Our Story
Humble Beginnings
Not a cool Silicon Valley-esque startup garage. A 2-car tandem townhome garage in Issaquah kind of garage.
Adrianne spent 8 years working for other clinics and spas. She knew massage. She knew people. So, she cleared out half the garage and started her business. The space was creatively made, with wood floors (contact paper), ambient lighting (paper lanterns), and a privacy wall (a curtain - to separate the massage table from the car).
It was cozy, warm, a little scrappy - The Garage.
She worked nonstop, with long hours and relentless hustle. The internet noticed, people noticed, and word spread. Within a year, she was busy enough to afford brick-and-mortar and hire employees. Scary, but validating.
The Tiny House
With her husband’s support (and some deep breaths), Adrianne took the second big leap: renting a tiny house a few blocks away on Newport Way.
The house was.. “charming”. The roof leaked, the drainage was questionable at best, and they fought with field mice for ownership. They shared parking with a daycare and the view behind showed the occasional family of deer. But still, they grew. They hired a few more LMTs, and her husband Cody got his massage license and officially joined the mission. By the end of 5 years in the tiny house, they had 7 employees altogether - not bad for a leaky roof.
Multi-Location
They expanded again - opening a second location in Carnation, where they lived. After a couple years of operation, though, they condensed back to one location due to geographical hiring limitations.
The Glow-Up
When the lease for the tiny house ended, it was time for the largest leap yet - a real office space. Half of the third floor at 710 5th AVE NW. A suite.
This one came with wall-to-wall carpet, white walls, and fluorescent lighting. In other words, the stark opposite of cozy.
Naturally, they immediately got to work making it feel warmer. As they had done with every space before it, they pulled all-nighters of painting, building, wiring, sanding, staining, and recreating the signature concrete wall from the very first garage. By now, this was the businesses fourth space, each built by hand - fueled with caffeine and determination.
When their third-floor neighbors moved out, they took it. Suddenly, their office now has 10 treatment rooms and a large office/break room. The dream grew from a curtain and paper lanterns to a thriving, professional practice.
Lessons Learned
The Mini-Pig That Wasn’t Mini At All
At one point, Adrianne had a marketing idea: a mini pig name Hampton who would hang out at the tiny house location. The logic was flawless, after all. Mini pigs are hypoallergenic, cute, memorable, and effective talking points. There was only one problem - Hampton the mini pig, was not a mini pig.
So, he grew and grew and grew. Eventually, he became too large (and too bossy) for office life and had to work remotely. That said, Hampton remains an active employee. You can still find him on the website pulling shifts as the face of our MindBody widget and messenger bot.
The Penny Floor
The carnation office lived in a historic building with extremely slanted bathroom floors. Instead of ignoring it, Adrianne and Cody did what they always do: fix it themselves. They leveled the floor and covered it entirely in pennies. This labor of love (and one of the hardest things to leave behind when the office closed) created a stunning, one-of-a-kind pattern.
The Garage Massage Therapy has been awarded FreshChalk’s “Best Massage Therapists in Issaquah” since 2019.
The Garage Massage Therapy has been awarded Yocale’s “Book Local Choice” since 2024.
The Garage Massage Therapy has received Yelp’s “People Love Us” badge since 2015.
