CLEVELAND — In the heart of the Waterloo Arts District, there's quite an eye-catching building. You really can't miss it on Waterloo Road.
"There was this woman who came in. She thought it was a club," said Biz Rogers, owner of Pop Life.
Rogers continued, "People think it's all different kinds of things; we've had the gamut of all kinds of interesting things that people think it is."
Rogers said many of the folks who stumble inside her wellness hub walked in because they were curious about what was inside such a colorful space.
"The premise is holistic without the hassle," said Rogers.
The business is set up to be a one-stop shop for personal wellness. Through the doors, there is an all-vegan cafe called "Nourish." It serves bowls, salads, smoothies, and even prepped to-go meals and snacks.
"It's rare to have a place with particularly so many options for plant-based eaters," said Megan Denman from Lakewood.
Denman and her friend Victoria chose the colorful spot to catch up over lunch.
"Coming in yeah, this beautiful Pop Life and beautiful cafe and it feels very vibrant with all the colors in here and cozy," said Denman.
"It makes me happy," said Victoria Hamm from Mentor. "The outside is cool. I've driven past before, but I didn't know what this was; I thought maybe it was an art gallery or something."
There's a shop full of local artists and makers' goods and a vault from when the building was a bank. Now, deposit boxes store the dreams and ideas of folks who stop by.
Upstairs, there is a full-fledged fitness studio.
"In general right now we do have a lot of yoga, we have a lot of gentle yoga, and things like that so we're really starting to branch out into high intensity interval training, bootcamps, things like that," said Rogers.
Rogers continued, "The first class is free for everyone. Everyone is able to try out whatever they'd like. We do have class passes, drop-in offerings, student rates."
The studio also offers meditation, color immersion therapy, and healing space with a personal sauna.
Pop Life is always looking for new instructors to host classes in their spaces.
Rogers is passionate about making these services and activities accessible in Collinwood.
"We grew up in this area, and it's so important to us to really provide a space and an offering, especially for the young children growing up."
Pop Life will soon start donation-only Friday classes for children's movement.
In the hustle and bustle of the day-to-day, a stop inside might encourage you to slow down and take note of all the vibrancy life has to offer, "hoping to have these spaces, these places, these activities, these things that will engineer and allow people's brains to buzz, to do what sets their souls on fire," said Rogers.
On Saturday, Nov. 16, the Waterloo Vegan Market will host its shop inside Pop Life from 12 to 3 p.m.
