Opportunity to enter Lake Country market took nearly three years
Just a few weeks after opening its doors in Lake Country, InMotion Wellness Studio is already seeing strong demand for its assisted stretching therapy and recovery services.
InMotion Wellness is owned by Greene County residents Dana and Dr. Pablo Santamaria, who said the business grew out of both personal experience and timing that “just perfectly lined up.”
“I started having back problems over the past couple of years,” Pablo Santamaria said.
A professor of urology at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, he explained that while recovering from back surgery this February, he realized that assisted stretching was greatly helping him progress.
Santamaria said he developed a condition known as spinal stenosis from years spent standing during surgeries. During recovery, he was visiting an InMotion location near Augusta and became convinced the concept could work in Lake Country, too.
“There was no assisted stretching around here,” he said of the Hwy. 44 location. “So, we decided to go ahead and start it.”
Dana Santamaria said the opportunity moved quickly once they connected with InMotion company officials.
“They told us if you do not do it, we will,” Dana said of the InMotion corporate office, based in Charleston, S.C.
Apparently, the company had been looking to enter the Lake Country market for nearly three years but had not found a suitable location. The Santamarias, however, came across their new location after learning about a former bakery space that would soon be available.
“All the stars just kept lining up for us,” Dana said.
What initially was planned for a summer opening quickly accelerated, Pablo Santamaria recalled, after InMotion leaders pushed for a March launch instead.
“We were thinking July 1st,” he admitted. “They said, ‘We want this open by March 30th.’” The pace has not slowed since. The business currently employs six people — three full-time and three part-time — and both owners say demand has already exceeded expectations.
“We’ve had to hire more people,” Dana said.
Unlike some other InMotion locations that may have only one or two stretch specialists working at a time, the Lake Oconee studio frequently runs four of its five tables simultaneously.
The studio offers one-on-one assisted stretching sessions, typically lasting 30 minutes, along with Theragun percussion therapy. A free 30-minute consultation and demo stretch is provided for first-time clients.
Dana Santamaria said clients range widely in age and mobility.
“Our youngest client, I think, is 14, and our oldest is 90. Two clients are in wheelchairs, and one has cerebral palsy, so we see everybody,” she said.
For Pablo Santamaria, the business also reflects a medical perspective on preventative care and mobility.
“If you just want to feel better, just stretching will do it. It’ll release lactic acid," he said. "Everything that comes into play, whether it’s golf, pickleball, work, or just everyday life, proper stretching can make you feel a lot better."
He added, however, that consistency is key, making it necessary to make more than just occasional visits.
“You can’t come in here just one or two times and think you're done,” Dana agreed. “You probably are going to feel better immediately, but you’ve got to keep coming back to really get the full benefit.”
InMotion Wellness Studio (706-927-5949, 1124 Lake Oconee Pkwy., Eatonton) operates daily from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., with the Santamarias already considering additional staffing to keep pace with evening hours’ demand.