Ann Arbor’s State Street is now home to a new place to seek out a little serenity.

Owners Angela Gorman and Kevin Bowker announce the opening of their spa, Sacred Body.

“The location is fantastic,” Gorman says about the spa's location on State Street downtown. The entrance is tucked in next to SEE eyewear and across from the new Five Guys Burgers and Fries.

The central setting yields what Gorman calls “a healthy mix of young and old students and professionals” as clients.

Sacred Body offers what the owners feel to be a unique blend of massage, yoga and body services. Clients can choose from a menu of massage options that all aim to create a little more inner peace.

Massage therapist Angela Gorman works on a client at the newly opened downtown Ann Arbor spa, Sacred Body.

Courtesy of Sacred Body

“It’s our intention to create a space for each individual to heal, grow and recreate the image of their divine self — in whatever form that takes,” she says. Among the options are Ayurvedic massage, which uses therapeutic techniques and infused oils specially mixed by an Indian herbal specialist in Florida.

The center also offers a tandem massage, where two massage therapists work on one client to relieve tension.

The spa also offers body treatments and facials made with natural whole foods that Gorman concocts herself for her clients.

She trained in Southern California as a raw-food chef prior to opening the spa. Gorman points out that the spa’s yoga sessions with Bowker give a glimpse of his background as a professional alligator wrangler, where he developed an “understanding of the balance of power and beauty in nature.”

Gorman and Bowker met four years ago in Florida, where she was teaching massage at the University of Tampa. From there, the two devised a dream to open their own yoga and massage studio, and moved to California.

Upon being exposed to the cost of living in southern California, Bowker decided to move home to Michigan — he's originally from Bay City.

“I took a job as a chef at the Kellogg Eye Center, and saved up to build up and start a business,” he said.

Sacred Body took its first clients Feb. 14, about one year after Bowker’s move to Ann Arbor. The partners are working on building up business and admit that they would like to be busier.

“We’re not advertising yet, but we have a nice mix of clients already,” says Gorman.

Sacred Body
308 1/2 S. State St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
Open 7 days a week by appointment, starting at 6 a.m.

Angie Smith is a freelancer for AnnArbor.com, where she usually covers retail and shopping.