The space before
142 Broadway Street North, Raymond AB — a former salon and office space, handed over by the landlord with carpet, commercial poles, fluorescent lights, and 837 sq ft of net usable area. The bones were good. Everything else was imagination and a plan.
Second walkthrough
Walked the space again with the new floor plan in hand. You can see the full length of the corridor that will become the service room hallway — five rooms off the left wall, reception at the back. The structural poles will be incorporated into the finished rooms. Carpet coming out, framing going in.
What the landlord gave us
837 square feet net usable area. 57½ feet long, 14'7" wide. The space was previously home to Arcade Alley before being reconfigured as a salon and office. The landlord's existing floor plan showed one big open space with a back room — not what we needed. Starting point for redesign.
What we designed
Nicole and Kyle redesigned the full layout from scratch — five private service rooms running the length of the space, each with its own door off a central corridor, plus a reception area and utility room at the back. 16'1" wide total, five rooms at approximately 11'5"–11'6", each large enough for stand-up UV booths, the SaunaRay, the Beauty Angel, or the recovery setup. Every room private. Every client their own space.
Demo and framing begins
Carpet pulled, lumber on site. The first wall frames are going up at the far end of the space — you can see the service room structure taking shape in the background. DeWalt miter saw set up mid-space, stud bundles staged along the right wall. Two people cutting and setting; the room layout starts to feel real for the first time.
Framing complete
All five service room walls framed out. The corridor is defined, the room openings are roughed in, and the electrical rough-in wires are already running through the frames. You can see the full layout taking shape — the service rooms stepping back along the right wall, the long corridor that clients will walk down to their room. Insulation batts staged along the left wall ready to go in once framing inspection passes.
Electrical rough-in complete
All electrical rough-in is done. Each service room has its own dedicated circuit — dedicated feeds for the three buck boosters that step up voltage for the SunCapsule tanning booths, a 20A receptacle for the SaunaRay infrared sauna, and circuits for the Beauty Angel and recovery room equipment. Wiring runs overhead through the framing before drywall closes it up for good. Insulation batts staged and ready to go in next. $10,000 in electrical, done right the first time.
⚡ Electrical by Brandon — Passey Electric
HVAC rough-in complete
Three days of HVAC work — ventilation and climate control roughed in across all five rooms. The mini-split cassette unit is in the ceiling, supply duct runs the full length of the corridor with individual drops into each service room. Inspections on Monday, drywall starts Tuesday.
🌡️ HVAC by Ben — My Service Company
Insulation — almost complete
Batt insulation going into every service room wall cavity — acoustic separation between rooms is just as important as thermal in a wellness studio. Spray foam in the ceiling cavities handles the air seal. Inspections Monday, then the walls close up for good on Tuesday when drywall begins.
Signage installed
The exterior window sign is up at 142 Broadway — Chinook Glow is now visible from the street for the first time. Inside, the logo decal is centred on the reception wall and the front door has the circular brand mark on the glass. Raymond now knows we're coming.
Room by room: before & after
Each service room starts as framed walls, electrical boxes, and bare carpet. Each one ends as a finished private space with its own equipment and atmosphere. We're documenting every room as it transforms.
Drywall complete — ready for paint
All drywall is done. Every room is taped, mudded, sanded, and primed. The corridor is clean, the service room door openings are framed out, and the reception area is taking shape with its pass-through windows. The space is unrecognizable from the empty carpeted box we started with in February. Paint goes on next.
Paint — the white box is gone
Two coats of primer over the fresh drywall, then colour. The whole studio goes a deep charcoal, with navy accent walls in the service rooms — a warm, low-light palette that suits a tanning and wellness space far better than builder white. This is the moment the rooms stop looking like a construction site and start looking like Chinook Glow.
Flooring, trim, and fixtures
Luxury vinyl plank going down across the whole studio — a warm oak tone that plays off the charcoal walls. Waterproof, durable, and easy to keep clean, which matters in rooms that see steady traffic. Trim, doors, hardware, and lighting fixtures follow right behind. Kyle is a Red Seal Journeyman Carpenter, so this part moves fast.
Equipment installation
The machines are going into their rooms. The SunCapsule X7 and X8 tanning booths are in and standing on their dedicated buck-booster circuits, and the Beauty Angel RVT-30 red light unit is set in place. Still to come: the Recovery Room setup and the SaunaRay 2-person infrared cabin — basswood panels, Himalayan salt wall, infrared heaters, and a burn-in cycle to off-gas the wood before any client sits in it.
Soft launch — friends & founding members
Before the doors officially open, founding members and a small group of friends and family get the first sessions. This is where we shake out the operational details, make sure every room is running perfectly, and give Nicole a chance to welcome the first real guests into a space that's been months in the making.
Chinook Glow opens
Raymond's first tanning and wellness studio opens its doors. UV tanning, infrared sauna, red light therapy, and the Recovery Room — all under one roof, a short drive from Lethbridge, Magrath, Stirling, and Cardston.
