OUR JOURNEY CONTINUES
We’re thrilled to be reopening the Noosa Yoga Centre as a purpose-built home studio in Noosaville, welcoming our first group class on Monday morning at 8:15am. We hope the studio and class timetable will suit your needs – there are some insights below on the new beginnings for Noosa Yoga Centre.
In September 2019, we made the difficult decision to close the Noosa Yoga Centre in Noosa Junction. Well, actually, in the end it wasn’t difficult because the decision was taken out of our hands – the building owner wanted more space for their business, and we won the exit ticket!
The feeling at the time, for us, was of sadness and emptiness (and perhaps a little relief, but we’ll get to that later). Noosa Yoga Centre was where we first started the practice of yoga back in 1998. Our teachers, Peter Scott and Sue Everett, had moved to that location after humble beginnings at the Noosa Heads Nippers Club in 1988.
This space had been our sanctuary – from our very first class we were hooked and started to rearrange our lives to make sure we could get to class once a week. Running a business that operated 24/7 and raising four children meant that we were time poor, but that first yoga class had such a profound effect that we were determined to make time for it – even if it meant breathlessly bounding up the stairs 30 seconds before the door closed!
Over the next 8 years that single class a week turned into four, and together with a little home practice meant that yoga was becoming a significant part of our lives. So much so that in 2006 when Peter and Sue, with their daughter Nina, decided to move to Melbourne, and there was the possibility that Noosa Yoga Centre would close, we were devastated.
By this stage we had sold our elevator business and freed up a little more time for ourselves and so this crazy idea of buying Noosa Yoga Centre started to develop. Our initial intention was to be caretakers – keep it operating until another Senior Teacher was looking for a sea change. Peter, however, suggested that this would be a perfect opportunity to pursue teacher training. So began the bumpy journey towards yoga teaching...
And bumpy it was.
Nothing changes your relationship with yoga like Iyengar Yoga Teacher Training. Most trainees take 2-3 years to attain certification – we took 9! There are a few reasons, or some may say excuses, and I may expand on that in a later post, but in the end, we prevailed.
BALANCE
As I mentioned, the principal reason for buying Noosa Yoga Centre was to ensure that it stayed open – somewhat selfish really. We thought that if the centre could pay all its bills then we would be happy, the sale of our business should be enough to support us and, in this way, we could give something back to the community. Back then there were three yoga studios in Noosa.
Fast forward to 2019 and things for us had changed dramatically. Some poor financial decisions during 2007-11 had stripped us of almost everything we had and it was a struggle to even hold onto our family home, a first kidney transplant for our son in 2011 and a second fast approaching at the end of 2019, as well as business expenses increasing substantially all meant that the business that started as a lifestyle choice had now become our principal income.
In both yoga and life, balance is important but ours was definitely teetering on the edge, so when we were forced into closing the initial sadness and emptiness started to give way to a feeling of relief.
However, when we announced that the centre was closing, we were not ready for the overwhelming response from the students who had been so dedicated and supportive of us and the centre over the years. Some of the stories reminded us of our reaction when Peter and Sue left. It was very humbling to realise the centre had such a positive effect on other people’s lives and that had us questioning if we had made the right decision. Fortunately, some space away from the stresses of running the yoga business also allowed us to realise how out-of-balance our life was, and if we were to do it again some things would need to change.
HOME STUDIO
As we all continue to age gracefully, we wanted to simplify the studio to take away some of the stresses that come with running a business in a rental property. Moving the studio home gives us more flexibility, but not at the expense of the Iyengar Yoga community that you helped create over the years at the Junction – we are mindful of creating a peaceful area that allows our student’s relationship with yoga to flourish. We believe it’s the best of both worlds, and we’ve worked tirelessly on the space to ensure it meets your every need.
Our methodology is simple – we offer structured classes in a peaceful setting to ensure each student gets the most out of their practice. Class sizes are capped at 12, but may decrease to 10 depending on your feedback.
OPENING HOURS & BOOKINGS
The Noosa Yoga Centre will offer group and private classes initially from Monday – Thursday. You can check the timetable & book classes here and read more about the booking system here.
WORKSHOPS
We will continue to host Yoga Immersion and Teacher Development with Sue Everett. Given the size of the studio, these workshops will be smaller in (class) size, which ensures a superior experience for those joining the workshops. More details will be released on workshops once they are set.
We are so excited to welcome both familiar and new faces to the studio. Happy New Year – may your year be filled with personal growth, a sense of calm, meaningful interactions and sustainable choices.
Di & Jeff x