Meet Dana Nunnally | Owner + Creator of Drench Sauna Studio

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dana Nunnally and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dana, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Ultimately, there was a “problem”, so I created a solution. The “problem” was that I, and other wellness seekers in our area, didn’t have access to quality private infrared saunas. In fact, we didn’t have access to any private saunas at all. I wanted to create a space that not only provided my community with access to the absolute best full-spectrum infrared saunas on the market, but for this this space to feel more like a spa than the sterile aesthetic of many other wellness centers. I felt like our town needed Drench. So, I created it.

What should our readers know about your business?
Drench Sauna Studio is a wellness lounge for those in search of enhanced health and well-being. We offer private sessions in our state-of-the-art, full spectrum, infrared saunas. Our environment is a place where you can rest, restore, and recharge. Our saunas are the best in the industry for multiple reasons.
The wood used to make our saunas is sustainably sourced, and naturally treated. Most saunas don’t provide consistent infrared output or high emissivity, but our saunas, by Sunlighten, have been shown to be up to 99% emissive with constant infrared output. The also have extremely low EMF.
Sourcing the best sauna on the market was my favorite part about building this business. I visited saunas everywhere I went.
Was building this business east? No way. There were hurdles everywhere I turned, but I know how to jump hurdles, so I did. It helped that I had a cheerleader in my corner; someone to push me to keep going. You just have to keep going. Always.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Athens can be so much fun! I would say, stay at ATH|BNB, go downtown to get a few fits from Cheeky Peach, and walk around downtown and the Founders Garden. UGA’s campus is really beautiful, as is Botanical Gardens. For brunches, go to Cafe on Lumpkin, and South Kitchen + Bar. For dinners and lunches, go to The Last Resort (get cake by Cecilia Villaveces, Chucks Fish (Brussels sprouts are an absolute must), The National, and ZZ & Simone’s (the Lemon Pizza is drool worthy). For drinks, The Old Pal, and The Expat have incredible cocktails. Get coffee at Sips, Hendershots, and Choco Pronto. Oh gosh, go check out the plant bar on Baxter St., Foxglove Plantbar. Take an electric reformer Pilates class at Push Pilates, and hot hot yoga class at Fuel. Before you go, you have to go to Hibar to have drinks and watch the sunset. It’s THE view. A couple of noteworthy small business in the area are Little Light Co (the dreamiest soy candles in the land) and LTSwimwear! The women who own these business are not just your average hypegirls, they’re the real deal supporters. They put so much in to other local businesses and Drench is incredibly grateful for them.
And in case it’s not obvious, you MUST go for your very own private infrared sauna session in the state of the art saunas at Drench Sauna Studio.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

I dreamed of a place like Drench for so long, but the details of that dream were always a little blurry.
I was seeing this guy who would hear me talk about this “pipe dream” (because that’s what it seemed to be in the beginning), and he eventually invited me to one of his favorite sauna studios in Nashville, TN. Before he took me to this place, I didn’t even know that sauna studios existed. It was like he crawled into my brain and put the puzzle pieces of my dream together, then presented it to me and provided me with the clarity I needed to make my dream a reality. I’ll forever be grateful that he saw my dream, knew better than me how real it was to me, and then encouraged me to go for it. He was my cheerleader.

Once my dream had been clarified for me, and I decided to open this studio, I all but completely neglected my family while building this business. I’m a single mom, and my kids held it together and picked up in the areas where I fell short. They were understanding and patient. They really stepped up, and they deserve the biggest shoutout.

Website: www.drenchsaunastudio.com

Instagram: @drenchsaunastudio

Facebook: DrenchSaunaStudio

Image Credits
Liz McShane of Repurposed Photography