I get there. Don’t sweat the small stuff, because most of it is small stuff.
What aspect of your wellbeing do you struggle with the most, or would most like to improve?
I would like more energy.
What brings you joy?
Dining with friends, enjoying my family, and having the privilege to follow my passions.
