Bethany Watkins is the owner of Happy Body Space. (Jack Jacobs photos)
A local nutritionist provides training on the concept of the shared workspace.
The Happy Body Space opened earlier this month on Fitzhugh Ave. 4110 opens and rents out spaces to counselors, massage therapists, personal trainers, and other health professionals on an hourly basis.
Owner Bethany Watkins compared her company to a coworking space. The 2,700-square-foot storefront has four treatment rooms and a fitness center available at hourly rates ranging from $20 to $55.
“The best way I can describe it is that we’re the go-to place for wellness professionals,” she said, referring to the chain of local coworking spaces. “I wanted a place where someone could bring their own members and run their business from a shared space.”
Fifteen companies operate from Happy Body Space, Watkins said, and it’s open to operators who need to host both private sessions and small groups.
Happy Body Space, a coworking spot for wellness professionals like massage therapists and personal trainers, has opened at 4110 Fitzhugh Ave.
Watkins said the idea was inspired by her own challenges of finding a flexible and affordable space for her Happy Body Wellness nutrition practice. The practice previously operated above the Commonwealth Law Group office at 3311 W. Broad St. for two years and is now headquartered in the coworking space.
“It was the solution to a problem I was having that I knew other people in the spa were dealing with as well,” she said. “I’ve always looked for a space where I can not only practice as a nutritionist, but also teach and coach and provide a space for others to do so.”
Watkins said she spent less than $10,000 stocking the store with office supplies. That number doesn’t include exercise or wellness equipment, which she’s accumulated over a decade of working first as a fitness instructor and later expanding into nutrition.
“I’ve had really good luck with people who have been selling me quality equipment and passing it on to me and getting it from other gyms that have closed,” she said. “That was the benefit of 10 years working in six different studios.”
Watkin’s new venture is the latest on the local health and fitness scene. Not far from Happy Body Space, yoga studio YogaSix is planning to open another local outpost at The Ella on Broad Street. A little further afield, local spa chain Scents of Serenity Organic Spa has acquired a lease in Winterfield Crossing, where the local Cyclebar franchise opened a new location late last year.
