A hub of wellness and community

Stemming from a journey of health and wellness, Tyson Yilmaz and Lauren Hoseason along with brothers Cam and Ben Mcintosh ventured into creating a recovery space of their own on the Surf Coast.

Sana Recovery was born at the end of 2023, featuring a cafe, sauna and cold plunge set in beach boxes along the Surf Coast Highway.

The cafe was the first aspect of the business to come to life, welcoming members of the public from May last year while works continued on the recovery area for its January opening.

Creating a space where people would feel welcome and a sense of community was the driving vision when designing Sana Recovery.

“We want people to come in, hang out, relax, they can have a coffee and a recovery session, enjoy their time together and it’s just a place where you can come in and leave feeling better,” Cam said.

“When people come in, they feel welcome, they feel happy, there’s a good vibe and that space is held for them; whoever walks through the doors, they’re welcome.”

This is the first time Cam has created a space like this and was inspired by his own experiences to do something that centred around a community.

“Having my own journey of mental health and then physical injury, that changed my course in life and getting into recovery and looking after my mental health more and through that, understanding the importance of having a good community around you,” he said.

The cafe was designed as the heart of the business, encouraging people to head inside where they can choose to go through to the saunas and cold plunge rooms for recovery sessions.

With a carefully curated menu including fresh juices, salads, toasties and more, the cafe is designed to support people in their own wellness journey with everything made onsite from high-quality and local ingredients.

“People come in, come together, we share good food, healthy food and people just leave feeling good,” Cam said.

While the cafe fuels the body, the woodfire saunas provide a therapeutic heat experience coupled with the fresh and rejuvenating cold plunge, used to boost circulation and reduce inflammation.

Upon entering Sana, customers are drawn into the space as they walk through the cafe into the relaxing and inviting outdoor area furnished with tables and chairs, with plenty of space to enjoy the offerings.

From there, guests can follow the round pavers through the garden and into the relaxation space where they are met with the sauna rooms and cold plunge baths.

Cam said in the short time Sana Recovery had been open, he felt like the space was turning into everything they had envisaged as it continued to grow.

“It’s nice to see what we hoped it would be and we’re getting good feedback from the community and it’s been great, definitely what we’ve envisioned but probably more than that, too,” he said.

Yoga, Qi Gong, breathwork and group bookings are also on offer, further enhancing the feeling of community along with a Valentine’s Weekend experience.

As part of the Valentine’s Weekend, Sana is running an experience for two including a 75-minute recovery session, two ceremonial cacaos and a catering box to share.

Cam said he hoped people got general wellness out of Sana Recovery, and welcomed everyone into the space.

“I hope they leave feeling up-built, confident, where they can meet friendship, a place where they can obviously meet people like [them], but just leave feeling good and safe,” he said.

“The people that work with us, we all want everyone to be friendly to anyone that walks through those doors and make them feel welcome.”

Although cafes, saunas and cold plunges are common, Cam said he genuinely believes it was the feeling people got from Sana that makes it stand out in the market. “We’re welcoming people and we genuinely care for people – we set this up not because of the money, but we set it up because we wanted that community, and that feeling is held in the space,” he said.

As Sana Recovery moves into the future, the owners hope it becomes somewhere people can go and rely on. “It’s in the back of their mind somewhere and they remember it from feeling, the feeling they get when they walk away or they think of it as it invokes a feeling inside of them that feels good and they feel welcome,” Cam said.

For more, head to sanarecovery.com.au or follow them on Instagram @sana_recovery.