Remedy Place is hailed as the world’s first social wellness club? How do you define a social wellness club?
It’s a place that helps both health and social life, providing healthy substitutions for social occasions like happy hour, Sunday brunch or a girls’ night out.
It’s a place to socialise which is both temptation- and toxin-free, because I’ve witnessed in my private practise that the healthier you become the harder it can be to socialise with friends and family.
People’s lives are getting more and more stressful and we can’t eliminate the stress so we need to find healthy ways to counteract it. Remedy Place teaches people how to take care of themselves and gives them the tools they need to be holistically healthy.
And are people making these healthy substitutions?
Absolutely! We’re starting to see people coming here for their birthday. Instead of going out to a restaurant for a steak and bottle of wine, they come here for meditation or an ice bath.
Before we opened there was some talk about whether people could afford it, but if you look at how much average Americans will spend on going out drinking, it’s just a re-education to persuade them to invest in their health instead.
Rather than spend $20 on a cocktail which will destroy your health, why not invest $12 in a juice which will help to build it up?
Also, many people are starting to question traditional healthcare – they don’t want drugs, or surgery, they’re looking for natural ways to enhance their health. Alternative healing is trending so much now.
People like coming here because they know the staff care about them and truly want to help them feel better. Lots of people are lost and don’t know what works, but here we can give them a plan and a solution. Everything we have on offer I have personally used on patients and seen excellent results.
Where did the inspiration for Remedy Place come from?
This was my original business idea and my big dream when I left school, but at that point I wasn’t in the position to get funding and pursue it, so I went into private practice for five years and used this as a way of getting clinical evidence and market research. I saw what actually worked in practice and kept adding things to the business plan.
What did you want to achieve with the design/décor?
I wanted to make a warm, cosy comfortable space – the exact opposite of a health clinic, which is intimidating and stressful. As we’re asking people to make healthy substitutions for the things they’re already doing, we needed to emulate the bars, lounges and hotel lobbies where they hung out.
Who are your members?
Although anyone can come on a pay-as-you-go basis, our membership is being limited to 200 and we want only people who will bring the right energy and belief in our philosophy. Membership ranges from 19-year-old YouTubers to CEOs in their 60s, along with actors, actresses, athletes and singers.
What do they get for their membership?
Everyone who comes in gets a protocol based on how they present that day, however, with members it’s more bespoke.
They get unlimited use of the cryochamber, unlimited classes – breathwork, meditation, stretch, sound bath and educational classes – one multi-nutrient drip a month, one ice bath and infrared sauna combo and either a lymphatic drainage massage or an oxygen treatment, as well as 15 per cent off everything else.
They also receive a quarterly consultation with a health coach to discuss their progress.
What results are you seeing in your members?
Everyone feels better. People have more mental clarity and aches and pains are gradually disappearing. They feel more balanced and relaxed and as though they can optimise their performance.
What are your future plans?
To expand to every major city, starting in the US and then around the world. We’re already looking at a couple of locations and will have two more clubs in LA, before moving into major cities like New York, London, Miami, Austin, Portland and Chicago.
As we become profitable, we plan to start funding research into alternative therapies because no one is doing this and there’s a need for it to happen.
Big pharma will fund drug research, but they won’t fund research into meditation or acupuncture, even though it works.
How will you fund the expansion?
We’re in the middle of raising funds for our second location in LA, and from then on we should be able to use profits to begin funding our further expansion.
There will be two more sites this year, but as the years go on we’ll be able to handle opening more. We’re getting pitched to all the time – developers, retail developments, hotels, real estate companies are all reaching out to us.
Will we see more healthy alternatives to clubs and bars?
Yes, it’s the next big thing. Alcohol sales are going down as people are realising that toxins are not good for you.
How are you coping with the coronavirus?
Although the club is physically closed at the moment, the team has been working hard behind the scenes to continue looking after our customers.
Members have had direct contact with their designated recovery specialist and have been able to use this time to ask any questions or for advice.
We’ve continued to have most of our classes running on Instagram Live, as well as streaming live Q&A sessions with the head of naturopathic medicine, the head of movement, and CEO, Alyssa Bleakley.
Education is key and that’s why we’ve been doing everything in our power to be a reliable, dependent source through this crazy time, to provide support, facts, motivation and classes.
