Sauna and cold plunge studio Framework is heading to Wedgewood-Houston in January, with plans to open its flagship facility and a cafe at 1411 Fourth Ave. S.
Allen Penn launched Framework earlier this year at his Berry Hill location, focusing on saunas and cold plunges.
“My own story of starting it was really being blown away by the benefits of repeated hot and cold exposure on our bodies,” Penn told What Now Nashville. “It’s something that, on some level, seems so simple and so elemental, but in the modern world, we’ve lost it.”
Penn himself became interested in the process when he was turning 40 and having his first child. As he began researching the science behind saunas and cold plunges and how they can deter chronic diseases. The Framework website states that saunas can lead to a 50% reduction in cardiovascular disease mortality, a 62% reduction in stroke events and a 46% reduction in hypertension development.
At the flagship location in Wedgewood-Houston, Penn hopes to encourage memberships so that people get in the routine of doing hot and cold plunges. His goal is to make it a communal event that people can enjoy in addition to a healthy one. In order to do so, he plans to have both indoor and outdoor experiences, with a total of seven saunas and 13 cold plunge tubs strategically built to encourage community.
“We really made it a social experience in our launch location, with a sauna that holds 10 to 15 people and tubs that are right next to each other, where you can go through this shared, somewhat painful but ultimately rewarding experience together,” Penn said. “So we’re basically taking all of those lessons and super sizing that in the new location.”
He also plans to bring people together through The Cafe at Framework. The non-alcoholic cafe will feature zero-proof cocktails, herbal teas, a full espresso program, non-alcoholic beer and kombuchas. It will also offer healthy grab-and-go meals, including packaged salads from Radish Kitchen.
“We’ve set this up where you can come with some friends, or you make a friend and you want to grab a drink or a snack before a session to fuel up or afterwards to continue hanging out. That’s the first reason,” Penn said. “The second is convenience. I’m really asking people to give us an hour a week or a couple hours a week, and let me help you improve your health with hot and cold. Everybody’s busy, and that time has to come from somewhere. So if we can allow you to come to Framework for your hot and cold exposure and also get your morning coffee or your afternoon coffee or your lunch break knocked out at the same time, I think that makes people more likely to come.”
