Blank State Spa to bring cold plunge bathhouse to Covington in 2027

Blank State Spa is set to open at the start of 2027 in Covington with a pitch that goes well beyond a standard spa visit: a nearly 7,500-square-foot, two-level bathhouse and wellness destination at 608 Madison Avenue, in the former Eilerman’s Department Store building. For Greater Cincinnati, it is being framed as the region’s first modern bathhouse, a sign that cold plunge culture is moving out of the niche recovery corner and into a destination retail format built for repeat visits.

The concept leans into the full ritual. Alongside the cold plunge, Blank State plans sauna, infrared sauna, steam room, hot tub, and mineral pool access, with private treatment rooms for massage, body scrubs, facials, and other wellness services. That mix matters because it places cold immersion inside a broader hydrotherapy circuit rather than treating it like a standalone novelty. The business is selling restoration and intentional pause, with enough scale and variety to serve people looking for a deliberate recovery session, not just a quick dip before heading home.

The building itself adds to the story. 608 Madison Avenue sits in Covington’s Madison Avenue corridor, where adaptive reuse has become part of the neighborhood’s identity. The Eilerman family’s retail history in the region dates to a Newport store opened in 1886, and Chuck Eilerman’s Covington men’s and boys’ clothing store followed in 1892. The Covington shop thrived for more than 60 years before closing in the mid-1970s, when suburban malls and plazas drew shoppers away. Now, that old department store shell is being recast as a social wellness asset, a very different use for a building that once lived off downtown foot traffic.

Blank State is also stepping into a corridor that has already been reshaped by reinvestment. Hotel Covington was created from the former Coppin’s department store at 638 Madison Avenue and has been credited with helping revitalize downtown Covington. Recent Madison Avenue additions such as Revival Vintage Bottle Shop, Carmelo’s Italian restaurant, and Maverick Chocolate Co. have further pushed the street toward destination status. Blank State would add another layer to that mix, bringing a wellness-and-recovery draw to a block that is no longer just about shopping, but about staying, lingering, and building a day around the experience.

The real signal in this opening is not just that Covington is getting a bathhouse. It is that cold plunge has matured into a format with enough gravity to anchor a major building on Madison Avenue, and enough local demand to justify a premium, all-in thermal escape.