A fresh approach to yoga is a bolt from the blue
This spring stressed out executives will all be breathing a sigh of relief as blue cow yoga opens its doors in the City of London. The stylish premises will house the financial district’s largest yoga and pilates centre, whilst retaining the relaxed and intimate feel of a boutique hotel. blue cow yoga will offer a fresh, accessible approach to yoga, successfully demystifying many of the confusing, and often conflicting, ideas about one of the world’s fastest growing activities.
blue cow founders Mark Evans and Fran Gillibrand originally became friends through their mutual love of yoga, visiting a Goan retreat in India, where they were inspired to start their own project. The dynamic entrepreneurs recognized a gap in the market which would appeal to the growing yoga market of stressed out, busy but discerning professionals. With this in mind, they developed a more New York style concept similar to a contemporary gym which could tailor exercise to fit the confines of their clients’ lifestyles.
The myths surrounding the ancient practice of yoga often serve only to confuse the yoga novice, so blue cow have devised a simple and efficient approach that offers physical and mental wellbeing tailored to suit each individual. All the teachers at blue cow have been carefully selected from many different areas of yoga expertise, combined with backgrounds in sport, dance, meditation and other activities to provide a full and diverse experience. Mark and Fran have also co-authored the blue cow yoga guides which offer a concise, intelligent and practical advice for everyone from the novice to the more advanced.
The blue cow studios have been designed by award-winning brand experience company, Household. The Shoreditch based designers worked closely with the founders to bring their vision to life by creating a series of touchpoints and rooms, ensuring members a considered 'journey of calm'. Household's bespoke 'Shared Space' approach to design gives those members a sense of freedom and ownership of how they choose to use the blue cow yoga space to suit their needs.
Adam Shilton, senior designer at Household said; “Working with Fran and Mark gave us a chance to really try to change perceptions of what has been done before. A new way of experiencing Yoga. With stress at work being the number one cause of sick days, we wanted the design of the environment to give the Blue Cow Yoga members a continuous feeling of relaxed informality from the moment they enter the studio, until the moment they leave. We’ve looked at the whole of the customer journey to ensure the experience is welcoming, unintimidating and people friendly.”
The arrival of blue cow to The City couldn’t be better timed as yoga is an activity which was historically perceived as restricted to a female market is currently undergoing a significant shift in appeal towards men. The Welsh rugby squad even turned to yoga in preparation of the World Cup in New Zealand last year and several American basketball stars have been known to train in it.
blue cow will also have two spa treatment rooms including therapies such as massages and McTimoney chiropractory, a precise, and gentle whole body approach to chiropractic care. There will also be a full pilates schedule available. Guests can also enjoy a full range of award-winning natural skincare products fromBalance Me, which will be available to use in the bathrooms and to buy at reception.
Founder Frances Gillibrand sums up the Blue Cow experience:
“Mark and I came together as business partners through our mutual love of yoga. We were frustrated by the mystic which surrounded the discipline, which we found could be very off-putting to the novice. We felt that it was time that a different approach to Yoga was available, one that is less worthy, less exclusive. I wanted the option of having a glass of wine after a class without being frowned upon. Blue Cow Yoga gives you that fresh approach. We’ve thought about the bits that work really well and made more of them and we’ve isolated the bits that aren’t so great. It’s about active benefits, not lifestyle sacrifices.”
For more information, visit bluecowyoga.com.