Purify Sweat Lodge opening on South Osprey Ave in downtown Sarasota

Sisters and business co-owners Elizabeth and Briana Topp invite wellness seekers into their first infrared detox studio, Purify Urban Sweat Lodge, on Nov. 13 for the grand opening of the franchise wellness studio in downtown Sarasota.

Located on South Osprey Avenue, the co-owners are the first to open a franchise location of the Lakewood Ranch-based studio in the region, however, but Elizabeth Topp said she has been a Purify customer from the start.

Purify, which is described as an urban sweat lodge, is an infrared detox wellness studio that uses light and heat to produce sweat to benefit the skin and body.

Using body wrap suits installed with heating elements that range from 140 to 190 degrees of lighting, Purify's version of the detox treatment is promoted as leading addressing weight loss, increasing blood flow and anti-aging of the skin.

After a year of enjoying the original Purify location on Pineapple Avenue in Burns Court, Topp learned that the franchiser was relocating the first studio to Lakewood Ranch in early 2023.

Following the relocation, Topp began missing her almost daily treatments and cold plunges and started strategizing about how to open a studio of her own, she said.

"I've known the founder for maybe five or six years. I'm an avid Purifier ... I woke up one morning and had a busy day, a few meetings for work and I was too busy to drive to Lakewood Ranch for a sweat session," Topp said.

The next day, Topp called her younger sister Briana and shared her idea of opening a studio together. With Briana on board, Topp reached out to Purify founder Samantha Albano about franchising the studio and was met with a pleasant surprise about the plan.

"I booked a meeting with Sam the next day. When we met she told me that she had had a dream the previous night that my sister and I were going to open our own," Topp said. "I told my sister on Thursday, met with Sam's business partner on Friday, and found this location on Saturday. Here we are three months later."

The 2,000-square-foot space features five rooms with Tempurpedic beds and privacy curtains for clients. Each room includes the infrared detox wraps — a black, breathable sweat set that Purifiers lay inside of during their 50-minute sessions — and individual HD TVs with wireless headphones for streaming and entertainment while sweating.

Topp said the space allowed for customization and the wraps allow for portability.

Clients are able to use a lymphatic vibration station ahead of the wraps, Topp explained. The "shaker" essentially vibrates a user's legs and body for 10 minutes before the wrap is used.

The final step in the Purify experience, and the sisters' favorite part of the space, is the cold plunge, in a private, two-person space with two 45-degree tubs for soaking aching muscles and closing out the detox circuit. The popular cold plunge therapy, health research suggests, can decrease pain that occurs due to inflammation and muscle soreness. Suggested time in cold plunge varies, however Elizabeth Topp said clients should aim for 1-3 minutes immersed in the water if possible.

Both Elizabeth and Briana Topp are athletes — marathon runner and circus trapeze artist, respectively — who each say the cold plunge has added not only recovery assistance but other benefits to their individual wellness routines.

"Trapeze takes a lot out of you," Briana Topp said. "Trying to hold those positions and trying not to fall, my body was getting a lot more sore than it was used to when I first started. My sister was telling me about Purify earlier this year, so I visited the original one before it closed... I found it so relaxing and nice. Then I started to think how cool it would be if we did own our own one day. Once we found this space we knew it was it, everything just happened so quickly and it's exciting."

The sisters have hope it will be a gathering space for wellness and community.

"The building is perfect. We are excited to be back downtown and provide this service to everyone," Topp said.

Purify opens on Nov. 13 and will offer monthly memberships. Individual plunges and detox sessions begin at $40 and monthly membership packages and specials will be offered through the grand opening event.

A third Purify location is slated to open in Venice in late 2024.

Visit https://purifysweatlodge.com/home for more information. To book sessions at the Sarasota location follow the link on the Purify website.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Purfity Sweat Lodge adds second location at S. Osprey Ave in Sarasota