285. Robert Hammond, President & CSO of Therme Group US

Today, I'm joined by Robert Hammond, president & CSO of Therme Group US. After co-founding New York's High Line, Robert is now helping Therme bring thermal bathing to America through large-scale wellness destinations. In this episode, we discuss reimagining social bathing culture across US urban centers. We also cover:   Creating affordable wellness spaces for the masses The social and spiritual benefits of communal bathing Building destinations that generate tax revenue and jobs   Subscribe to the podcast → insider.fitt.co/podcast Subscribe to our newsletter → insider.fitt.co/subscribeFollow us on LinkedIn → linkedin.com/company/fittinsider Website: https://www.thermegroup.com/therme-group-us Therme Group IG: https://www.instagram.com/thermegroup Robert’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/thehighlineguy/ The Culture of Bathing Newsletter: https://cultureofbathing.substack.com/ The Culture of Bathing IG: https://www.instagram.com/cultureofbathing - The Fitt Insider Podcast is brought to you by EGYM. Visit EGYM.com to learn more about its smart workout solutions for fitness and health facilities. Fitt Talent: https://talent.fitt.co/ Consulting: https://consulting.fitt.co/ Investments: https://capital.fitt.co/ Chapters: (00:00) Introduction (01:15) Robert's background and Therme's scale (03:00) How Therme's model differs from American wellness concepts (05:00) The three main areas: Play, Relax, and Restore (07:15) Creating an indoor tropical experience year-round (08:45) Bathing as a universal cultural experience (10:45) The social aspect as the "sticky" part of the bathing business (12:30) Using scale to keep prices accessible (14:15) Working with cities to develop urban locations (16:30) Creating new downtown destinations and tax revenue (18:30) The Peter Attia effect on wellness adoption (21:15) How different bathing businesses serve different needs (24:15) Making bathing inclusive and body-positive (27:00) Marketing wellness vs. marketing fun (29:45) The social value of bathing experiences (31:30) The meditation-like quality of bathing (33:30) The beginning of a bathing movement (35:15) Democratizing wellbeing through scale (37:00) Conclusion