Our Founders

The story of Body Haus Lifestyle began long before the first studio opened, long before Pilates classes filled with committed students, and long before the dream of an 18,000-square-foot flagship location existed. It began in a crowded Midwestern home where luxury was scarce but love overflowed, where a mother working part-time as a nurse and a father cultivating fields taught their children that true wealth had nothing to do with bank accounts.

Growing up in a family where lunch tickets replaced cash and every small want required hard-earned effort, I learned early the reality of financial limitations. Yet every time I asked whether we were poor, my parents answered with conviction, “Son, we are rich.” They meant rich in spirit, in values, in connection, in purpose—rich in ways that mattered long before I understood how deeply those lessons would shape my life.

From cleaning pig pens and detasseling corn to hoeing soybeans and delivering newspapers, I grew up working relentlessly. Not out of necessity alone, but out of a belief that if I wanted something—a Nintendo, a moment of independence, a glimpse of the wider world—I had to earn it. Those years planted the foundation of everything that would come next: the idea that richness is measured in the strength of relationships, the health of the body and mind, the integrity of one’s path, and the courage to chase meaning.

Later, while my peers chased corporate ladders, my idea of “living richly” took me in a different direction. I was drawn not to titles or corner offices but to the live music scene, to nights filled with strangers-turned-friends, to experiences that felt like community, connection, and presence.

That pursuit led me to Natalie—my future wife, partner, and the heart of everything we would build together. We met dancing at a reggae concert in Chicago, and in those early moments, something deeper took root: a partnership fueled by passion, curiosity, and purpose.

I returned to California to continue my studies in horticulture and business while immersing myself in the early wave of the medical cannabis movement, a space driven by healing, innovation, and belief in the power of the plant. I launched a horticultural supply business, built cultivation facilities, and helped shape an industry from the ground up—not because of money, but because of mission and possibility. Yet the money flowed, allowing us to build companies generating millions in revenue while forming a community of dreamers determined to make a difference.

Natalie eventually moved to California, and while I worked to legitimize cannabis, she discovered her calling in yoga and Pilates, training under respected, traditional teachers who awakened a purpose that felt written into her soul. Together, we raised our children on a farm, grew our own food, and created a lifestyle rooted in wellness and connection.

But over time, cracks emerged. The cannabis space revealed darker sides, and betrayals in my own business forced me to confront misalignment I could no longer ignore. So we made a radical decision: we left California behind and returned to the Midwest to start over.

We bought a farm and opened our first yoga and Pilates studio in Carmel, Indiana. Even though Natalie had never taught in that community before, her authenticity, depth, and teaching quickly attracted a loyal following. While she led classes, I tended the farm, sold produce at farmers markets, and continued learning about movement, nourishment, and the deep link between lifestyle and well-being.

What we created together was more than a studio—it was a community centered on high-vibration living, real human connection, and a shared desire to live with intention. That understanding pushed us to take our next leap of faith: after seven years, we sold Body Mind & Core to pursue a yoga and farm retreat in Belize.

On land where the jungle met stillness, we built Belize Jungle Yoga, complete with a handmade deck and a retreat experience shaped by everything we had learned about food, movement, breath, nature, and heart. But just as our vision was taking flight, the world changed.

When the first news of the Italian cruise liner emerged, the pandemic unraveled everything. Retreats were cancelled, the buyer of our studio breached the contract, income disappeared overnight, and we found ourselves stranded in Belize with our children, no safety net, and no clear path forward. For a moment, it felt like everything had collapsed.

But then the people of Rancho Dolores—the small village where Natalie was born—welcomed us with warmth, music, faith, and simplicity. We lived among families who had little in material wealth but possessed abundance in joy, tradition, and resilience. With no running water, with board houses instead of modern comforts, with the river as our resource, we raised food, fished, shared rum drinks from our coconut trees, and rediscovered the meaning of richness all over again.

That simplicity revived us. But after eighteen months and our last bag of beans, I made a difficult choice: return to the cannabis industry to rebuild. I accepted a Director role in Michigan, and Natalie followed months later, returning to Pilates.

As we rebuilt our life piece by piece, something quiet but powerful began forming. Watching Natalie transform lives again through movement, feeling the ache of having lost and rebuilt everything, and recognizing the brokenness of the wellness and fitness landscape—where memberships were confusing, services were scattered, and community was often missing—we realized there was a need waiting for a solution.

That realization became the seed of Body Haus Lifestyle Club: a single space where Pilates, Yoga, and the most effective recovery therapies lived under one roof; a place centered on hospitality, community, and seamless flow; a club designed to help people live richly in every sense.

As the concept evolved, the vision grew: one club, one membership, a lifestyle movement powered by purpose. Today, we have completed the ultimate franchise model and are preparing to break ground on an 18,000-square-foot flagship club—a space that merges our signature Pilates and Yoga with saunas, cold plunges, light therapy studios, a large retail boutique, four indoor pickleball courts, and areas dedicated to wellness education, events, and community transformation. It is designed not just as a gym, but as a third place for anyone committed to living well in body, mind, and spirit.

What started as a childhood lesson about being “rich in spirit, not in money,” evolved into a life of meaningful detours, risks, rebuilds, and rediscovery. It became a mission rooted in service, resilience, and connection.

And now it lives as Body Haus Lifestyle Club: a movement for people who believe that richness is a way of living. Live richly with us. At Body Haus Lifestyle Club, we believe wealth is found in purpose, connection, movement, and community.