Renew Massage in Sioux Center moves to new home - nwestiowa.com

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SIOUX CENTER—A massage therapist is celebrating the holiday season with a new location.

Renew Massage, owned by Amy Vanden Hull, 37, of Sioux Center, can be found at 645 Sixth St. NW.

The move was six months in the making as Vanden Hull’s parents and husband worked to make her dream of owning her own facility a reality.

“To have this place is creating financial freedom and eases the fears of something like COVID happening again,” Vanden Hull said. “Not to mention it’s also convenient to just walk outside and go to work a few steps from my house.”


A massage therapist is celebrating the holiday season with a new location.

Renew Massage, owned by Amy Vanden Hull, 37, of Sioux Center, can be found at 645 Sixth St. NW.

Renee Wielenga rwielenga@nwestiowa.com

As a message therapist, Vanden Hull was forcibly unemployed during the coronavirus pandemic.

“I couldn’t do my job and socially distance, but yet I was stuck paying monthly bills for my business to stay open at a place I rented,” she said. “That was really hard. Knowing I wanted to be able to continue to serve people in this way and in case of another COVID-like situation, I wanted to find a way to have my own space.”

Her backyard provided the perfect location.

The 600-square-square feet includes an entrance with massage chair and mini fridge, bathroom with two-person sauna and then one spacious room for massage that’s large enough to accommodate weekend couples massages as well as has some storage spaces. There are also stairs to a loft space that’s yet to be completed and part of Vanden Hull’s future goals for the space.


A bathroom with a two-person sauna is one of the features massage therapist Amy Vanden Hull incorporated into her new location for her business Renew Massage.

Renee Wielenga rwielenga@nwestiowa.com

“We’re the only place around that offers couples massage on Fridays and Saturdays,” said Vanden Hull, noting she has couples from throughout N’West Iowa come just for that feature of her business. “Couples have chose to do that as something special for their anniversary. What if they would get a massage and have a place to spend the night and go back home the next day instead? Maybe something like that is more affordable than a complete weekend getaway somewhere else. I don’t know how many people will do that, but it’s a hospitality thing I can offer that’s really special and not something anyone else offers.”

While she’s still working on the feature, the sauna and massage chair are open 5 a.m.-11 p.m. for use by anyone in the community.

The massage chair is $5 for as long as you want, but first come first served. The sauna is $10 for 50 minutes and features infrared and chronotherapy lights and ART or audio resonance therapy.

“I really wanted to incorporate those two things to offer more ways of helping people and making it affordable,” she said. “I want people to take an opportunity to help heal themselves. If, for example, a trucker gets home at 8 at night and needs to relax, they can come use the sauna or massage chair to help sleep at night. I want people to say they have the time, they can do that instead of ‘no, I can’t afford it.’”

Vanden Hull’s massage therapy services include deep tissue, Swedish, raindrop, cupping and craniosacral fascial that’s a gentle hands-on treatment.

Vanden Hull’s clients range from infants to “those of many years,” she said.

No matter their age, her focus is the same.

“I am here to help you feel better and to help your body heal. Let me help your relieve your stress,” she said.

This is the fourth location for Renew Massage as Vanden Hull started briefly out of her home in Orange City five years ago before moving to the Water’s Edge, a bed-and-breakfast location on Hyman’s Pit south of Sioux Center.

Having moved to Sioux Center three years ago, Vanden Hull was looking for an in-town location and then the coronavirus pandemic hit, solidifying her interest in moving her space closer to home. She found a temporary space at the former Isakson’s Chiropractic location for the past six months until her new building was complete.

Vanden Hull, an Orange City native and 2009 graduate of Northwestern College, managed Woudstra’s Meat Market in Orange City for five years before becoming a massage therapist.

“Running the meat market was good,” she said. “I loved working with my hands, loved working hard, loved making people happy, but I also felt like I needed a change. I liked the idea of having my own business idea.”

She was already familiar with massage therapy; she owned a massage table though she hadn’t taken any classes on the subject just because she enjoyed helping others.

“In college and through marriage counseling, I learned about the five love languages,” she said. “My No. 1 love language has always been physical touch, both to give and to receive. I loved giving massages and helping people relax and feel better.”

Becoming a massage therapist and starting her own business also allowed her more flexibility with her daily schedule.

“I can set my hours to be during my kids’ school hours so I’m there when they leave for school and done with work when they get home,” said Vanden Hull, a mom of four. “I want to be a good mom first. Massage therapy is a very physically challenging job so I can work 8 to 2 as full time and still be there for my kids.”

Vanden Hull also drives bus after school four days a week for Sioux Center Christian School. She has a few part-time employees to help her business expand its hours.

“My goals are to be a good mom and promote health and wellness,” Vanden Hull said. “Being a massage therapist has been a gift and way for me to do both. I’m excited to be in my own space and be able to help fill my goals and fill a need in the community.”