The Business Of Yoga
This is a very controversial and highly discussed topic because of the yogic world in the Western world. Yoga in the Eastern world is just a lifestyle. It truly is just a pure way of living. However, in The States, I’m using the States as an example because this is where I’m from, teaching has become the way people are trying to make a living. In fact, in most trainings in the States, you’ll actually have sessions blocked out to discuss the business side of this lifestyle. I’m going to break this article down into little bits and pieces of what I’ve learned from education and hands-on experience. Clearly, there’s an insane market for yoga…we’re talking up to $18 drop-in classes, $100+ monthly memberships, $100+ for leggings, and a lot more. There’s even yogic apps out, sponsorships on posts in Instagram, and a thousand other methods for business and yoga to tie itself together. You can ask any yogi, mixing business and this peaceful practice is quite stressful and not for anyone. Partially because it’s not something you should be mixing in the first place, but also because this is a yogic journey about well-being and those who need it the most can’t afford it these days!
Why Are Classes SO Expensive?
Classes seem expensive for the new eye and absolutely out of this world for yoga teachers. But the reason why classes are so expensive is because you have to pay for the studio rent, props, and more. Most studios have their core group of teachers, but truthfully, teaching at a studio is not a lot of money. You're looking at around $25 / class and maybe an additional $1 per head if there are more than fifteen people. So if you have twenty people in one class, that’s only $30. Where does all this money go? To the studio owner of course, but even then, it’s not a lot! You need a lot of teachers, variety, technology, maintenance, and more. Especially with the way studios are popping up everywhere, you always have to make sure your studio is top notch.
How Can You Make Money?
Retreats, having a huge online presence for eBooks, and hosting teacher trainings. That is how most teachers see their income, if they aren’t sponsored by a company to make posts for them. With the retreats, if you go to somewhere like Thailand, where everything is cheap, you can book a resort for accommodation, food, spa, and all the little actives and still keep it around $400-$500 per person for the whole week. So if you charge $1500 for a seven-night and eight-day retreat, you’re profiting around $1000 a person! And these are just rough estimates. Think about that with the teacher trainings. It’s the same price break down, trying to get it at around $50-$70 a night/person with food included and charging $3000-$4000 = hello money! It’s all about creating the right profit margin for yourself and knowing how to do it.
It took me a lot of trial and error to understand the business of this yogic world. I personally choose to just have donation based classes at my studio in Thailand. I make no money from it, but it’s so fulfilling to watch lives change in front of my eyes — so never forget why you’re here!