KLAFS Brings Its Retractable S1 to the US at $44,900 to $51,900
By Arlene Scott
Senior Wellness Correspondent & Hospitality Consultant
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What KLAFS calls the world’s first retractable sauna is now orderable in the United States at $44,900 to $51,900, selling space rather than price, six days after Sun Home launched its Nova at $10,599.
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KLAFS, the German sauna manufacturer owned by Kohler since January 2024, said on July 7 that its S1 retractable sauna is now available to order in the United States through KLAFS USA. The S1, which expands from the footprint of a bookshelf to a full sauna cabin in about 40 seconds, lists at $44,900 to $51,900 before delivery and installation. It ships in three sizes and two finishes: matte black and walnut.
The announcement carries a Kohler, Wisconsin dateline, not a German one. That detail is worth pausing on. KLAFS does not operate as an independent importer in the US: it sits inside Kohler’s Luxury and Wellness Brands division, alongside Ann Sacks, Kallista, Robern, and Kast Concrete Basins. The S1 is not the first KLAFS product to reach American buyers (the Valora and Ariso launched in November 2024, and Kohler’s own C1 and C2 residential saunas draw on KLAFS craftsmanship and ship with KLAFS heaters), but it is the first time the retractable flagship has been formally offered for purchase here.
Key Facts
- Product KLAFS S1 retractable sauna
- US price $44,900 to $51,900 (before delivery and installation)
- Sizes Small, Medium, Large
- Finishes Matte black, Walnut
- Climate system KLAFS SANARIUM with five settings, up to 210 degrees Fahrenheit
- Expansion time Approximately 40 seconds from closed to open
- Construction Insulated walls, 5/16-inch glass, premium interior finishes
- Manufacturer KLAFS GmbH (Schwäbisch Hall, Germany), a Kohler subsidiary since January 2024
- US entity KLAFS USA, Kohler, Wisconsin
- Commercial dealer Design for Leisure (exclusive US and Caribbean commercial projects)
- Source KLAFS USA via PR Newswire, July 7, 2026
The pitch is space, not price
The S1 is not competing on cost. At $44,900 to $51,900 for the cabin alone, it sits at the top end of the US home sauna market. Leisurecraft’s CT Element starts at about $8,470 at its US suggested retail price. Designers Today reported in October 2025 that Kohler’s own indoor saunas, which ship with KLAFS heaters, started at $13,400; Kohler.com now lists the two-person C1 at $20,550. Sun Home Saunas launched its Nova traditional steam line just six days earlier, on July 1, at $10,599 for the three-person model.
What KLAFS is selling is the removal of a physical constraint. The S1 retracts to roughly the depth of a bookshelf when not in use, then deploys on demand. The company’s pitch targets urban condominiums, design-forward homes, and any space where dedicating a permanent room to a sauna is not practical. “We’re thrilled to introduce a luxury wellness innovation that makes sauna ownership attainable for people who may not have considered it possible due to limited space in their homes,” said Phillip Rock, CEO of KLAFS, in the release.
What the US market looks like this week
Set the S1 beside Sun Home’s Nova launch and a pattern sharpens. In the first nine days of July 2026, two new products entered the US residential sauna market at opposite ends of the price range:
- Sun Home Nova (July 1): $10,599 to $14,599. Three-person and five-person traditional steam saunas with HUUM Drop rock heaters, Canadian cedar, and Wi-Fi controls. A serious traditional sauna at an accessible price point from a fast-growing US brand (No. 20 on the 2025 Inc. 5000).
- KLAFS S1 (July 7): $44,900 to $51,900. The retractable flagship from a German manufacturer founded in 1928, now a Kohler subsidiary, selling through Kohler’s US infrastructure.
The gap between the two is roughly $34,000 to $41,000, and the products solve different problems. The Nova delivers heat and steam at a price that puts traditional sauna within reach of a broader buyer. The S1 delivers sauna to buyers who have the budget but not the square footage. Both are legitimate market positions, and neither could be ordered in the US a month ago.
The Kohler channel question
The Kohler, Wisconsin dateline on this release points to the distribution infrastructure behind the product. KLAFS does not need to build a US sales and service network from scratch: it has Kohler’s. For residential buyers, KLAFS USA handles direct orders. For commercial hospitality projects, Design for Leisure serves as the exclusive dealer and installation partner across the US and Caribbean, a partnership formalized in November 2024.
Whether Kohler’s channel can move a $45,000-plus sauna at volume is a different question. The S1 has been a showroom star in Europe for years, and luxury hotels are already investing heavily in thermal bathing suites that use KLAFS commercial products. The American test is whether the product resonates with a buyer who has never seen one retract in person, and whether Kohler’s white-glove installation teams are prepared to handle a mechanized cabin that traditional sauna installers have never encountered.
Why It Matters
The S1’s US debut does not reshape the market by itself. What it does is show how high the market now reaches. The two products, launched six days apart, run from roughly $10,600 (Sun Home Nova, three-person) to nearly $52,000 (KLAFS S1, large with walnut finish). That five-to-one price ratio tells you the category is stratifying in real time. The constraint the S1 removes (space) is the same one that keeps sauna out of the apartments and townhomes where the next generation of potential owners actually lives.
Bottom Line
KLAFS is betting that there is a US buyer willing to spend $45,000 or more on a sauna that disappears when it is not in use. The Kohler parentage gives it infrastructure no standalone European importer can match. Whether the retractable concept translates from European showrooms to American homes is the open question, and we will be watching order volume and dealer feedback as 2026 progresses.
