Estimated reading time: 11 minutes
Apple Jatikate is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Asiatic Thai Massage, with studios in Angel and Highbury, Islington.
Her story brings together Thai heritage, life in London, hands-on experience, female leadership, and a strong commitment to the Upper Street community. With Asiatic, Apple has built a massage boutique and wellness brand that honours Thai massage traditions while serving the needs of today’s London guests.
Asiatic is not a generic massage studio. It was built on years of hands-on experience, trust from the Upper Street community, and Apple’s belief that Thai wellness should always feel warm, professional, respectful and truly personal.
For nearly 20 years, Apple has shaped Thai massage in Angel and Islington, starting at 93 Upper Street and later expanding to 262 Upper Street in Highbury. Today, both studios give guests a peaceful break from London’s busy life, while keeping the warmth, skill, and hospitality of Thai culture alive.
Apple Jatikate: timeline at a glance
2006 — Apple began working in London at the Kobkun Thai Spa on Essex Road.
2008 — She worked as a Senior Therapist at Aveda Spa in Covent Garden.
2009 — She became a business partner and manager at Kobkun Thai Therapy, 93 Upper Street.
2019 — Apple became the full owner of the Angel studio and renamed it Asiatic Thai Massage.
2024 — Asiatic expanded to 262 Upper Street, Highbury.
Today — Apple continues to lead Asiatic across Angel and Highbury with a focus on Thai hospitality, professional care and community trust.
Editorial Note
This article was written by Team Asiatic and is based on the founder’s story of Apple Jatikate.
Editorial review by Ben Pianese, Co-Founder of Asiatic and bodywork practitioner since 2001.
Asiatic has served the Islington community since 2009.
A journey of ambition: from Thailand to Upper Street
Apple has also been featured in a Kimp Founder Story, where she shared lessons from building and marketing Asiatic as a Thai massage and wellness brand.
The historic Schram & Scheddle sign at 262 Upper Street connects Asiatic Highbury to one of Islington’s most distinctive local stories.
Apple’s journey began with a simple but powerful intention: to bring genuine Thai care to London.
In 2006, she began working as a massage therapist at Kobkun Thai Spa on Essex Road. In 2008, she joined Aveda Spa in Covent Garden as a Senior Therapist, where she gained more experience in a high-standard spa environment.
In 2009, Apple became a business partner and manager at Kobkun Thai Therapy, the main branch at 93 Upper Street. She managed and developed the business over the years, eventually becoming the full owner of the Angel studio in 2019.
That same year, the business was renamed Asiatic Thai Massage, marking a new chapter for the Upper Street studio. The name reflected a wider vision to honour Asian bodywork traditions while creating a professional, modern and welcoming massage space for London.
Because of the trust earned in Angel, Asiatic expanded to 262 Upper Street in Highbury. For Apple, opening a second studio was more than just adding another location. She wanted to create a calm, simple, and meaningful space that respected the building’s history and local character.
The Highbury studio: from Schram & Scheddle to Asiatic
Asiatic Highbury at 262 Upper Street has a remarkable local history.
The building was once home to Schram & Scheddle, a tailor shop remembered by many Islington locals for its distinctive gold-leaf sign. When Asiatic moved in, Apple and the team chose to preserve this historic detail rather than remove it.
This was important to Apple. Asiatic’s Highbury studio was meant to honour the past, not erase it. She wanted it to become part of the next chapter for this well-loved Upper Street building.
The history of 262 Upper Street has even inspired the poet Michael Rosen, who recorded a poem titled Schram and Scheddle to celebrate its quirky past and local memory.
Michael Rosen recites “Schram & Scheddle”, a poem inspired by the historic shop that once occupied 262 Upper Street.
Watch Michael Rosen recite his poem about the historic Schram & Scheddle shop — the very building that is now home to Asiatic Highbury at 262 Upper Street.
The poem celebrates the quirky local history of the building and adds another layer to the story of our Highbury massage boutique.
The mystery of 262 Upper Street
Asiatic’s Highbury home story goes deeper than the gold sign.
In 1978, a previous tenant, Stan Westwood, uncovered the original Schram & Scheddle signage after it had been hidden for decades. While restoring the shop, he discovered a mysterious package hidden in a loft at the rear of the building.
The package was addressed to the “man of the house” and contained a letter from the Middlesex Lunatic Asylum informing him of his wife’s detention, alongside a visiting card and a cut-throat razor hidden in a bag.
Today, Asiatic has turned that sense of mystery into a place of calm, care, and skilled massage. Apple is proud that the Highbury studio now looks after such a unique and interesting London spot.
A Zen Pause in Literary Islington
Canonbury Square is only a short walk from Asiatic Highbury at 262 Upper Street. A historic plaque at 27B Canonbury Square marks the former home of George Orwell, where he completed Animal Farm and began writing 1984.
This local connection gives the Highbury studio its own special character. Asiatic is part of a neighbourhood shaped by literature, history, small businesses, and peaceful residential streets.
Guests come to Asiatic from all over London to take a break from the city’s fast pace. After a treatment, many feel calmer, lighter, and more at ease. To keep that feeling going, we suggest a quiet walk through Canonbury or one of the nearby green spaces.
The Highbury studio is in a beautifully preserved historic building, designed with a Mediterranean-minimalist style inspired by Co-Founder Ben Pianese. Its original fireplace is a rare feature that links the space to London’s past, while the treatment rooms provide a calm place for guests to relax and recover.
If you want to keep the calm feeling after your visit, Canonbury is a lovely area for a walk. From the studio, you can pass local favourites like Monte’s Italian Delicatessen and reach Canonbury’s quiet streets in just a few minutes.
Canonbury Square, a short walk from Asiatic Highbury, reflects the area’s literary and cultural character.
Heritage as a blueprint for wellness
Apple’s Thai heritage shapes the guest experience at Asiatic.
As a Thai woman, she views wellness through the idea of metta, which means loving-kindness. This shapes the atmosphere in the studios, the way guests are welcomed, and how treatments are given.
Her background informs everything from choosing Thai-trained therapists to creating peaceful rooms where guests feel cared for and respected. Her experience at Aveda Spa in Covent Garden and Kobkun Thai Spa helped her understand how to combine professional standards with Thai warmth and tradition.
To Apple, Asiatic is more than just a service. It’s a place where Thai hospitality, skilled hands, and London life come together.
Defining authenticity in a modern massage market
At Asiatic, authenticity isn’t about decorations or looks. It’s about the quality of treatments, respect for culture, and professional care.
The team offers Traditional Thai Massage, Deep Tissue Massage, Aromatherapy, Sports Massage, Pregnancy Massage, Thai Foot Massage and focused back, neck and shoulder treatments.
Each session is tailored to the person receiving the massage. The therapist adjusts the pressure, pace, and technique to fit the guest’s comfort, body, and reason for coming in.
Apple believes true Thai therapy is more than just relaxation. It should offer presence, care, real skill, and respect for the body.
Apple’s signature approach
Apple’s approach combines Thai warmth, careful listening and a strong understanding of pressure, rhythm and body positioning.
She focuses on more than just relaxation. Her goal is to help guests feel understood, safe, and cared for during the whole treatment. This matters especially for London clients with shoulder tension from desk work, neck stress, tired legs, or general heaviness from city life.
For Apple, a good massage starts before any hands-on work. It begins with a warm welcome, listening to the guest’s needs, and the therapist adjusting the treatment as needed.
That’s why Asiatic’s approach is personal, not mechanical. Treatments aren’t a set routine—they’re shaped around each guest.s.
Thai care shaped by Islington life
After many years working with guests in Angel, Highbury and the wider Islington area, Apple has developed a clear understanding of the tension patterns common in local London life.
Many guests arrive with desk-work shoulders, commuting fatigue, stress-held neck tension, heavy legs from standing or walking, and tiredness from daily city life.
This local experience helps Asiatic adapt Thai massage traditions to fit the real needs of people living and working near Upper Street.
For some guests, that means a firm, deep-tissue massage. For others, it means a slower Thai massage, a focused back-and-shoulder treatment, or a gentler aromatherapy session to support rest.
The aim is not to force the body. It is to listen, adapt and offer care that feels right for each person.
The strength of a female founder
As a female founder in London’s wellness sector, Apple has had to navigate many challenges.
One of the biggest has been helping clients understand the difference between genuine Thai therapy and a standard spa-style massage. True Thai massage takes years to master. It requires knowledge of pressure, movement, body positioning, rhythm and sensitivity.
Apple has also put a lot of effort into making sure the spaces feel safe, professional, and respectful for both guests and therapists.
Her goal is simple: every guest should feel the warmth of Thailand as soon as they walk in, while also getting the high standards you’d expect from a professional London wellness studio.
A pillar of the Islington community
Apple has watched Upper Street change since 2007. Over the years, she has developed a deep connection with Angel, Highbury, and the wider Islington community.
Asiatic isn’t a big chain. It’s a real part of daily life on Upper Street.
The studios sit among local neighbours, independent restaurants, cafés, shops and community spaces. Apple often speaks warmly of nearby businesses such as Avoman, Gallipoli, Mem & Laz, Zen Mondo and Pizzeria Santa Maria.
For Apple, local success is tied to the community. Asiatic has grown because people in Islington have trusted the business, come back over the years, and shared their experiences with friends and family.
That’s why the brand continues to value local relationships, professional care, and long-term trust.
The spiritual foundation: business as good karma
Apple’s leadership is also influenced by Theravada Buddhist values.
She believes in honesty, sincerity and good karma. For her, business should be built on care, consistency and respect, not on shortcuts, pressure or manipulation.
This belief shapes the atmosphere of Asiatic. Guests often describe the studios as calm, welcoming and familiar. Some long-term clients even describe Asiatic as a home away from home.
The vision: preserving the future of Thai healing
Apple’s vision for Asiatic is still developing.
The Angel studio at 93 Upper Street is being redesigned to feel even more special, calm, and welcoming, while staying true to the building and the surrounding community.
There are also plans to bring Asiatic’s approach to Central London, near Covent Garden, with a fresh, creative design.
Apple and its team design each studio itself. They don’t want to copy other brands or chase trends. Their goal is to create spaces that feel original, thoughtful, and true to Thai heritage.
Her dream is for Asiatic to keep growing with purpose and authenticity. She wants it to stay a trusted wellness space where people from all backgrounds can experience the warmth, care, and healing of Thai tradition in the heart of London.
Book a treatment at Asiatic
If you want to experience Apple’s approach, you can book a treatment with the Asiatic team at either Asiatic Angel or Asiatic Highbury.
Both studios share the same values: Thai warmth, skilled hands, careful listening, and massages tailored to each guest.
Asiatic Angel is located at 93 Upper Street, close to Angel station.
Asiatic Highbury is located at 262 Upper Street, close to Highbury & Islington station.
Discover the atelier
To learn more about Asiatic’s role as custodian of Upper Street’s historic buildings, our treatment philosophy and our approach to Thai massage in Islington, visit our About page.
For guests who want massage to become part of a regular wellbeing routine, our guide to massage frequency explains how often to book depending on lifestyle, treatment type and how your body responds.
You may also find our editorial guide to the best deep tissue massage in London useful if you are comparing spa, clinic and massage boutique options.
