Tell me more about the Thermaculture® program and where the idea came from.

The inspiration came in 2013 when I built a mobile sauna in my backyard. I realized the differences between Finnish Sauna and other thermic bathing traditions, like Sweat Lodge and Hammam, are differences that make the wellness benefits more available to those cultures, which got me thinking about how best to serve it up to my urban Midwestern community. Over the years, this curiosity developed into a unique style and hospitality philosophy, known today as Thermaculture.


What does that culture look like compared to traditional Nordic sauna culture? What makes it uniquely Midwest?

The Twin Cities has a wonderful combination of traditional Nordic sauna influence supercharged with urban newbie curiosity and enthusiasm. It’s uniquely positive, innovative, and kind—yet very understated and (still) largely under-the-radar. It’s uniquely Midwestern in that way.


What is your background and how did you get into this industry?

My first public health project was building a radio station in Indonesia as Fulbright Scholar. I returned to Minneapolis and launched the 612 Sauna Society—a community-owned sauna start-up that got featured in Forbes and CNN for inspiring a revival of sauna culture, which led to co-founding Stokeyard Outfitters with Rodney Buhrsmith in 2017. We built our first Sauna Village that year and I started offering Thermaculture programming at the Hewing Hotel.

How have you seen thermic culture grow in the last few years?

It has matured so much. Similar to the restaurant and microbrewery scene, people now understand that there are a lot of ways to serve up, enjoy and improve this experience.  The quality of the heat and steam matter, the space matters, the hospitality matters. We’re become a city of connoisseurs, experts and legit sauna nerds—it’s so fun!


Why is sauna culture so strong in Minneapolis?

I give Little Box Sauna (2015 - 2016) and the 612 Sauna Society (Est 2012) a lot of credit. They were the first widely-known mobile sauna projects in the country and got people thinking about new ways to experience and translate the societal benefits of thermic bathing in urban North America. The City of Minneapolis does not get enough credit either. The people down at City Hall have been extremely helpful and supportive, even before it was popular, and now Minneapolis now has more quality public sauna experiences than any other city in the country.