‘Right Time, Right Place’ Launches Wellness in Property

Soak founders Niki and Alexis Dean have gone from no-one returning their calls to collaborating with some of Australia’s best private developers to create wellness-focused bathhouses across the eastern seaboard. “When we opened the doors we were the first bathhouse in Queensland, if not Australia. It wasn’t well understood,” Dean says. “Back then we were trying to lease D-grade sites and we couldn’t get return phone calls from Mum and Dad landlords. And then it just exploded. It did nearly four times more than we thought it would. “We’re trying to provide a connection to nature in an urban environment.” If the pandemic taught us one thing, it’s the value of social wellness and it’s something that the Soak founders are intimately attuned to. That value is being realised in the rapid growth of wellness real estate globally, valued at about $400 billion globally in 2022 and rising. The pandemic escalated its growth trajectory, but when the Gold Coast-based Soak founders opened the doors to their first bath house, at Mermaid Beach, in December 2020, they had no idea how rich that vein would be. “We’ve gone from no one returning our phone calls to being the flavour of the month,” co-founder Niki Dean says. “It wasn’t something that we sat down and calculated, it was just a case of good timing.” Great timing, actually. Data from the Global Wellness Institute data shows wellness real estate grew 20.5 per cent annually between 2020 and 2022 and the forecasts are for 17.4 per cent growth through to 2027. “Four years ago when we started, the end-of-trip facilities concept, and wellness and amenity they weren’t really on the radar,” he says. “But now they are, and what we’ve found is that the developers, instead of spending money on their end of trip, they can kind of slot us in and we do half the heavy lifting.” Dean says the bathhouse idea is gaining momentum within the development sector, inking partnerships to deliver Soak facilities in NSW and Victoria. Construction is almost complete on Time &amp; Place’s $230-million Bourke and Bowden office development at Alexandria. The fit out of the Soak bathhouse is under way and due to open in April of next year. Soak has also partnered to deliver a bathhouse at Moshav Financial’s Verdical development, which will be Bondi Junction’s first A-grade office block. Dean says they are also working with Alfasi on its $100-million 10 River Street development at South Yarra, Melbourne. “There is so much demand in Melbourne for what we offer. The expansion to Melbourne marks an exciting chapter for Soak Bathhouse, as we continue to grow and bring our distinctive concept of micro-doses of wellness to more cities,” Dean says. “Our mission has always been to create an oasis of relaxation in urban settings, and the new South Yarra location will be no exception. With its beautiful design by Carr Architects and a prime spot behind Chapel Street, we’re confident that it will become a beloved retreat for locals and visitors alike.” And while these projects all represent high-end developments with premium amenities, Dean says they are also open to other opportunities, including large format retail and business parks. The group is looking to pinpoint 30 new sites to target over the next five years, Dean says. “We’re already going nationwide, but we’re having a close look at Perth, and starting to look at Adelaide and Canberra as well. “Obviously we are still wanting to pick the eyes out of Sydney and Melbourne, they’re certainly our best markets. So yeah, we’ve kind of hit the ground hard. We’re out there looking.” They need about 700sq m, with a connection to the elements. Their current projects range from outdoors, on a rooftop and indoors but with one key ingredient. “Our non-negotiable when we’re looking at sites is natural light,” Dean says. “We’re trying to create that natural environment in a really condensed space so that people kind of forget where they are just for minute. “So you could be staying in South Yarra or Bondi Junction or West End or whatever it is and you are surrounded by natural elements and it gives you that feeling of nature, that escapism.” ▲ Soak Bathhouse is moving into Moshav Financial’s A-grade office building at Bondi Junction. For developers it’s a chance to “get some healthy rent” for under-utilised spaces. Dean says ideally they would be involved in the design from the outset, but retrofitting is also appropriate, while more expensive. Soak is also looking at B-grade sites in shopping centres and large format retail as opportunities to pursue. “It’s not just about the top-tier developers that we will, we will also look at that more traditional kind of bulky retail environment as well,” he says. Dean says they operate as lessees of the spaces and do not require financing to get deals done. And while their South Yarra bathhouse is a stone’s throw from Gurner’s premium Saint Haven wellness centre where memberships start at $170 a week, Dean says the Soak methodology is much simpler. ▲ Soak will open its second bathhouse at Time &amp; Place’s office development, Bourke and Bowden, at Alexandria, due to open in April. The self-guided wellness space offers plunge pools, steam rooms, saunas, massage, and pregnancy massage. Dean says the focus was on keeping it simple and scaleable. “We found that by keeping that narrow offering, we’re able to replicate the experience quite easily,” Dean says. “We want to be affordable, accessible and inclusive. So it’s not a high-end exclusive environment club. We try and keep it affordable for people and it’s inclusive.” And it’s already hitting the mark with gift cards being sold for the new projects, which are not due to open until next year. With big expansion plans in play for the Soak business, wellness in property looks like it’s here to stay. You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. Click here to learn more.

‘Right Time, Right Place’ Launches Wellness in Property

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