The Wellness Business Protocol

Generator Athlete Lab, a health and wellness studio in Austin, offers a recovery method termed The Protocol. This treatment follows a precise formula: 30 minutes in the infrared sauna and 15 minutes in alternating hot and cold tubs, all followed by a compression therapy session. While this strict outline may seem intimidating, this specific offering has been Generator’s number one seller ever since it first opened — and presented the founders, Dr. Jessica Tranchina and Delfin Ward, the naturally viral word-of-mouth marketing every business craves. Now, as The Protocol has become common knowledge among Austinites, AFM caught up with Dr. Jess about all things health, wellness, and business.

AFM:  When did the idea for Generator Athlete Lab and The Protocol first come about for you and Delfin? Do you remember any specifics?

Yes, I can tell you exactly when we conceived of it all. It was — and we were both working in the health, wellness, and healing world. I was a physical therapist, and he was —. We were doing all this research on recovery and healing for our own work and clients and came across these studies. They weren’t hidden, but out in the open.

While they continued to do their own research, combing through studies and using the hot / cold intervals in their own practices and at home. The results were clear, this science-backed wellness regime was healing fatigued bodies and promoting wellness beyond a physical realm.

AFM: When did the idea for Generator Athlete Lab and The Protocol first come about for you and Delfin? Do you remember any specifics?

Yes, I can tell you exactly how it happened. It was 2016. I had two kids, not three. I was competing on an elite level in Ironman and I had my physical therapy business. I was always focused on healing people. So I would see these individuals, and as I’m working with them and I’m realizing, “Oh, they need something else.” Then, as I’m competing and dealing with my own body, I’m realizing I need something else, too. Delfin was working in the same healing-people business at a clinic and he’s seeing the same thing.

So, we start doing research — just combing through studies. We try things out on ourselves and start working in what works. The results, all based on science-backed methods, were so clear. We thought, “Why is no one doing this?” I mean, people were doing it, of course, but in their own homes and in set ups that were much harder to standardize or keep consistent. We realized there was a clear need and absolute lack of availability or access to this kind of methodology. So, really, the whole business came out of us asking, “Why doesn’t a space exist where people can just come heal themselves?”

AFM: What was that process like, getting the idea of a healing business into reality?

From the first ideas in 2016, it wasn’t until 2018 that we opened our doors. We know we could teach people what to do, we knew we had the experience in manual therapies, training, and we knew the science behind the modalities. What we needed was a space to make it happen. I started looking for spaces to open up that could hold what we needed it to, but it just didn’t exist. Then, I found the exact space I wanted in Sea Holm.

AFM: You and Delfin work so well together. How did you guys meet? What has it been like owning a business with your husband? What benefits or challenges come with that dynamic?

We met in 2005 in Austin. We were both working in a nursing home, both helping people. We’d both been therapists for forever and worked in a lot of different industries like acute care, wound care, pediatric care, sports, ortho, etc. We were both passionate about helping people and healing people. It just sort of evolved from there.

Of course there are challenges but since we are so complimentary of each other and have different strengths and are truly “two sides of a coin,” personally for us it has worked out very well. I would say a huge challenge is not having boundaries around where/when/how much we work and talk about the business, though, and that can be unhealthy and “too much” when some times should be reserved strictly for family time or personal time.

AFM: You’d had your own business and clients before, but how did you have to shift in order to meet the demands of starting a business like this?

So, we are both therapists by training and trade, we’ve healed and healed a lot of people over our whole lives and careers. That, healing, is what we know. But, to answer your question, we didn’t get a whole lot of business school training in our programs, as you can imagine. What really changed the game for us was when we joined because now we’re both the Entrepreneur Organization (EO) — it has been absolutely imperative.

AFM: Can you talk a bit more about that? What did the organization do for you guys?

Even though we ran our business for many years without being in the organization, the organization really filled in the gaps in our knowledge. It teaches you traction. It made us finally sit down with ourselves and saying, “Okay.  Yes, I am Dr. Jess. But I am not an expert in marketing or sales or etc” and we don’t have to be. We can hire the right people with the right skills. It can be a lot to start in knowing how you hire them. But the EO taught us that you first establish core values — establish a mission.

From there, you find these people that align with these that are experts in what they do. And then you trust that they’re gonna do their job and together you come up with their goals. Then, of course you hold them accountable to their goals. So to answer that, boy, before joining the EO we were just doing all kinds of stuff. I was having a kid while we were opening [Generator Athlete Lab]. So we were just exhausted. And trying to do all of that? I mean, we were not good with any of that to begin with. And it can, and will, run you ragged, dry and exhausted. It’s all about finding a balance there. And with the EO and what we learned, we were able to actually do that.

AFM: When you first opened up, did any major surprises come your way? Crazy curve balls, good or bad? 

Well, lots of negative of course with something like this; losing staff, seasonal fluctuations, COVID, etc. But first that comes to mind, positive, would be just the quick escalation of things after we first opened. I mean, back then, we were first to market with this kind of thing. People came right away, and thank goodness they did because as I said, we had no idea what we were doing. I thought I’d be the only one in there using the crazy thing and maybe a handful of clients. But, man, the doors were bursting down when we first opened. We were completely shocked.

Wow! What was the marketing like when you first opened, before you joined the EO?

No marketing, just all word-of-mouth. Like I said, we really didn’t know what we were doing and weren’t sure it would even take it off. But The Protocol speaks for itself and Austin was the best place to open something so crazy like this. I think another curve ball, going back to your previous question, would be marketing related.

With any business, you know who your target is, who your avatar is. When we first stated, we expected it to be high performing athletes. But what we found, was something totally different. All of a sudden we were having non-athletes as our main clientele. Instead we head entrepreneurs, founders, influencers. People like Joe Rogan and Tim Ferris. That was a real shock to us and has really changed our marketing strategies over the years as we try to evolve with our avatars and market.

AFM: Now, its been open since 2018, that’s over half a decade. You mention changes in marketing but what other aspects have you seen evolve since that first year?

Besides the logistical sides of the business, like how we hire and manage our team, how to market, and all that, we have changed to fit our clientele. What we offer has changed along with the market, so that what we have besides The Protocol still meets their needs. Another example of our evolution comes from COVID times.

With COVID, we had a relatively easy pivot to the social distancing, facilities wise, as we just needed to change around a few things and switch from communal-style to appointments. But then, once social distancing was over and we started offering communal options again, people still tended to stick with appointments. The idea was that they could still book with friends and make it a social setting, making it as private as they wanted.

AFM: You’ve mentioned starting to coach other small businesses on their process, what advice do you have. For those out there reading this?

Find your one thing. Gary Keller wrote a book called The One Thing, and it’s about knowing what you’re good at or what you want to be good at. Once you find that one thing, you have to work to be known for that thing in the market. You don’t want the market to be confused about who you are or what you do. Having one thing makes it clear, simple, and direct. A confused market does not buy.

*This article first appeared in the June 2024 issue of Austin Fit Magazine.