Appy Feet (in case you haven’t seen the news) is the brand new concept in footcare at The Trafford Centre. The attractive temporary store on Upper Regent Crescent contains a host of fishtanks, next to which stand wooden benches. There are two stages to the process – first, you sit on the bench and plunge your plates of meat into the cool waters of a spa bath, to clean them of chemicals and sock fluff – before then spinning round on your bottom and plunging your feet into the actual fish tanks on the other side.
Immediately, schools of Garra Rufa fish crowd around your toes and ankles, looking for a spot to latch onto. The sensation is quite a shock, and I have to admit I screamed and pulled my feet out straight away!
But after some gentle encouragement from the staff, we were brave and plunged back in again.
Screams
At first, I couldn’t watch the fish at work, as I was trying to take my mind off what was going on. But after some minutes, I relaxed into the treatment and the screaming stopped. By the end, I could see why people have become firm fans of these finned therapists – with some shoppers going weekly, or even more often.
As a talking point, I don’t think I can imagine anything better than getting a pedicure from these amazing creatures. The fish were fed – and I will dine out on this story for months to come!
After ten minutes an alarm went off to tell our helper Michael that our time was up. A quick squidge of foot cream to rub into our feet, and with shoes and socks firmly back on we headed back to the office – giggling all the way.
Foot treatments start at £10 for 15 minutes, and you can also have your hands done for 5 minutes at just a fiver. Christina White, the business brain behind this new arrival at the Centre, told me the fish are particularly good for people with skin complaints like psoriasis.
But even if you don’t have dry skin, or psoriasis, you must have a dip at Appy Feet – if only to say you’ve been eaten by fish, rather than the other way around.
Read my previous post about Appy Feet here!
Leave a comment