05/25/2020
Hello Urban Yogis,
We hope this message finds you well - or as well as can be expected given our unusual circumstances. There’s no question that we are experiencing a collective state of shock and sadness at the current state of our world and the shift that this pandemic has caused many of us. But life’s unforeseen and unwanted challenges also push us — usually with resistance every step of the way — towards reflection and transformation. This has been painstakingly true for me personally, and for Urban Yoga as a business.
The hard reality is that after exhaustive analysis of the financials and careful consideration of the future operational realities we face, I've reached the overwhelmingly sad decision that Urban Yoga will not be reopening our King Street studio as we continue to crawl out from our COVID cocoons. Our exorbitant overhead costs (which did not pause along with the rest of the world) and the pre-existing growing intensity of competition in our saturated Charleston wellness market, added to this unforeseen economic strain, has just become insurmountable. This is certainly not the outcome I neither wanted nor anticipated, but these considerable obstacles, which were magnified by this pandemic, make it impossible to see a path forward for Urban.
I’ve written about 108 drafts of this personal note to all of you, as I am really struggling with denial, disbelief, grief and so many other emotions because the truth is, I don't really know how to live in Charleston without Urban - my baby, my labor of love. I know many of you reading this feel the same. The dream I had 5 years ago, as a fresh transplant from San Francisco, of creating an all-inclusive, welcoming sanctuary for old souls and new to connect, to be your authentically amazing selves absolutely came true! We have never strayed from that original vision. We've proudly offered traditional, smart soulful yoga to Charleston for 4 years. Mission one hundred percent accomplished!
Coming into a city, already rich with such yogic wisdom and experience, it took some time to find my sangha, but eventually I found a family. I’m so honored to have had the privilege to both work alongside and also learn from some of the most intelligent teachers throughout the years at Urban Yoga - teachers with decades of teaching experience and a wealth of knowledge. It's difficult to articulate the level of gratitude and respect that I have for them, as well as our amazing front desk staff, and I thank them all for the love, sweat and tears they have poured into helping me build this empowered community of truth-seekers.
The personal obstacles many of you have overcome over the years, through your practice with us, is awe-inspiring, and so we thank you. Thank you to the 10,000+ students who’ve rolled out your mat in our space. Thank you for your willingness to shed your ego, your eagerness to learn, and the love and kindness you’ve shared with us. We’ve gotten to know most of you, your kids’ names, your nemesis postures, and also your goals & dreams. Thank you for letting us be a part of your journey. To ensure that your relationships with our teachers and our community remain strong, we are committed to remaining connected even though our physical doors are closing. If you haven’t yet, please join our private FB group, Urban Yoga Charleston Sangha.
Under normal circumstances, we would have loved to be able to have final classes, and a big sendoff celebration in our space, but like so many important events right now, this pandemic has prevented us from having the optimal conditions for the closure of our studio that has meant so much to all of us for so long. We hope to have an Urban Sangha gathering somewhere when we are able to safely congregate again! Stay tuned.
As the sole owner of Urban Yoga, I’ve poured my heart and soul, and from the beginning until now, all my pennies into Urban in order to be able to continue offering you the quality of yoga, caliber of teachers, and human connection we have become accustomed to. The immense pride I experienced each day I walked in to our sacred space, seeing your faces and feeling your energy is indescribable. This will go down in my books as the hardest breakup of my life. YOU ALL have been my greatest teachers to date. Whereas, I hope to find a new teaching home in town at some point, I look forward to practicing on a mat (at a socially acceptable distance of course) next to you again very soon. I can’t speak for the rest of the Urban team, but I’ll be continuing as a student in my own practice with my friends at Mission Yoga and Holy Cow.
Lastly... while I have your ear… as we slowly venture back into the yoga (barre, cycle, HIIT) rooms across the greater Charleston area, please take a few extra moments and weigh your options when considering where and how to spend your hard earned money. There are great costs in operating small locally-owned businesses in the wellness and fitness community - physically, emotionally AND financially. The return is equally great, as we take pride in helping you improve your emotional and physical well-being. Corporations like ClassPass have come into communities everywhere and caused a huge disruption. Where we, as studio owners, realize the value from the consumers’ side is enticing, the results from the business side have shown to be decreased consistency in studentship and decreased profits, ultimately weakening the overall financial health of some of our favorite businesses. If you don’t want to see another of your favorite communities disappear in the coming months/year, as they struggle to find a new normal with these challenging new health & safety regulations, I encourage you to consider directly supporting these small businesses, committing to making these communities strong on all levels.
All that said, thank you for listening and thank you for allowing us the opportunity to share in your practice. Most of all, thank you for making my dream come true over the last 4 years.
Om Namah Shivaya & be well friends,
Meg Gray & your entire Urban Yoga Family
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Here’s the scoop for our students in regards to business related questions.
VIRTUAL OFFERINGS AND MEMBERSHIPS
Effective 5/19, in regards to all virtual memberships, future scheduled auto-draft payments have been cancelled. If you were supporting us through our virtual platform, we thank you and you’ll continue to have access to our on-demand library through 6/15/20 with no further charges.
As for after 6/15, I’m still looking into an alternative platform to host our teachers’ online offerings. I’ve also updated our website to show the teachers’ venmo accounts with their profiles. If you are able and would like to donate directly to them for their online classes, I'm certain they would be grateful.
AUTOPAY MEMBERSHIPS
If you were on an autopay membership, your membership has been fulfilled through free access to our virtual offerings since 3/18/20 and no further scheduled payments will be drafted, effective 5/19/20. You will also continue to have access until 6/15/20.
GIFT CARDS
The value of all outstanding gift cards will be honored via our virtual offerings. Please contact info@urbanyogachs.com prior to May 29 if you have a gift card and wish to redeem for Urban On-Demand.
CLASS PASSES
Active class pass holders with classes remaining have been previously contacted, and your passes were honored through unlimited access to our virtual class library. Class pass holders will also continue to have free access until 6/15/20 as a token of our gratitude.
YEAR PASS HOLDERS
You have already been contacted directly by me, but if you missed my email, please do not hesitate to reach out.
If you have any other questions or concerns, please email me and I'll do my best to help you! Please be patient, as I am only one woman... :)
