STUDIO CITY, Calif., Feb. 21, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- "From the moment we stepped into class, it was evident we would be in for a lively – one word you don't necessarily associate with yoga – fun sweaty session!" That's what Katie Burbank, LA East Community Manager, had to say about a recent Yelp yoga class at the Studio City Yoga Shelter studio.
"Eric Paskel was full of energy and used kick-ass music - Jurassic 5, Ray Jay, Prince, Radiohead, Atlantic Starr and more! - to help the group completely let loose," she says. "It was high-impact with moments of self-reflection. It was not your typical breathe in the good, breathe out the bad yoga class, which was a pleasant surprise, especially for me since I am more a fan of fast-paced cardio workouts. It was definitely a great way to start of the week!"
Since its founding in 2004, Yoga Shelter has pursued opportunities to bring yoga to the masses, make yoga accessible and fun and not the stuff of touchy-feely feel-good gurus but rather everyday folks. The Yelp class, which took place on Monday night, February 7, was one in a steady flow of innovative ideas connecting communities with yoga through social media, free offerings and other get-to-know-yoga opportunities.
"It's a gift to us to have reviews written about our business," says Eric Paskel, Yoga Shelter founder. Paskel will be presenting in July at the Yoga Journal Midwest Conference on the merits of social media marketing in a yoga business. "Why not make it easy for people to give yoga a try? I know once they see the way we do things at Yoga Shelter, they'll be back."
A January GroupOn offer set a record for the online service, attracting 8,400 new students to the Yoga Shelter's five studios nationwide. The Yelp class is the next in an ongoing series of social media relationship-building that Paskel believes are key to succeeding in today's business market, where the consumer is at the wheel. Yoga Shelter is constantly improving its business model on the basis of student and consumer feedback.
Burbank worked with Yoga Shelter West Coast Marketing Director David Surber to plan the special class. She says it's one of her responsibilities as Yelp community manager is to partner with local businesses to host exclusive events for Yelp writers.
"It's a great opportunity for a business to highlight its uniqueness to a group of people who are passionate about word of mouth," she says. "These events range from happy hours to workouts to museum visits to theater performances. The idea is to encourage the community to further explore LA's gems."
Yoga Shelter's Life & Teacher Training this year will take place in Costa Rica, along with a special week-long retreat at the same place. Yoga Shelter's Trainings are unique in approach – they are for anyone who wants to teach yoga, find like-minded friends and connect with the Self on a deeper level, all guided closely in a one-on-one teacher-student relationship. Training information can be found at www.yogashelter.com.
Paskel opened the first Yoga Shelter studio in 2004 in West Bloomfield and has opened a new studio every year since, with locations now in Birmingham, Royal Oak, Grosse Pointe and Los Angeles, serving more than 1 million students and counting. New studios are poised to open this year in several other locations.
For information or interviews, please contact Lynne Schreiber's personal cell phone at (248) 376-0406 or lynne@yourppl.com.
For publication purposes, please include the following information: www.yogashelter.com.
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| [Image] | Yoga Shelter logo |