This new integrative health club could change the wellness industry

Inspired by their own health concerns and a keen sense of what is lacking in the $ 4.2 trillion wellness industry, a fearless trio of 30- and 40-year-old entrepreneurs are set to open a chain of integrative health clubs called Well.

“What sets us apart the most is the scope and integration of our services. So much has happened in the wellness industry. Boutique fitness is amazing, functional and integrative medicine has become more known and available, and Chinese medicine products and acupuncture clinics have grown, ”said CEO Rebecca Parekh, who spent a decade in structured credit at Deutsche Bank before becoming COO for Deepak Chopra Radical. Well-being. “We bring everything together under one roof and make it truly integrated. All our specialists will collaborate and develop a personalized plan for each member.

The founders of the Kane Sarhan well, Rebecca Parekh, Sarrah Hallock. Photo courtesy of The Well.

Scheduled to debut in September, the first club, a bright three-story, 18,000-square-foot space near Union Square in Manhattan, will employ 50 health and wellness specialists and offer everything from a Reflexology salon and daily yoga classes to a physical therapy and private workout room. To promote socialization, the club will have a restaurant run by the chefs of Cafe Clover in Greenwich Village and host weekly discussions and events on topics such as emotional well-being, financial health, nutrition as well. as medication and stress management.

Membership costs $ 375 per month and includes monthly sessions with one of The Well’s dedicated health coaches, all of whom have completed 12-month certification programs, primarily at Institute for Integrative Nutrition At New York.

“Members will meet at least once a month with their coach, and more often if necessary, to develop an individual wellness plan. Coaches review the foods you eat, your physical movements, your spiritual practice, and your personal relationships. It all affects your well-being, ”says COO Sarrah Hallock, a former Vitaminwater executive with health coaching certifications from. Duke Integrative Medicine and the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. “The coach can guide you to a doctor or physiotherapist, or they will help you start a meditation practice. They are wellness concierges who make sure that our members take advantage of all our offers.

The conscious movement studio. Photo courtesy of The Well.

These offers include: unlimited yoga, meditation and movement classes; use of the club’s chic gym, sauna and steam rooms. Particularly appealing to busy New Yorkers, membership also includes access to sought-after and hard-to-see practitioners, such as doctor of functional medicine Dr. Frank Lipman, the club’s chief medical officer; women’s health specialist Aimee Raupp and sports medicine expert Keith Pyne. Additional charges will apply for medical appointments and spa treatments like craniosacral therapy and lymphatic drainage massage.

With initial funding of $ 18 million led by a venture capital firm NEA, the brand intends to expand to 10 clubs internationally, aiming to open the first three to five by 2024. Following their current location, the owners plan to add a second club in Manhattan and a in Los Angeles.

The hammam. Photo courtesy of The Well.

Designed by Liubasha Rose, who helped develop SH Hotels and Resorts’ 1 Hotel and Baccarat brands, The Well is bright and airy, with a muted gray palette, lots of natural light, green walls, and gently curved surfaces. . Installations by artist James Turrell and Mexican sweat lodge huts inspired the cement-walled circular meditation hall, which resembles a particularly clean and soft cave. The spa treatment rooms have beds with integrated infrared heaters. Rather unusual, the club’s sauna and hammam are mixed.

They also hope to have a well-stocked library, which will host frequent workshops and lectures by wellness practitioners like Shiva Rose, Reshma Saujani and Eddie Stern. “Our vision is to empower members to do more for health and well-being, and they do it through education,” says Parekh. “We are not here to be dogmatic or to tell members what their spiritual practice or diet should be. There is so much going on in wellness, but not always a good explanation, and that’s why it sometimes gets a bad rap. There is science behind everything we do. We are really trying to demystify some of these traditions like Ayurveda, acupuncture, shamanism. When you distill them to their essences, these are best practices for strength, sleep, gut health, immunity. We look at all disciplines and create action plans.

The relaxation lounge. Photo courtesy of The Well.

The idea seems to resonate with the overworked urban professionals that The Well is targeting. So far, the still unopened space has 350 members, with a ceiling of 1,900 members. “As someone who is looking for various wellness services in the city, I am delighted to have a place where I can create a routine for balance, exercise, community and health under one roof.” , says new member Agatha Capacchione, founder of The Ashima group. “In addition, the space is magnificent. I look forward to advancing some of my existing wellness practices and exploring new ones once they open.

This is what people are looking for.

The founders of The Well and their investors assume that the demand for holistic healthcare, with its precise approach to individual care, is growing.

“The beauty here is that all the practitioners will talk about everything and come back to the limb with the best approach,” says Hallock. “It could combine modalities. We strongly believe in bio-individuality, and there is no one size fits all. We’re going to look back five years from now, or hopefully sooner, and realize it’s so obvious, and ask why we haven’t had this sooner? This is what people are looking for. “