Yoga studio owner manages to stretch business during recession

Maybe you think yoga isn't the toughest workout.

You just cross your legs funny, close your eyes, meditate and say, "Om," right?

But try a few deep back bends. Throw in some one-legged balancing acts while kicking your free foot up behind and over your head. Now, work it in a 105-degree room. With 60 percent humidity. For 90 minutes.

That might sound like your idea of hell, but it's a way of life for Stephanie Dixon.

Dixon owns Bikram Yoga Summerlin, a yoga studio dedicated to Bikram, or hot, yoga. Residual pain from a back injury led Dixon, a former massage therapist and nurse's aid, to Bikram yoga a decade ago. She loved the practice so much that she decided to make a living out of it, first becoming a teacher in 2003 and then opening her studio in northwest Las Vegas on May 30. Despite economic hard times, Bikram Yoga Summerlin's customer base has steadily grown.

Question: How did you discover Bikram yoga, and why have you stayed with it?

Answer: I had a fall when I was 16, and I developed lower back pain. I had two herniated disks, and I had symptoms of sciatica for 10 years. I tried everything: massage, a chiropractor, physical therapy. Then I saw a Bikram yoga studio sign in my neighborhood and checked it out. I took my first Bikram yoga class in 2000, and I felt really good after class. I started doing the yoga every day. My lower back felt better and the sciatica symptoms disappeared. Yoga healed me so much. For years, I was in a lot of pain, and yoga made me so happy. The longer I was in yoga, the more it helped. It did so many other things for me, like increasing my self-esteem and raising my self-awareness. I eventually found that I wanted to teach yoga.

Question: What led you to open the studio?

Answer: I was teaching and managing at another Bikram yoga studio here, and the owner sold her studio. The new owner wanted to offer other types of yoga, but I believe in the Bikram series so much. I decided to open my own studio. It took 2½ years from the time I wanted to open to the time it actually opened. It took almost a year to build the studio. The biggest challenge for me was patience. Patience, patience, patience. And from practicing patience, I have learned to be patient with all my new students. I have become much more patient in my life.

Question: What was the hardest thing about opening a business in the middle of a recession?

Answer: I was aware of the economy and how bad it was, but I believed in the yoga so much that it didn't matter. When times are tough, people need more help. They need to meditate and take care of themselves. I had 100 percent faith that this was going to be successful. There was some self-doubt that I could actually do this, but with the support of my family and friends, we made it happen.

Question: How did you market the studio in its early days?

Answer: We used a lot of word-of-mouth. Also, five months prior to the studio opening, I began sending out newsletters. I had cards and brochures made up, developed a Web site and really promoted that there was going to be another studio. Wherever I went, I handed out my cards. Whole Foods let me set up a table and hand out cards. I offered Whole Foods employees a 30 percent discount, so I didn't have to pay out of pocket to have a table there. I also was still involved in the Bikram community, and I was involved in yoga championships here, so a lot of people already knew me. That helped.

Question: How has the business grown?

Answer: I started off with 28 classes a week, and now I'm at 40. But I'm still not maxed out. I have a lot of room to grow. I think I can fit 60 people in the room, and right now we're in the 40s. I could probably add 10 more classes.

Question: Any amazing cases where you really feel like you made a difference in someone's life?

Answer: Recently, a student came up to me and introduced herself. She had never done yoga before she started Bikram yoga, and she just fell in love with it. She told me her son has autism. Before she started the yoga, she couldn't take her child anywhere. He just really would be very difficult, running all over the place and screaming. Since she started doing yoga, she has been able to be more calm, and her whole presence is more calm. When she's around her child now, it's like he notices her energy and he's more calm. In taking care of herself and being more calm, she's helping her son be more calm.

I also had a friend who was really overweight. He did yoga every day and lost over 40 pounds in the first two months. He's continued yoga for two years and lost another 25.

Question: Do people ever pass out in class, or throw up? Do you get buff bodybuilders who laugh at yoga and end up not being able to finish a class?

Answer: I've definitely seen macho guys who work out at the gym, or they box or wrestle, and they come in saying, "I can do this." By the third posture, they're on the ground, gasping for air, wanting to leave the room. People have passed out a couple of times. It's very intense with the heat, and if they're not properly hydrated or they don't have enough electrolytes in their body, people can pass out. It often happens when they're pushing too hard, and they don't want to back off. No one has ever thrown up in class. They'll let you know if that's about to happen. Their face gets pasty, they're running for the door. I just tell them, "Go ahead and puke, and come back." And they do. You just have to get back in that room, even if you can't do the rest of the class. As long you stay in the room, it's better for you.

Question: Who's your typical student?

Answer: The majority of students who come to my studio have never done yoga before. The majority of the class is for beginners. One of Bikram's quotes is that you're never too old, never too late, never too sick or never too bad to start from scratch. But we also have people who have done yoga before and they're very advanced. For a lot of people, it's just about maintaining optimal health.

Question: What are your future plans with the business?

Answer: I've had people ask me when I'm going to open a studio in Aliante. I say, "No, thank you." It's a lot of work. Right now, I want to continue to grow with more students. I want this studio to be really busy. Eventually, I'll add more classes. Honestly, my plans are just to be able to teach and mentor new teachers who graduate. I also want to do my yoga, take care of myself and do some traveling.

Question: Is there any Bikram pose you still can't do?

Answer: Oh, yes. Right now, in my standing head-to-knee, I'm not able to kick my leg all the way out in front of me and touch my forehead to my knee. I used to be able to, but I go through phases. The first phase was healing my lower back, and that took a long time. For a couple of years, I felt great, with no pain anywhere. I could get deep into postures. Now, maybe because of the stress of opening the studio, I feel like I'm starting over again, and that's OK.

Contact reporter Jennifer Robison at
jrobison@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4512.