How Nootka Makes Premium North American-Made Saunas at An Accessible Price

Why North American Saunas Are Made Differently

Saunas are everywhere. They can be found by the dozens on the digital aisles of Amazon, at a local outdoor furniture or pool retailer, and via various online specialty marketplaces. And they come in a wide variety of styles, from barrel and cube saunas to infrared and even blanket. This isn't necessarily a bad thing—the recent popularization means more people than ever before now have access to a simple yet potent way to boost overall health and wellbeing that connects one to nature. That’s a win in our book.

Yet, the increase in demand has also led to an influx of imported, drop-shipped sauna kits. Again, not inherently bad. But as Kris Harris, co-founder of Nootka Saunas in coastal British Columbia points out, they are more likely to fail, or worse, have a negative impact on sauna users’ health.

“At first glance, imported kits seem similar, but when you dig into it the wood is often thinner, the dimensions are significantly smaller, and the heater might not have the same certifications,” said Harris. He’s also quick to mention that many rely on glues, plastics, or finger-jointed boards. This could pose a risk of fumes being released into the air.

As a mechanical engineer and lifelong sauna user, Harris has a keen eye for quality and an intimate understanding of what a good sauna should look and feel like. He co-founded Nootka Saunas in 2019 and teamed up with experienced sauna builder Andrew Harman a year later. Their goal? To manufacture artisanal-quality saunas from locally harvested Western Red Cedar for an affordable price in their home base of Squamish, BC.

Keeping production local is central to their brand, because of their ethos and because it allows them to forge close ties with local lumber mills that ensure the best possible quality materials. “Even if a company who produces overseas does use Western Red Cedar, that wood arrives in a shipping container which sits in a humid environment and can cause issues,” explained Harris. “They don’t have the same ability as us to go visit the mills and see what’s coming down the pipeline, which helps us keep to a high standard.”

As a company that sells primarily within North American, manufacturing there also helps with customer service—if a customer needs something updated or repaired, it’s easier to arrange. They can problem solve and send parts quicker and easier, too. There’s an extra level of comfort knowing your investment has follow through.

Making Bespoke Quality Saunas Without a Mega High Price Tag

The current sauna market primarily has options that exist at one end of the spectrum or the other. Saunas can range from entry-level models that can cost anywhere from one to three-thousand dollars to custom builds with no price limit. There’s often not much in between. Nootka prides itself on laying claim to that middle ground by striking a balance between quality and cost.

According to Harris, they initially made a wide range of saunas with multiple add-ons, but felt the range of products was too wide and resulted in lower quality overall. So, they dialed things in. Now, they offer an 8-foot and 10-foot barrel sauna, plus an 8-foot cube sauna that can be configured with some variations according to the buyer’s wants and needs. And each is made to order.

“We want it to feel like you’re getting a custom sauna that fits your space really well within the confines of these two designs,” said Harris. The going rate for a smaller barrel sauna starts at around $7,000 USD. A larger cube sauna can cost as much as $13,250, depending on the project, with onsite assembly by vetted installers and the possibility to offer repairs thanks to their North American homebase.

Bringing Together Technology and Tradition

Finding that middle ground between quality and cost is in part due to their location, and a result of smart innovations to craft timeless saunas for a lower price. The Nootka facility has a “lean production” strategy thanks to technology that streamlines workflow and minimizes waste for an uber-efficient system. Check out their website and you’ll see a video of a Kawasaki robotic arm making quick, precise cuts across rich-toned cedar alongside a small team of sauna craftsmen bringing the designs to life.

“We use the machines to create consistency and guarantee a top-notch product, said Harris. “But every sauna touches someone’s hands, so each one is handcrafted to some extent.”

The team also takes part in regular sauna use to provide a real-world understanding of the product. Harris explained that employees in almost every role begin by producing and assembling a sauna to get to know it from the inside out. They spend time on the shop floor to get a sense of the workflow and most employees also have a sauna at their home. There is also a staff sauna onsite for regular sweat sessions. Call it R&D.

He explained that this gives them valuable insight to iterate on the designs to know for sure “what might need to be changed or improved” and that “some of the best changes have come from the staff themselves” as a result of these initiatives.

Harris’ own sauna heritage extends back to his childhood. Growing up enjoying time on the bench with family and friends in eastern Canada, they would plunge into nearly frozen water through a hole carved in ice before racing back to the heat. He describes it as “a social event” that centered around getting together and less on the prescriptive health benefits that seems to pervade modern sauna culture.

With this in mind, it’s not hard to see why Nootka takes pride in showcasing its own heritage, from the locally-sourced materials to the craftsmanship and the general enjoyment of it all from their own factory floors. All in all, they make a pretty great case for buying a North American-made sauna for your own backyard.

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