Seven years ago, Bathhouse opened its first site in a former Williamsburg soda factory. Today it’s the clear leader in the fast-growing social bathing movement in the US. Robert Hammond talks to co-founder Travis Talmadge about brand-building, endorphins and why aufguss is bathing culture's next big thing. Plus read on to join our Bathhouse Block Party in collaboration with Lore Bathing Club in NYC on Saturday!
ROBERT HAMMOND: So, what is the thing people don’t know about Bathhouse? What’s the thing that makes it special?
TRAVIS TALMADGE: We are diabolically meticulous about having best-in-class facilities. Our saunas are always at the right temperature. Our pools are always perfectly managed. That allows the guest to get what they’re seeking from contrast therapy — the endorphins, the serotonin, the dopamine, the longevity benefits that come with it.
The coolest part about contrast therapy is that it’s almost foolproof: it works every time, when you do it right. The big thing about Bathhouse is that we work incredibly hard behind the scenes to make sure we deliver that every time. Building these saunas to the standards we’re building them, handling the volume, making sure they’re always working — it’s a lot.
“Contrast therapy is almost foolproof: it works every time, when you do it right… we work incredibly hard behind the scenes to deliver that”
Travis Talmadge
ROBERT: I know you’re sick of doing this, but can you outline the expansion of Bathhouse?
TRAVIS: We have three open in New York, and seven either under construction or starting construction in seven other states, all scheduled to open by the end of next year.
ROBERT: What are the locations?
TRAVIS: Philadelphia, Berkeley Heights New Jersey, Chicago, Nashville, Minneapolis, Stamford Connecticut, and Los Angeles.
ROBERT: And all by the end of next year. How is that possible?
TRAVIS: The way we structure our deals is a little different: our property co-partners are effectively capitalizing the deals for us, and as a result most of them are actually building out the spaces to our specs. It allows us to move faster — they’re paying to build it, and we have a robust project management team that helps keep things on track.
ROBERT: And you’re able to do that because of your balance sheet? For other people, the landlord doesn’t know if the business is going to be around in a few years.
TRAVIS: We definitely have a bigger balance sheet than most others trying to do this. And not to take more credit than I should, but it’s also a novel structure that really hasn’t been applied to a business like ours before. The catalyst was that I had a whole career in real estate before this — I owned a brokerage company, worked in capital markets for a long time — so there was a competitive advantage in understanding at a really intimate level how these deals get done.
ROBERT: They do similar deals for other businesses, right?
TRAVIS: It depends. Restaurants sometimes get done that way, but usually on a percentage-of-sales basis where the landlord is a real partner in the business — that’s not how ours work, the nuances are different.
ROBERT: Do the landlords also see it as driving business to the rest of their real estate?
TRAVIS: Definitely. We’re real snobs about locations — we’ve never done a deal just because it’s a good deal financially — but in a lot of cases it’s been this great scenario where we’re part of a larger development, and we’re bringing 1,000 to 1,500 people a day. That’s really good for the whole master project they’re doing. So there’s genuine mutual appeal.
ROBERT: Who are your largest investors, as far as what’s public?
TRAVIS: That round was led by Imaginary and Plus Capital, who have both been amazing partners. They’re our two institutional investors, for lack of a better term.
ROBERT: And why did Imaginary come in? What are they known for?
TRAVIS: Imaginary was started by Nick Brown and Natalie Massenet — Natalie was the founder of Net-a-Porter. I don’t want to speak for them, but one of the things they said to us was that they really want to build and define a category that vision is what got them excited.
ROBERT: What’s your preferred temperature for a cold plunge?
TRAVIS: My personal preference is 43 or 44 degrees Fahrenheit (6°C)— I think that’s the right balance. You get the sharpness of a really cold plunge with an extra endorphin kick, but it’s still tolerable to stay in for 5 minutes. Some days though I just want 50 degrees (10°C). It’s more intuitive for me than the sauna — I go by feel.
“My personal preference is 43 or 44 degrees — that's the right balance. You get the sharpness of a really cold plunge with an extra endorphin kick”
Travis Talmadge
ROBERT: So you’re the biggest aufguss advocate in the US right now. What got you into it, and why did you commit to it so strongly?
TRAVIS: It was so not on my bingo card, but I’m glad it is. The way my partner and I work — Jason (Goodman, Bathhouse co-founder) is really the operations wizard, I do more of the business side. As we started growing, I realized I wasn’t naturally connected to our customers. I’d go over and sauna, but I was just kind of there.
When we saw aufguss, we thought: this is a missing piece. We love the unguided experience, but here’s a moment that can be the cherry on top, that makes it all feel complete. So when we decided to do the training, I thought, fuck it, I’m going to go learn it with the team. It was a cool team-building thing and I had no expectations of getting this deep into it. I’m more connected to my business than I’ve ever been, and it’s genuinely fun.
ROBERT: Yeah. One of the biggest lessons from our pop-up (Culture of Bathe-ing in New York earlier this year) was that I assumed aufguss was for people like us, already into this world — but it wasn’t. Regular people were the most excited about it. Do you see it moving the needle in your business, or is it more of a retention tool?
TRAVIS: It’s a retention tool, primarily. For a lot of people I think it makes coming back really easy and compelling — you’re going to use the facilities, and then there’s an aufguss, and it’ll be a little different every day, a different sauna master. So it keeps the experience fresh.
ROBERT: What does the culture of bathing mean to you — not the Substack, just the thing itself?
TRAVIS: For me it’s really the culture of sauna and contrast therapy. Sauna is the center of the universe, and the bathing is a halo effect on that — the pools make sense in this environment, and humans inherently want to be near water, want to be social. But at its core, the culture of all of this is that it scratches these fundamentally human itches. Especially in 2026, you get to put your phone in a locker and just be human with other humans, by the water. And sauna is what I’d call monkey-proof — we all want to feel things, and it’s really easy to go do contrast therapy, feel that immediate state change, and get hooked. It all comes back to something basic and impactful that you do with other people and come out feeling better.
“It scratches these fundamentally human itches…you get to put your phone in a locker and just be human with other humans, by the water.”
Travis Talmadge
ROBERT: What do you hope bathing culture looks like in ten years?
TRAVIS: My hope is that there are a lot more facilities — we’re trying to be a big driver of that — and that it’s not just a New York thing. That people everywhere have options, because contrast therapy makes happier people. My hope is that it becomes as integrated into people’s lifestyles as it is in Europe and other parts of the world.
Find out more about Bathhouse and book tickets here:
abathhouse.com
IG: @bathhouse
Interview by Robert Hammond, President at Therme Group US
IG: Robert Hammond
Join us for The Bathhouse Block Party
We’re teaming up with Lore Bathing Club to celebrate the best of summer in NoHo. Spend this Saturday on Bond Street and bathe at one of NYC’s hottest new bathing spots.
Book your session @lorebathingclub on Saturday, 8am-8pm and enjoy:
🥯 Complimentary @apollobagels
💧 @im8health hydration station
🦪 Complimentary fresh-shucked oysters & evening refreshments
While you’re there, don’t miss the Sky High Farm Farmer’s Market just around the corner on Bond Street.
Use this link to book your session on Saturday. As a Culture of Bathe-ing subscriber, you’ll get a complimentary off-peak session at Lore Bathing Club when you book to come to this Saturday’s event.
News, happenings and openings
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Taka’s Mobile Sento is embarking on another trip across the US to Burning Man. Follow to meet him along the way
Kiln Sauna is just about to open the doors to its rather spectacular new location overlooking Porthmeor Beach in St. Ives, Cornwall. Watch this space for opening details
Domus tells the story of the pool that became the Milanese urban beach, designed in the 50s as an icon of Italian Modernism, and now awaits regeneration
One last thing
A French swimming pool becomes a museum
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