Yoga is one of the most popular and accessible forms of exercise in the United States. More people are trying yoga each year and even those that already do yoga often want to hit the more mat more than they already do.
If you love yoga, you might be considering sharing that love with others by opening your own studio.
Yoga can be a lucrative business, but to have a successful yoga studio, you truly have to approach your studio as a business. It’s not enough to simply love yoga and hope for everything to work out!
That’s why we’ve created this article with some hints and tips on how to open a yoga studio.
Tips For Opening A Yoga Studio
Here are our tips for opening a successful yoga studio.
Create A Business Plan
When you start any type of business, you should have a business plan. This will help you decide your vision for the studio and your strategy for making it a success.
To begin with, you will need to research how much capital you will need to open your studio, plus how much you will need to keep it running each month. This figure can be especially high in the first few months when you are trying to establish your business.
There are several other aspects that should be thoroughly researched and considered as part of your business plan. These include:
- Competitor analysis
- Potential customer analysis
- Marketing plan
- Financial plan
- Financial projections
If you’re looking to secure loans to start your business, then any bank will expect to see these answers in your business plan. Not doing your research will make the chances of getting a loan very slim.
Even if you’re not looking for a business loan to get your studio off the ground, you should know these figures. Projecting your customer base and checking out your competitors can help you assess how much income your studio may be able to receive.
Get Your Finances In Check
If you want to get rich quickly, then a yoga studio is not for you. Although yoga studios can and often do turn a profit, you will not get your investment back for several years.
You will need to work hard on creating a strong client base and it will take several months for your studio to find its audience and potential.
Make sure that you have enough money to keep the studio going during those tough few months. You will need to pay all of your bills and staff wages regardless of whether you have enough clients or not.
When you create your business plan, you should plan for these first few months as well.
Location
The location of your yoga studio is very important and will depend on how much capital you have to spend. If your capital is limited, consider renting a room somewhere to begin with and if your studio becomes successful, you can move to larger premises later.
Wherever your yoga studio is located, it needs to be easily accessible for your students. Consider whether it has access to parking or public transportation.
If you are setting up your studio in an urban setting, you may want to consider a location that is a little quieter and has some nature nearby if you can find it.
Marketing
Marketing your yoga studio is of great importance. Nobody will come to classes at your studio if they don’t know it exists, after all!
Your marketing should start before your studio has opened. It’s important to have a unique angle and exciting marketing plan as yoga can be a crowded market.
Most large cities and towns already have several yoga studios and a solid marketing plan can make your studio stand out from the crowd.
It’s best to opt for a mixed marketing approach. Social media marketing is very powerful and is one of the easiest ways to market your studio.
Set up social media accounts and consider buying some local ad space on sites such as Facebook. You should also consider local newspapers, flyers, and creating relationships with local businesses.
Brand
As part of your marketing strategy, you should consider the branding of your yoga studio. You will need a recognizable logo that will impress and intrigue potential students.
We also recommend creating a website for your studio. This should have all of the information a potential student needs to decide whether your studio is for them or not.
List the types of yoga your studio offers, the classes, instructors, and any other relevant information.
Instructors
It doesn’t matter whether your yoga studio is 10 years old or brand new, yoga students expect to be taught by qualified yoga instructors. If a student decides to try your studio but isn’t impressed by the instructor they won’t come back.
Choose your instructors carefully. There are many companies that offer yoga qualifications and they are not all created equally.
If a potential instructor’s qualification comes from a company that you aren’t aware of, make sure that you research it thoroughly before making any staffing decisions.
Additional Revenue
If you’ve been to a yoga studio before, you will have probably noticed that the studio sells more than just yoga classes. Most yoga studios have their own line of accessories, such as water bottles, clothing, or bags that have the studio logo on them.
This is a great way to get a little extra revenue into your business. There are many companies online that will produce goods like these with your logo on them and you can sell them to your students. It’s a great way to advertise your studio as well!
Final Thoughts
In this article, we introduced several tips to help you open your own yoga studio. We hope these tips will help you!
I created this website to help newcomers to yoga and enthusiasts alike, and to share our common passions for yoga.
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