Thermal Bathing & Wellness Strategy Consultancy
The sauna and thermal bathing market is growing fast. As it moves beyond early adopters, the brands that endure will be the ones who understand who they're serving next. And that takes a partner who understands both the strategy and the culture.
Meet our founder, Sarah Spoto
Thermal Bathing & Wellness Strategy Consultant | Sauna Ritual Practitioner
Senior strategist, marketing leader, ritual practitioner, founder. I wear many hats proudly and always have.
I’m a strategist who executes. A creator with strong business acumen. A marketing leader who centers insights and data—both quantitative and qualitative. And I’m a founder. Someone who starts things and sees them through, whether that’s building marketing teams within large global organizations (like Cadillac or General Motors China) or launching my own platform (like Badii).
Ever curious and always learning, I left a long corporate career and became a sauna Aufugss master (Connecticut’s first) and recently ranked fourth place in the 2026 US National Aufguss competition. I’m constantly refining my craft through education and training, having now trained with Ritual Heat (US), Anada (UK), and with Alonzo Solórzano, the director of Aufguss at BATHHOUSE NYC.
I host a podcast dedicated to sauna and thermal bathing culture that so inspired me when I lived in Switzerland. I like to think of myself as a steward of the steam—educating and providing resources about global thermal bathing and sauna traditions, not only because there’s an education gap in this industry, but also because I recognize the transformative power of these types of communal wellness practices.
Great to meet you!
Sarah Spoto
Founder of Badii and Connecticut’s First Aufgussmaster
The Badii Alignment Roadmap
Know your guest. Align your brand.
A two-week engagement designed to give sweat + soak founders clarity on who they are serving and whether their branding and marketing is built to reach them.
Deliverables:
A roadmap document outlining the findings, analysis, and prioritized, actionable steps. These steps are designed to be immediately actionable by you and your team. Please note, that this is not a delivery of a formal brand strategy but advisory guidance to empower you team’s brand, marketing, and creative work.
Timeline: 2 weeks
Cost: $2,000
Testimonial from a recent client
“We worked with Sarah on branding for a bathhouse we're building. We were struggling to find a cohesive direction to weave together our digital and physical brand expressions. Sarah asked the hard questions, helped us understand our strengths and opportunities, and then delivered a detailed analysis that is helping us hone our brand identity by offering territories to explore and hypotheses to validate.
The analysis was incredibly actionable, and we regularly reference our takeaways from working with Sarah anytime we're making decisions that impact how we're expressing our brand. Her guidance and expertise are invaluable, and she's uniquely attuned to the sauna and bathing industry. I look forward to working with her again very soon!”
Fractional Go-to-Market Lead & Launch Expert
You know your concept is strong, but launching it, scaling it into a new market, or navigating it through an industry shift is a different skill set than building it. Most founders don't need (or want) another full-time executive. They need someone who has sat in both the boardroom and the bathhouse, who can move fast on the decisions that actually matter, and who won't let the vision get diluted as more people touch the brand. That's the gap Badii fills.
Fractional executive support for founders and leadership teams, guidance through launches, new markets, and industry shifts, and a sounding board for high-stakes brand decisions.
Consumer Insights: Qualitative research design, execution, and analysis — customer interviews, focus groups, persona development, competitive positioning, and ongoing guest feedback loops.
Creative Brand Liaison: Briefing and aligning website, brand, and product designers so every creative partner stays true to the vision.
An Aufguss ritual at Soul Water Sauna in Edinburgh, Scotland
Sauna Ritual Programming, Education, & Consulting
Today’s sauna and bathhouse guests are looking for communal rituals that make them feel like they belong. They are savvy enough to know when a space has designed rituals and experiences with intention and when they fall short. That intention turns first-time guests into loyal regulars. As Connecticut's first certified Aufgussmaster, trained through both UK and German programs, I help operators build that experience from the ground up and train their teams to deliver it consistently.
Aufguss and wellness programming design
Ritual facilitation
SOPs, training curriculum, staff development materials
Education and mentorship for in-house ritualists and staff
Are you looking for a guest Aufgussmaster to host rituals in your space?
Sarah is available as freelance Aufgussmaster and has travelled across the US and UK hosting rituals.
An Aufguss ritual at Hideout Sauna Club in Stamford, CT. Photo credit: Adam Cheek
Find Sarah on LinkedIn
Let’s chat!
Schedule a Zoom coffee chat with Sarah.
“We worked with Sarah on branding for a bathhouse we’re building... The analysis was incredibly actionable. Her guidance and expertise are invaluable, and she’s uniquely attuned to the sauna and bathing industry.”