Inside Avantoa’s Elite Sauna Revolution: Ancient Craft Meets Future Wellness
Kivi Sotamaa and Jonathan Carle
From the Author
I set out on this journey expecting a story about high-end saunas—but what I found was a living testament to an ancient craft. In the course of researching Avantoa, I found myself stepping into a hidden world of guild traditions stretching back centuries, where master artisans worked by hand and spoke of wood as if it were alive. Interviewing the French-born builder Jonathan Carle, a Compagnon du Devoir, felt like opening a portal to the Middle Ages—only to discover he was combining his guild’s hallowed secrets with Finland’s forward-thinking design.
What emerged was a narrative far larger than just another luxury wellness product: it was the tale of how heritage, artistry, and modern innovation can converge to create something entirely new. Witnessing Carle and Finnish architect Kivi Sotamaa collaborate—blueprints flying, laser cutters humming, a faint aroma of freshly milled timber in the air—offered a rare glimpse into the fusion of Old World guild mastery and cutting-edge architecture. In speaking to them both, I was struck not only by the meticulous care poured into every beam, but also by their shared conviction that well-being can be as much about storytelling and legacy as it is about heat and cold.
For me, this article became an exploration of the very meaning of “luxury.” Yes, Avantoa’s saunas are lavish—but they also stand as emblematic works of art, brimming with centuries of savoir-faire. In an era that often feels disposable, Carle’s devotion to building something made to last—both structurally and culturally—felt refreshing.
I hope readers will share the same spark of curiosity and awe that I did, stepping briefly into a world where a medieval guild’s obsession with perfection ignites a bold new chapter in wellness design. It’s a story that reminds us that sometimes, the deeper the roots, the more magical the bloom.
Introduction
Under the shadow of Europe’s grand cathedrals and castles, a secretive brotherhood of master artisans has quietly carried knowledge through the ages. Known as the Compagnons du Devoir, this guild of craftsmen dates back to medieval times and is credited with building France’s most iconic structures . For centuries they honed esoteric techniques of stone and timber, passing them down through an initiation of arduous apprenticeships and legendary “masterpiece” projects. Today, the same mystical mastery that once raised gothic spires is being channeled into an unlikely arena: the burgeoning luxury wellness movement. Blending European aristocratic heritage with Scandinavian minimalism, one French Compagnon-trained carpenter has partnered with a Finnish design visionary to create Avantoa – a company melding elite Old World craftsmanship with cutting-edge longevity science in the form of ultra-luxury saunas and cold plunges. It’s a story of ancient guild secrets, Nordic biohacking rituals, and high-tech design converging to redefine what well-being means for discerning connoisseurs.
Craftsmanship & Mastery: Guild Traditions Reborn in California
A Compagnons du Devoir carpenter practicing traditional woodworking – the elite guild’s know-how dates back to the builders of Europe’s cathedrals
To understand Avantoa’s foundation in craft, consider the journey of Jonathan Carle, the master builder behind its saunas. Carle earned his skills the hard way: through a 6-year odyssey with the Compagnons du Devoir, the same prestigious guild that shaped Notre-Dame and other marvels . Fewer than 10% of those who begin this rigorous Tour de France of craftsmanship finish as masters. Carle not only completed it – mastering intricate timber joinery and hand-drawn design – but even trained new apprentices along the way. He was invited to help restore Notre-Dame’s fire-damaged roof, a testament to his rare skills, yet chose instead to follow his passion to Finland. There, in the land of endless forests, he merged the Compagnons’ 700-year-old woodworking tradition with Finnish innovation in sustainable wood construction. The result is each Avantoa sauna cabin being built like a fine piece of custom furniture – using robust cross-laminated timber (CLT) and joinery that echoes medieval cathedrals, yet with a clean, modern finish. It’s a level of artisanal excellence nearly extinct in today’s world of factory-made goods.
If Carle provides the old-world backbone, Kivi Sotamaa supplies the avant-garde vision. Sotamaa is a Finnish architect celebrated as a pioneer of digital design – a professor who has spent decades exploring how advanced modeling technology can create organic, emotionally resonant architecture . He’s known for blending art with functionality, pushing the boundaries of form while maintaining meticulous attention to detail. At Avantoa, Sotamaa’s mandate is to ensure each sauna is not just a wooden box, but “a harmonious fusion of aesthetic and practical brilliance”, as much experience as object. In practice, that means daring, sculptural structures that still honor craft and nature. Sotamaa’s designs use parametric digital tools to achieve millimeter precision, yet they are brought to life through Carle’s hand-hewn expertise – a marriage of CAD software and chisels, laser cutters and centuries-old carpentry. “Bold vision meets meticulous execution,” is how Sotamaa frames it , and seeing the duo at work, one might say Avantoa’s saunas are less built than they are bespoke – each a one-of-a-kind masterpiece for the client.
Kivi Sotamaa’s futuristic “Kivi Sauna” in the Finnish archipelago, built with curved mass timber, exemplifies Avantoa’s blend of high design and natural harmony.
The collaboration has yielded striking results. One recent project saw the team constructing a private sauna retreat on a remote Finnish island, where Sotamaa’s aerodynamic, oval design – nicknamed the “Kivi Sauna” for its rock-like form – appears to hover above the rocky shore. Clad in overlapping panels like a metallic-scaled egg, it’s engineered to withstand brutal Nordic storms while framing tranquil sea views through a panoramic window. Inside, seamless expanses of warm wood cocoon visitors in tranquility. This level of craft and ambition is more commonly seen in avant-garde architecture than backyard wellness amenities. And that is precisely Avantoa’s point: to elevate the humble sauna into livable art. Every detail, from joinery to integrated lighting, is executed to the standard of a superyacht or fine home. “Each structure is not just a product, but an experience,” Sotamaa likes to say. In Avantoa’s Palo Alto workshop, one can smell fresh-cut Finnish pine as Carle hand-finishes a beam, while on the screen Sotamaa tweaks a 3D model’s curvature by fractions of a degree. The duet of hand and digital tool is creating something new in the wellness world – heritage quality with Silicon Valley innovation.
The Finnish Advantage: Happiness, Longevity and the Science of Heat & Ice
A traditional Finnish sauna ritual – whisking the body with birch branches in hot steam – is part of Finland’s living heritage, even recognized by UNESCO for its cultural significance.
Why fuse a sauna with a cold plunge in the first place? The answer lies in Finland, a nation that consistently ranks as the world’s happiest country and whose culture may hold the secret to vitality. In Finland, the sauna is far more than a spa amenity – it’s a way of life woven into the national identity. With 5.5 million citizens and around 3 million saunas (nearly one per household), Finland literally has as many saunas as televisions. The tradition runs so deep that sauna bathing is considered part of Finland’s intangible cultural heritage, and many Finns routinely follow a hot sauna with a plunge into icy water – a practice known as avanto, from which Avantoa takes its name. It’s no coincidence that Finns, who grow up alternating between blistering heat and freezing cold, top global indexes for happiness and well-being year after year.
Western science is now affirming what the Finns have known in their bones for generations: sauna and cold therapy can profoundly boost health and longevity. Pioneering research from the University of Eastern Finland tracked men over 20 years and found that those who took sauna baths almost daily had dramatically lower mortality rates than those who indulged only once a week. In fact, about 49% of infrequent sauna-goers died during the study period versus just 31% of the frequent sauna users – a roughly 40% reduction in risk of early death. Regular sauna bathing was linked to fewer fatal heart problems and strokes, suggesting it’s a potent cardio-protective routine. Add cold immersion to the mix and you get a potent one-two punch for body and mind. Stanford neuroscientist Dr. Andrew Huberman and Dr. Susanna Søberg, a Danish cold exposure expert, have highlighted how deliberate heat-and-cold cycles can induce a cascade of beneficial effects: improved metabolism and insulin sensitivity, lower inflammation, and a surge of mood-elevating neurotransmitters like dopamine and norepinephrine. The cold plunge, in particular, triggers a release of adrenaline that sharpens focus and can even increase baseline dopamine levels for hours, contributing to a lasting sense of well-being and alertness.
Søberg, after years of studying winter swimmers in Scandinavia, has distilled a now-famous protocol: as little as 11 minutes of icy cold exposure per week (combined with about 57 minutes of heat via sauna) is enough to significantly enhance one’s “healthspan” – improving cardiovascular health, metabolic balance, and stress resilience. “Just 11 minutes of cold plunges a week can boost your wellbeing, promoting longevity and happiness,” she notes. This powerful evidence has turned practices once seen as eccentric (like jumping into a frozen lake) into the hottest new wellness trend among athletes, biohackers, and Silicon Valley executives. It also explains why Avantoa’s core concept – the fusion of a sauna and an ice bath in one beautifully crafted unit – is so compelling. It taps into Finland’s secret sauce for a long, happy life and makes it accessible in your own backyard. As Avantoa’s founders like to point out, a daily sauna and plunge routine is not just relaxation; it’s preventive medicine and mood therapy rolled into one. Little wonder that tech moguls and pro sports team owners from California to New York have been inquiring about installing these wellness sanctuaries on their estates, eager to capture a slice of Nordic vitality for themselves.
Luxury Wellness on the Rise
If the Finnish sauna represents ancient wisdom, the luxury wellness boom represents the future – and business is booming. The global wellness economy (spanning everything from spas and supplements to wellness real estate) is now valued at over $6.3 trillion and growing at more than 5% annually, far outpacing the overall global economy. Forecasts predict it will surge to $9 trillion by 2028. That means wellness is becoming one of the world’s largest industries – already about four times larger than the pharmaceutical sector in economic terms. Within that vast market, a distinct trend has emerged at the very top: ultra-luxury, personalized wellness for those who can afford to turn their homes (or private islands) into complete health havens. Think billionaire tech CEOs doing blood transfusions to stay young, or hedge-fund managers installing $100,000 hyperbaric oxygen chambers next to their home gyms. A new report dubs it the Wellth Movement, as wealth is increasingly poured into living longer and better.
Indeed, longevity science and biohacking have become obsessions of the wealthy. Consider the numbers: the nascent longevity tech market – encompassing anti-aging drugs, gene therapies, and life-extension services – was valued around $37 billion in 2020 and is projected to balloon to $183 billion by 2028. And the spending isn’t just on startups and research; it’s on personal experiences and equipment. Private “healthspan” clinics and clubs are springing up worldwide, offering week-long longevity retreats that cost as much as a luxury car. One 81-year-old real estate mogul reportedly spends $70,000 per year on experimental age-reversal treatments (from so-called “vampire” plasma facials to off-label drug cocktails), while upscale gym brand Equinox has launched a $40,000-per-year ultra-exclusive membership focused on extending members’ lifespans. Even wellness travel is going high-end: think $50,000/week immersions at Swiss medical spas or bespoke biohacking cruises. For today’s billionaires, a personal wellness arsenal – complete with trainers, doctors on call, and the latest recovery gadgets – has become the new status symbol, much like a superyacht or private jet. Health is the new wealth, literally.
It’s in this context that Avantoa is positioning itself as the “Bentley of saunas.” Just as a Bentley car offers bespoke craftsmanship and prestige engineering to a discerning driver, Avantoa’s sauna-cold plunge pavilions offer an elite wellness experience built to satisfy the most demanding clientele. Each unit is tailored, with no detail too luxurious: the largest model (the “Aino”) spans 800 square feet and comes complete with an indoor lounge for relaxation, a rain shower, an integrated cold plunge pool, and even a guest sleeping area for hosting friends post-spa. It’s essentially a private wellness retreat in one elegant structure, “designed for ultimate relaxation and hosting in style”. Clients can choose custom materials (aromatic cedar or Nordic spruce for the interior, perhaps), state-of-the-art amenities like Himalayan salt walls or infrared lighting, and of course top-tier audio systems to pipe in meditative soundscapes. Avantoa’s team will even hand-carve embellishments or family crests into the wood if a client desires, or align the sauna on a property for optimal sunset views during evening sweat sessions. This is wellness at its most indulgent and personalized.
Crucially, Avantoa isn’t selling just a sauna or an ice bath – plenty of brands offer those off the shelf. What they’re selling is pedigree and provenance: a sauna designed by a world-class architect, built by a guild-trained master, using lumber from the finest Finnish forests and techniques honed over centuries. It’s wellness with a story, an object you can brag about as much as use. In the pantheon of luxury goods, that puts it in a rarefied category. As one early client quipped, “It’s like having a piece of the Finnish woods and a piece of French cathedral in my backyard.” In an era when wealthy consumers seek experiences over things, Avantoa offers both – an experience encapsulated in a thing. Each use of the sauna becomes a ritual: you pour water over hot stones and inhale the pinewood aroma, feeling the legacy of countless sauna-goers and craftspeople before you. Then you plunge into the cold pool, steel yourself in that tingling shock as your body surges with endorphins, and emerge reborn – every time. It’s a controlled journey from stress to serenity, delivered daily on your doorstep.
The Future of Luxury Well-Being: Where Heritage Meets High-Tech
As we look to the future of high-end wellness, concepts like Avantoa hint at what’s to come: a fusion of exclusivity, science, and the art of living well. These aren’t mere products; they’re movements in microcosm. An Avantoa sauna is at once a nod to ancestral tradition and a bold step into biohacking culture – a physical space that brings together the past (ancient sweat rituals) and the future (longevity biotech) in a way that feels seamless. In creating these sanctuaries, Jonathan Carle and Kivi Sotamaa have effectively built a bridge between two worlds. On one side stands the endangered art of true craftsmanship – the notion that something built superbly well, with patience and skill, becomes timeless and can serve generations. (It’s worth noting that the Compagnons’ cathedrals have stood for 500+ years; Avantoa’s CLT structures, engineered for durability, are likewise meant to last decades if not centuries.) On the other side is the cutting-edge understanding that well-being is the ultimate investment. What good is a wine cellar or a classic car collection if you’re not healthy enough to enjoy them in your later years? The world’s wealthy are increasingly treating their health and longevity as the most valuable asset, worthy of significant capital – and spaces like Avantoa’s are the tangible embodiments of that philosophy.
In this light, Avantoa’s proposition starts to resemble something deeper than a luxury purchase. It’s a statement that self-care can be a grand, even sacred experience. The price tag may be steep (think in the high six or seven figures, depending on customization), but for ultra-high-net-worth families, it’s seen as a “generational investment” – a legacy of health to pass down. Much like commissioning an architect to build a family estate, commissioning a wellness space signifies long-term thinking: it’s a structure that your children and grandchildren could one day use, sweat in, and cherish. And beyond the personal, it nods to a broader movement: a future where homes of the rich are designed around wellness at the core. We’re already seeing luxury developments include meditation gardens, cryotherapy chambers, and air filtration as selling points; a bespoke sauna house is a natural next step in that evolution.
Perhaps the most compelling aspect of Avantoa’s model is how it encapsulates the “art of living well.” In a single experience, it wraps together mind, body, and aesthetic pleasure. It’s exclusive – there will only ever be a limited number of these made, by a tiny team of artisans – yet it’s grounded in something universally human: the healing power of heat and cold, of nature and craft. In an era obsessed with speed and mass production, Avantoa invites its owners to slow down and indulge in a ritual that’s as old as civilization itself. Imagine an intimate evening with friends in your sauna lounge: the cedar walls emanating warmth, the crackle of the stove, glasses of herbal elixir in hand. Conversations deepen as pores open in the heat. Then the gasp and laughter as everyone dashes through cold water, cheeks flushing with vitality. It’s luxury in the truest sense – not just opulence, but a surplus of meaning and sensation.
In the end, Avantoa’s story is about more than a lavish spa gadget for the rich. It heralds a future where well-being is the new wealth, where high tech and high craft cooperate to produce spaces that nourish us on all levels. As the first Avantoa units prepare to be delivered to estates from Napa Valley to the Hamptons, one can’t help but see a symbolism in it: the Compagnons’ torch of knowledge being carried forward, lighting up modern lives in a literal and figurative sense. The elite have always sought the best that money can buy – and what is more valuable than health and happiness? By combining ancient mastery, scientific longevity research, and bespoke luxury, Avantoa has created something that transcends each of those elements. It’s an experience money can buy – and one that just might add money can’t buy: years to your life, and life to your years. In the world of ultra-high-end wellness, that combination is as revolutionary as it is rare, making Avantoa a fascinating glimpse into the future of luxury well-being.