Transplants from the West Coast may know Y7 from their two popular studios in Los Angeles. From New York? There are six locations there! In January Y7 opened its first in Austin – the city the co-founder and her family have called home for the last three years. We caught up with her to learn more.
Why the name Y7? The Y represents Yoga and 7 is for the seven chakras.
What inspired you to open your first studio? We opened our first location in 2013, originally as a pop-up. I’d been super frustrated with the yoga experiences I was having and always left the classes discouraged and feeling bad about myself. Y7 is dark and candlelit, with no mirrors and we use infrared heating technology to really get the sweat going. By taking away all the distractions of a traditional yoga room, it’s designed to bring your focus inward and allow you to truly be free to move your body how you want without feeling judged.
What do you love about yoga? I love that the practice is focused on how we move our bodies as individuals and are able to adapt the poses to what feels right for our own bodies. It’s one of the only things that challenges me both physically and mentally.
What made you choose to expand to Austin? It’s such an incredible city and we have so many friends, clients and community members who moved here over the past few years - I knew we had to bring our experience here.
Do you have plans to expand to more cities? Absolutely!
Do you think you’ll ever franchise? It’s been on our minds for sure - we will see!
What’s your favorite thing about Austin? I love the community here – it’s such a welcoming and kind place, we could not be more grateful to raise our family here.
Where’s your favorite place to eat in Austin? I love Junes - the artichoke, a side of fries, and a glass of rose is my ultimate.
If you could have one superpower, what would it be? To manipulate time - there are so many moments I wish I could slow down.
