Owning a Yoga Studio: Is it Worth It?
Dear Yoga Teacher,
Before you run off and dump your life savings
into opening a yoga studio, let me tell you a story…
There was a really amazing surfer I knew growing
up in Southern California.
He could ride short boards, long boards, beach
breaks, reefs – anything. He was great. He’d surf
“dawn patrol” every morning at 6 a.m. to beat the
crowds, and he worked afternoons at a local surf
shop where he shaped boards, taught kids lessons,
and dealt with customers.
He was pretty good at that too.
But as you can imagine, a sun-bleached punk
working 4 hours a day was getting paid beans.
He lived in a shared house and barely had enough
money to keep his truck running and pay the rent.
Fast-forward three years later, my friend got fed up
with being broke, with being a beach bum, and here’s
what he decided:
1. I know how to surf
2. I know how to shape surf boards
3. I know how to teach lessons and deal with customers
His conclusion: “I should open my own surf shop!”
Long story short, he borrowed a ton of money and
proceeded to work his butt off for 12 months only
to end up filing bankruptcy.
So what went wrong?
Here’s the deal: the guy had skills, but not business
skills. Just can you can make delicious cupcakes
doesn’t mean you should open a bakery.
And just because you can teach a killer 90-minute
yoga class, don’t mean you should own your own
studio…
… unless, you really REALLY want to.
If your goal is to teach, then teach. But if you’re
like me and you have an entrepreneurial side of
you that just won’t shut up, then you have two
options.
OPTION 1: Find a business partner who has a
successful track record running a small, neighborhood-
style business.
OPTION 2: Learn the business side of things as
fast and as thoroughly as you can.
Option 1 is tempting, but it’s much MUCH harder
than it sounds. You can find someone easily enough
(I’ve been offered studio partnerships 2-3x per year
since 2004)…
… BUT finding a good partner is just as difficult
as finding a good spouse, except there’s no fun along
the way.
So for me, option 2 is much better. Learn the business
side of yoga yourself. As businesses go, yoga
studios are fairly simple to learn, but you do have
to learn.
It’s not the same as teaching.
Let me say that again.
It’s not the same as teaching.
One more time? You get it?
My surfer friend knew how to ride waves, how to resin
a board, and how to teach lessons – but he knew nothing
about attaining customers, hiring staff, building a
website, accounting, or advertising.
Reality check: take a moment and be really honest
with yourself. Do you how to do any of that business
stuff?
I didn’t, and my first year with my own studio was pretty
painful. And nothing changed until I admitted that I was
clueless and hired some mentors to show me the ropes.
If only I knew then what I know now…
Live outside the box,
Lucas
Yoga Business Training
p.s. For teachers who DON’T want their own studio,
you can learn how to transform yourself from a hired,
hourly laborer swapping hours for dollars into a
leveraged yoga businesses owner (your business being
your own teachings)
… even if you never stay in one place for more
than a month.