WTMJ host Jeff Sherman likes to say in greater Milwaukee that the classic “7 degrees of separation” is more like 1.5. Everyone seems to know everyone, and this week’s episode of The Upswing is living proof of that.
Sherman set out to build a conversation about health, wellness, retail, real estate and community. So, he booked two separate guests for the same show: James Shiparski from Hot Spell Sauna and Moshe Katz from Yellow Wood and Atid Properties. He scheduled them independently, thinking they’d be perfect for a conversation that connects saunas, cold plunges, local retail and brick-and-mortar in our region.
What he didn’t know was that Moshe is a regular at Hot Spell. A few days before the show, James and Moshe just happened to be in the sauna together, doing what people do in those spaces—talking. At some point, they turned to each other and said, “So, what are you up to in the next few days?” The answer, for both of them: “Well, for one, I’ll be heading to WTMJ to be on The Upswing with Jeff Sherman.”
No notes were compared, it was total serendipity, total good karma, and a perfect snapshot of how commerce and community intersect in greater Milwaukee.
So, on today’s show, Moshe Katz shares stories from 11 years of running Yellow Wood, a locally owned outdoor gear shop that became a gathering place as much as a retail store, and what it’s meant to serve customers, neighbors and nonprofits as the shop heads into its final chapter. James Shiparski walks through how Hot Spell is building a modern sauna and cold plunge business on Milwaukee’s lakefront, tapping into a growing wellness movement while creating a distinctly local, communal experience.
The closes with a note about Winter Break, a event happening today, Saturday, Feb. 28 at Havenswoods State Forest.
The Upswing is brought to you by Horicon Bank.
