When designing the concept for Ma'ati Spa, owner Maya Gilliam drew inspiration from travels to Thailand, India, Ghana, South Africa, Kenya, and Trinidad and Tobago, telling the Winston-Salem Chronicle, "I try to make the client feel like they're in another country, unlike any other spa that you've ever been to in the U.S." Eastern and Western techniques converge inside her spa—which takes its name from an ancient Egyptian credo—where aromatherapy is served à la carte or as a soothing add-on to beauty treatments such sea-salt body scrubs and men's and women's facials. Before ushering clients toward private treatment rooms for hot-stone or deep-tissue massages, the staff offers complimentary glasses of herbal tea or wine, and guests may choose to enhance their session with relaxing sounds such as international music or whispered presidential concession speeches.