Othership An Obsession Worthy Sauna

As social clubs lose relevance (and members), yet Americans are hungrier for connection now, more than ever before, a new space in the market has opened up to facilitate human connection and intention through locale, hobbies, and shared belief.

In March, Robbie Bent– Othership Founder– and I sat in a corner of the central room of the Flatiron location. A place where you wait for a journey to begin or can sit and hang out between a sauna or a cold plunge. He has a great, welcoming energy. He was—like all people should be— incredibly honest. About his own history with substance addiction. About how in love with his wife he is and how their first date was picking up his mother and Grandmother from the airport and lunching—all four of them. Their second date was a sauna, coordinated by Bent's wife, since social activities in Toronto at the time fell around drinking and partying. After two weeks, the love birds moved in together and got engaged in a sauna they'd built in their garage.

Their wellness/sauna sessions expanded during the pandemic, as they invited friends into their backyard sauna to relax and connect. They built cold plunges in their garage, creating contrast therapy at home as the world closed around them. On valentines day, the two began group plunges, witnessing the power of introducing community and sharing, opening up new dimensions for connection and community.

Othership is the perfect example of a mission-driven business. They discovered something, through love, that is so good for the world and they're passionate about disseminating it throughout the world. They go the extra mile to ensure a quality experience for "journiers"—from science-backed research, to scripted classes, to shampoos and teas all made in house.

"When you care about the details of your class, you want to make it excellent" he said.

I confess to Bent that I'm terrified myself—a twenty-four year old entrepreneur seeking to make my own dent in the media industry—an industry that everyone in New York is declaring dead, and he admits that things haven't always been easy. That they've run into hiccups throughout construction and expansion, but that he and his family hold tight to their mission of "design[ing] the best emotional wellness classes in the world."

At the end of our conversation, I'm left inspired, hopeful, and ready to plunge.

I follow Bent to the cold plunge room, where we submerge side-by-side for a full two minutes, grinning at each other. I'm no stranger to the cold plunge, as I began going to Othership compulsively while mourning a friend, using it as a space for reflection and healing. Each guide and member of the Othership staff was, and is incredibly warm and welcoming.

Othership is a sort of third space to me. It's a mission driven business that I enjoy supporting because I believe in what they're doing and I'd love to see them expand to the entire world.

To Bent, I say thank you for creating a space so wonderful, birthed out of love, passion, and belief. And I'd love for an Othership location to find its way to Wichita, Kansas.

And to anyone reading this, I say find your third space, invest in your emotional well-being, and if you hit it off with a beautiful stranger at a wedding, stay in contact, because they may just be your spouse, your future business partner, and your journey to starting a wellness Revolution.