YOGA FINDS A FIT WAY TO MAKE PROFITS

The 5,000-year-old practice of yoga has turned into a booming multi-billion dollar market today worldwide. Consumers are getting smarter and looking for permanent solutions instead of paying hefty medical bills. Hence, there is a rise in the demand of health professionals in the market. The demand for yoga instructors is going to grow by 30-35% in the next couple of years. “While surviving the job culture, professionals in the industry are facing several health issues due to irregular working hours, food habits and stress. This is where yoga comes into play,” says Dr. Yogi Vinay Rai, founder of the Nirvana Yoga Studio that offers treatment for ailments like polycystic ovary syndrome and diabetes through yoga techniques.

This implies that the yoga industry is turning competitive with each passing day. And to gain visibility, yoga studios are making their presence felt online too with the help of websites, advertisements, videos, etc. Of course, people study the review of the brand before taking its services. “In order to maintain our brand value in the minds of people word-of-mouth plays a crucial role, so we try to give the best services,” says Rai.

Opportunities Galore

Evaluating the growth potential that yoga holds, players in this segment are opening themselves to the idea of franchising aggressively. “The franchise model helps in keeping the cost of acquisition and investment low. It offers tremendous opportunity to become an entrepreneur, especially to women. About 80% of the yoga practitioners are women in India. The speed of growth if executed right is much higher,” says Yashwant Saran, the founder and managing director of 136.1 Yoga.

“Yoga is basically all about techniques, which makes it unique and different from centre to centre. Therefore, we invite our franchisees to visit our head office for training and only when they are well prepared do we allow them to run a centre on our name,” Hansaji adds. “We give exposure to our franchisees by giving them space on our website and through other online services,” says Rai. More importantly, Indian yoga is going global with international studios. “Akshar Yoga will soon open centres in countries like Hungary, Israel, Japan, Australia and France,” says Grand Master Akshar. It certainly indicates healthy times for yoga studios.

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