New sauna business heating up in Bellevue

The Northside’s newest sauna venture is open for business. (Photos courtesy Shawn Smith)

If you peer into the back lot of the Northside’s Once Upon a Vine, you might see a new, green wooden structure housing some people who look seriously relaxed. 

Located at 4009 McArthur Avenue, the wine and beer shop’s back lot is now home to River City Sauna Co., Richmond’s newest sauna. 

River City Sauna Co. was created by Shawn Smith. He first tried saunas over 20 years ago at the gym and soon fell in love with the practice. His travels over the years have taken him to saunas in Hungary, Japan and Iceland, and eventually to a new business idea. 

Smith helped run a meditation center in Los Angeles before moving to Richmond in 2020 with his family. Upon moving to the East Coast, they found that communal, traditional sauna options in Richmond were slim. 

Shawn Smith and his family.

He and his family built a sauna in their backyard for personal use, but in 2022 Smith realized he wanted to bring a new sauna experience to Richmond.

That dream came to fruition just a few weeks ago, when River City Sauna Co. officially opened for business, leasing the McArthur Avenue back lot space from Once Upon a Vine owner Robert Kocher. 

River City Sauna Co.’s traditional-style sauna uses a stove and hot rocks as opposed to infrared light to heat the internal space to a certain temperature, which can vary depending on customer preference. 

One highlight of the sauna is its “löyly,” a Finnish word for the steam that rises from the sauna’s rocks after water has been poured onto them. Using a traditional sauna and the “löyly,” Smith can pour essential oils on the rocks, providing an additional level of relaxation, he said. 

In trying to build a sauna culture in Richmond, Smith said it was important to him that his structure use a stove to connect back to the long tradition of the sauna. The sauna, which has an 8-by-10-foot interior space and a 4-by-4-foot vestibule, was built by Minnesota-based BW Sauna Co., and uses all wood frames. With delivery costs, registration and the sauna itself, the project cost Smith around $60,000.

The sauna is $40 per person for a nonprivate, 90-minute session. Nonprivate sessions can host up to seven guests. For private sessions of one to 10 guests, it is $350 for 90 minutes.

And while Smith said there are a plethora of health benefits to a sauna session, he’s most focused on providing an experience where people can connect and relax with others without their cellphones in hand, which are prohibited in the space. 

Smith said the sauna space is meant to be a gathering space for those who are looking for places other than bars to interact, as a sauna can act like a “social lubricant” for guests. 

“The feel-good hormones that are released during hot and cool-down rounds can act much in the same fashion as someone having a few drinks,” Smith said, “with the added benefit of being good for your body and mind, and no hangover.”

Smith plans to add to the sauna company’s offerings in the future, with programming such as meditation sauna sessions, introspective journaling and talks on sauna culture and tradition around the world. 

Built by Duluth-based BW Sauna Co., the sauna features all-wood framing.

River City Sauna Co.’s tagline is Remember How Good Great Feels. Smith said that while those around him weren’t the biggest fans of the slogan, it meant something to him.

He was involved in water sports in his youth and told BizSense his teams were where he found camaraderie. After he got injured, he transitioned out of sports and lost some of that community. When he discovered saunas, he felt he gained it back. 

“I didn’t choose [the tagline] as something that might bring people in, but anyone that comes … they’re gonna get it when they leave,” Smith said. “Because they might have that opportunity to feel great again.”

Along with his sauna venture, Smith also helps manage a California-based Airbnb and is a stay-at-home dad for his son. And although the business is Smith’s, he enlists help from his wife and son for what he calls a true “family adventure.”

Though there’s not much room in the lot for a second sauna, Smith said he is interested in a larger communal space in the future, with the eventual goal of a brick-and-mortar location that would be complete with cold plunges, private saunas and a communal sauna.

River City Sauna Co. offers sessions Fridays and Saturdays starting at 2, 4 and 6 p.m. and Sundays starting at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.