We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Allen Penn a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Allen, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

Framework started with a pair of milestones in my personal life — turning 40 and bringing home my first child. These two roughly concurrent events shifted my perspective on my health and drove me to create a brand and a business that met my needs and those of others looking for attainable and enjoyable ways to improve and optimize their health.

I started reading about the health benefits of saunas and cold plunges, which are tremendous and well-researched in the scientific literature. However, I had a hard time finding any facilities in Nashville that offered traditional sauna (the only type that gets hot enough to align with the research findings) and cold plunge. The offerings were the opposite of social and communal, and it was super expensive to buy for your home. So, I decided that for my benefit and that of others in Nashville, I would start a brand that would deliver that.

One year later, we have our launch location open in Berry Hill and a larger, permanent facility opening this fall in the Wedgewood-Houston neighborhood, and Nashville’s first social studio for sauna and cold plunge has arrived! No infrared lasers, no IV drips, no pseudo-science. Just space dedicated to the proven health benefits of sweating, shivering, and socializing

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Framework, a traditional Finnish-inspired sauna and cold plunge studio, is the first studio in Nashville to offer both traditional sauna and cold plunge experiences in a social setting, providing a unique haven for those interested in the transformative benefits of sauna and cold plunge. Our brand and concept are based on the centuries-old cultural traditions of hot/cold exposure and are supported by significant recent peer-reviewed scientific research, proving that extreme temperature exposure has lasting benefits on our health.

Humans are not meant to live at a constant 72 degrees Fahrenheit. In fact, they thrive under extreme temperature exposure—and from it, derive significant short and long-term health benefits. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 60 percent of Americans are living with a chronic disease, and regular sauna usage has been scientifically proven to reduce the risk of more than half of those identified with chronic diseases.

Sauna and cold plunge’s extensive health benefits include, but are not limited to:
*50 reduction in cardiovascular disease mortality risk
*62% reduction in stroke risk
*65 percent lower incidence of Alzheimer’s disease
*46 percent reduction in hypertension development
*29 percent reduction in cortisol (supporting lower stress levels)
*Contributes to enhanced immune responses
*Supports improved sleep
*Overall, positive mental and physical health
~citations available at www.joinframework.com

These results have all been tracked in published scientific studies referencing a traditional sauna (rather than infrared types). Also known as a dry sauna, Finnish sauna, or Nordic sauna, Framework offers a traditional sauna that uses wood or an electric heater to heat the room to 170-200 degrees Fahrenheit with low humidity. Alternatively, the cold plunges are chilled to 40-60 degrees Fahrenheit and are the same brand used by many professional sports teams, the U.S.A. Olympians and the U.S. Military.

Additionally, I want to give full credit to the social aspect of the experience as well — it’s simply fun to meet new people, it’s fun to have a change of scenery for date night, or old friend catch up coffee or a business meeting or a company offsite. It’s rare to be able to combine something healthy and something social. These are all reasons we see individuals and groups coming to Framework. This is the proverbial third place that we hear so much about, and Framework presents a space for this that leads with social & fun but sneaks health in on you.

For more information on Framework, the benefits of hot and cold exposure, to book a session and explore membership options, and to stay updated on the flagship opening, visit www.joinframework.com and follow @joinframework on Instagram.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

One of the key pieces of Framework is our Flagship facility in Wedgewood-Houston, which is (finally!) under construction after over a year of planning. We’re located at 1411 4th Ave. South, just down from Lucky’s Bar. When I started working with my architect, I was hoping to be open in the new facility in January 2024, and that’s the date we broke ground. Eek! The new facility is going to be amazing: ~5,000 sq feet that are fully dedicated to sauna and cold plunge. We’ll have both indoor and outdoor saunas and plunges, silent and programmed saunas, public and private room spaces, and a new non-alcoholic cafe concept. But it’s going to be late Fall 2024 before it opens.

So, to the point about resilience and staying nimble and creative with business, I learned once again the lesson that there is always a faster, lower cost way to get up and running. Once I saw where the construction timeline was landing, I pivoted to opening a temporary location and found an amazing spot in Berry Hill. It’s an old recording studio (consistent with the neighborhood) with a large outdoor back area. We’ve turned the front building into our lobby and men’s and women’s changing rooms/locker rooms/bathrooms and the back area into our fully outdoor sauna and cold plunge area, completed with a 12-person sauna, three cold tubs with different temperatures, outdoor showers, and lounge seating. The before and after photos are pretty hilarious, but it’s been great, and we opened <60 days from when we took over the property. Speed is possible, even in physical real estate businesses!

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

I did a community round with Wefunder to help fund Framework! Wefunder is a crowd funding platform that helps businesses raise money from their community and customers while abiding by what are somewhat extensive and technical regulations from government. The idea is simple — raise money from your community (friends, family, followers, customers) in a way that’s simple and no upfront cost to you.

Using the Wefunder platform, I was able to raise ~$100,000 for my business and in the process both deeply engage existing Framework members and acquire new members. This member acquisition was my true goal of the raise and it worked really well as I was able to offer a membership perk to Framework that made the investment compelling beyond the financial return. Our investors are now highly incentivized to help make Framework as a success and I have met several folks through the process that I have utilized as advisors on certain topics.

This is an avenue that I would highly encourage other small business owners (not just traditional venture-backed startups) to consider as it’s an amazing way to not just unlock capital, but to build the core ‘true fans’ that small businesses thrive on.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.joinframework.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joinframework/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/joinframework
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Framework-Nashville

Image Credits

Jessica Steddom