PYX | A Yoga Cooperation
June 8th, 2020
Dear PYX Community,
We hope this note finds you safe, and well, and in the events of the last few days, weeks & months - we hope you are finding steadiness in your practices.
We have put off writing this note to you as the events of the last few weeks have made it apparent that there are much bigger concerns in the world than our plans to re-open the yoga studio. We are angry and sad about the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and the countless other Black lives that have been lost due to the underlying racism and police brutality that exists in our society. We are also proud and overwhelmed by the response of all peaceful protestors in this country, and especially in Philadelphia. All we can say is, we wish we were standing next to you during those protests and are finding other ways to be involved in our home here in Upstate NY.
We do however have to provide an update to you and we wish it was a different one. The events of the last few months related to COVID-19 have led us to the decision to end the lease on our physical studio location. Despite applying to city and federal assistance programs we were not eligible for amounts that would have sustained the business during our closure. Unfortunately, yoga studios already operate on small margins and a frank analysis showed us that financial recovery would not have been possible even with the small assistance we did receive. While we will not go into details here, we are happy to talk with anyone individually and be transparent with you about what assistance we did receive and how it was used.
We recognize that this is not the news many of you wanted to receive. We are one of many yoga studios making this difficult decision in light of COVID-19 given the ongoing safety concerns and cleaning rituals that re-opening would expose us to for the foreseeable future.
There are many people we wish to thank for their contributions as teachers, supporters and mentors: Colleen McGregor, Katie Azzara, Shelley Saunders, Nina Scarpinato, Chandler Price, Sara Parente, Bill Schmedding, Jason Coffman, Louise Sullivan, Lindsay Kutschman, Caroline Chen, Anika Pyle, Anna Kessler, Bentley Eskridge, Justin Rose, Karen Hamill, Scottie Stampone, Jenysbel Duran, John & Diana Vitarelli, Mark Nelson, David Garrigues & Meghan Kirk to name a few, and Emily Knade and Jason Lucarelli for their brand and marketing efforts behind the scenes, and our business neighbors Chick Schall, W/N W/N and Judy & Robert of Sazon. A yoga community is not sustained without its teachers nor without its mentors and neighbors.
Thank you for being a part of our humble yoga home & story. Thank you for being our students. We hope we imparted on you ways to integrate yoga into the foundation of your lives. Remember, Yoga is a lifestyle. It is union. It is subtle, it is profound, it is in everyday ordinary moments, and in asana and in prayer, it is in conversations and service, and in protests, loss and grief. Keep practicing for yourself, find teachers that lift you up, make it sustainable for your lifetime. We are all connected by this practice, and we remain available to you as teachers ongoing.
Some logistical matters:
With humility and gratitude,
Erik & Lauren Burling
Lauren - laurburling@gmail.com @loveinatinyroom
Erik - burlin39@gmail.com @erik.zen.bjorling
Dear PYX Community,
We hope this note finds you safe, and well, and in the events of the last few days, weeks & months - we hope you are finding steadiness in your practices.
We have put off writing this note to you as the events of the last few weeks have made it apparent that there are much bigger concerns in the world than our plans to re-open the yoga studio. We are angry and sad about the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and the countless other Black lives that have been lost due to the underlying racism and police brutality that exists in our society. We are also proud and overwhelmed by the response of all peaceful protestors in this country, and especially in Philadelphia. All we can say is, we wish we were standing next to you during those protests and are finding other ways to be involved in our home here in Upstate NY.
We do however have to provide an update to you and we wish it was a different one. The events of the last few months related to COVID-19 have led us to the decision to end the lease on our physical studio location. Despite applying to city and federal assistance programs we were not eligible for amounts that would have sustained the business during our closure. Unfortunately, yoga studios already operate on small margins and a frank analysis showed us that financial recovery would not have been possible even with the small assistance we did receive. While we will not go into details here, we are happy to talk with anyone individually and be transparent with you about what assistance we did receive and how it was used.
We recognize that this is not the news many of you wanted to receive. We are one of many yoga studios making this difficult decision in light of COVID-19 given the ongoing safety concerns and cleaning rituals that re-opening would expose us to for the foreseeable future.
There are many people we wish to thank for their contributions as teachers, supporters and mentors: Colleen McGregor, Katie Azzara, Shelley Saunders, Nina Scarpinato, Chandler Price, Sara Parente, Bill Schmedding, Jason Coffman, Louise Sullivan, Lindsay Kutschman, Caroline Chen, Anika Pyle, Anna Kessler, Bentley Eskridge, Justin Rose, Karen Hamill, Scottie Stampone, Jenysbel Duran, John & Diana Vitarelli, Mark Nelson, David Garrigues & Meghan Kirk to name a few, and Emily Knade and Jason Lucarelli for their brand and marketing efforts behind the scenes, and our business neighbors Chick Schall, W/N W/N and Judy & Robert of Sazon. A yoga community is not sustained without its teachers nor without its mentors and neighbors.
Thank you for being a part of our humble yoga home & story. Thank you for being our students. We hope we imparted on you ways to integrate yoga into the foundation of your lives. Remember, Yoga is a lifestyle. It is union. It is subtle, it is profound, it is in everyday ordinary moments, and in asana and in prayer, it is in conversations and service, and in protests, loss and grief. Keep practicing for yourself, find teachers that lift you up, make it sustainable for your lifetime. We are all connected by this practice, and we remain available to you as teachers ongoing.
Some logistical matters:
- Ongoing online classes will be coordinated by individual instructors. The current Zoom link (see below) will remain the same for classes this week as our instructors create individual plans for offering ongoing classes online. Many, many thanks to Caroline, Louise, Lindsay and Justin for their ongoing online offerings.
- For those of you with unused classes or unlimited passes, we invite you to e-mail us to discuss how to use these classes which includes having another area yoga studio honor your remaining credits, or donating the value of these to the studio to assist us with ongoing obligations and closing expenses. You can reach us at hello@philadelphiayogaexchange.com.
- We are also open to discussing assets related to the business such as our website, social media pages and brand with anyone that is interested in growing our business as your own.
- The Yoga Garden
- Dhyana Yoga
- Ashtanga Yoga School of Philadelphia
- Joan White Yoga
- Gabrielle Sigal Yoga
- Palo Santo Yoga & Wellness
- Mysore Philadelphia (Meghan Kirk)
- David Garrigues (online & globally)
With humility and gratitude,
Erik & Lauren Burling
Lauren - laurburling@gmail.com @loveinatinyroom
Erik - burlin39@gmail.com @erik.zen.bjorling
