Kaleigh Bryant Launches SweatHouz in Austin

When Kaleigh Bryant injured her knee skiing in Salt Lake City, she ultimately decided not to visit a doctor. Instead, she relied on infrared saunas and cold plunges to manage the swelling and finish the trip. It was a regimen that not only helped her general recovery but also sparked a deep interest in the burgeoning idea of contrast therapy.

The treatment worked so well that Bryant assumed she’d only suffered a sprain. It wasn’t until returning home to Texas that a doctor informed her she’d actually suffered a much worse injury, having torn her ACL. “I was a customer of [contrast therapy] first,” Bryant said. “I saw the benefits.”

Eventually, epiphany intersected with opportunity. Partnering with longtime friend and mentor Cheston Syma, a multi-brand franchise owner, Bryant began to explore the idea of entrepreneurship in the health and wellness sector. Together, Bryant and Syma chose SweatHouz, a franchise delivering contrast therapy within a private-suite setting, drawn by Bryant’s now firsthand experience with the restorative services.

With her first location in Austin, Texas, now open and plans to launch another dozen, Bryant is combining her passion for wellness with Syma’s vast franchising knowledge.

1851 Franchise sat down with Bryant to discuss the benefits of contrast therapy, her transition into the health and wellness sector and her franchising journey with SWTHZ. Here’s what she had to say:

Franchising journey

Kaleigh Bryant: I worked for my business partner, Cheston, for about six and a half years. He is a multi-franchise franchisee. When I started working for him, he had six Sport Clips* Haircuts and a couple of Signaramas, and I helped him grow through some large acquisitions. He now owns, I believe, 53 Sport Clips Haircuts. He diversified into laser hair removal, Tommy’s Car Wash and Big Blue Swim School.

So, I was around the franchise model for a long time. And, through it all, Cheston became one of my best friends. And we were looking at a franchise we could partner on. I was looking at locations I might want to move to and where I might want to put it, which territories were available. I lived in Houston at the time. And we decided to go to Utah. I like Salt Lake City, I like Park City. I like skiing. And while we were out there, we decided to ski. Well, I fell off a cliff and tore my ACL.

Cheston convinced me it was just sprained, so I scooted down the mountain. I got back to Houston and didn’t see a doctor. I Googled how to burn calories without working out (it was a vanity thing). But I ended up going to a place with infrared saunas. They had a sauna in every room with a TV. In each locker room, they had one cold plunge. And I started doing the sauna and cold plunge.

Well, I didn’t see a doctor for six weeks, but I got all my swelling down. I was able to walk (I just had fluid in my knee). And I really drank the Kool-Aid. I was in the locker room coaching people to get into the cold plunge because that’s my personality. People thought I was crazy! This was three or four years ago (before it was as popular as it is now).

But I finally saw an orthopedic surgeon six weeks after my injury and he said, “Oh yeah, you tore it.” I didn’t believe him because I’d been walking. It was a very bad tear. I had to have surgery.

But Cheston, working side by side with me in franchising and being there through my injury, heard all about my love for contrast therapy. We found SWTHZ and a couple of other franchises that offered the concept, but we liked SWTHZ specifically because Jamie Weeks was a franchisee before he became a franchisor. He has a magnetic personality. And he definitely sold the brand to us.

I was a customer of this type of service first. I saw the benefits. And Cheston, having worked with many franchises, saw it as a good business opportunity. Reading the FDD and hearing the numbers that were possible was exciting.

Pre franchising experience

1851: What did you do before franchising and how did you decide franchising made sense for you?

Bryant: I was the director of administration for Cheston and oversaw a team of people. I really loved the plug-and-play idea of franchising, but I also knew it was going to take a lot of boots on the ground. It’s not a passive investment. I understood I was owning my own business but also buying myself a job with the support of a franchisor network.

Probably the biggest happy surprise throughout the journey with SWTHZ is the franchisee network. For the most part, everyone is so willing to help each other and share information. It’s full of smart people with a lot of background in this sort of thing.

1851: What was your perception of franchising prior to becoming a franchisee and what do you want people to know now that you’re in it?

Bryant: I don’t think I had any disillusionment. I always knew it wouldn’t be passive. I think people need to realize they will have to be boots on the ground until they find the right people so they can step back. Cultivating people is one of the most difficult but rewarding things you do.

You can tell when you walk into a business if it’s owner-absentee when it’s a franchise. Once you’re a franchisee yourself, you see it immediately.

Sweathouz choice and goals

1851: What made you pick SWTHZ and what excites you most about the company?

Bryant: I’m 31 now. I’m young and healthy. I go to Pilates. But the sauna is my workout. It’s transformed my life. I love it. I now have a cold plunge at my house. My fiancé uses it almost every morning and night because he likes to use it after he works out.

Being part of this health and wellness movement, and the SWTHZ focus on both physical and mental benefits of contrast therapy, really spoke to me. I was on two antidepressants and now I’m only on one. Which is kind of cool.

1851: What do you hope to achieve with your business? Do you have a plan for growth?

Bryant: I’m hoping this is my big legacy money-maker. My business partner already has his legacy businesses. We collectively have 17 licenses. We have one studio open, we’re close to opening a second and I just received the lease and demo permits for my third studio.

We own the whole Austin territory. I think probably 12 locations is the goal.

SweatHouz is a first-of-its-kind wellness concept offering private contrast therapy experiences with infrared sauna, cold plunge and vitamin C showers in luxury, technology-forward suites. Designed for recovery, longevity and convenience, SWTHZ uses smart engineering and a membership-based model to make high-performance wellness accessible and effortless. With franchise opportunities available in select markets, SWTHZ is redefining the recovery space — one studio at a time. For more information, visit