Reimagination

A letter from our Founder

Dear Yoga Sol community,

It has been two and half months since we hosted our last class at Yoga Sol and stepped into a Reimagination period against the backdrop of multiple pandemics. While we continue to navigate through unprecedented challenges, we are rising to meet some of those challenges in equally unprecedented ways.

Yoga Sol is in the process of building the only multi-stakeholder yoga cooperative in Minneapolis!

At Yoga Sol, our purpose is to awaken a lifelong love of yoga, for all, no matter who you are, where you live, or what inspired you to get on the mat in the first place. However, we recognize we are at a tipping point: the same divides and barriers that plague society can be found in yoga, and the perception persists that getting on your yoga mat is a niche and privileged activity for some, but not for all. Our sector has continued to reinforce a definition of yoga that is overwhelmingly white, thin, young, able-bodied, affluent, female, and fitness oriented.

WE ARE NOW THE YOGA SOL COOPERATIVE

That is why we are working to challenge the status quo and move toward a reality where everyone belongs. Leveraging a cooperative model enables us to transfers power and, by its very nature, include people with diverse perspectives and backgrounds — enabling them to participate fully in the decision-making processes that govern and operate this studio.

Yoga Sol is evolving into a multi-stakeholder cooperative serving practitioners as consumer-members, and instructors as worker-members. As such, Peter and I (current owners) are excited to be transferring 100% ownership of Yoga Sol to this community. This conversion means that Yoga Sol is truly by the people, for the people:

YSC will offer practitioners the space to awaken a lifelong love of yoga, build community, and discover new potential.

YSC aims to provide sustainable wages and a supportive community for yoga professionals, and raise industry standards for quality, diversity, anti-racism, and accessibility.

YSC will be owned and powered by the people who run and benefit from it — a side-by-side democratic model run by a staff, practitioners, an elected board, and community members.

While we are all united by our love of yoga, our lived experiences and the degree to which we feel represented and welcomed on the mat can differ a lot based on the identities we carry with us, visible or not. As the only dedicated pay-what-you-can studio in Minneapolis, Yoga Sol has paved the way onto the mat for thousands of students by removing the financial barriers that have traditionally kept people from the practice of yoga.

Now, as the only yoga cooperative in Minneapolis, Yoga Sol will once again pave a new way. The Cooperative aims to remove even more barriers to yoga… and to celebrate all the great things that can happen when people come together, in cooperation.

So, what's next?

Take note: Yoga Sol is now the Yoga Sol Cooperative (YSC). The co-op is currently under development, so keep an eye on the website and Insta for updates. We're building the airplane while flying it ;)

Mark your calendar: Virtual yoga classes resume October 1. Check out the schedule and register for classes now!

Join the movement: Inspired to get involved? Reach out! We’re at the beginning of this journey and would love to have your voice represented.

Thank you for providing us the space to continue to shake things up and to truly reimagine ourselves. We could not have arrived here without your trust and support. Here. We. Go. Together!

Sincerely,

Flor Treviño Frey

Founder