Today we’d like to introduce you to Kiesha Battles.
Hi Kiesha, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I am Kiesha Battles, owner of I Am Yoga, founded in 2017. My journey to owning a yoga business began as a self-care practice while working in the Technology Project Management and Auditing field. In a work culture that praised skipping lunch breaks and staying late, it was a revolutionary act to commit to prioritizing a yoga class during my lunch break. Consistently attending this class did wonders for my stress management. However, my employer at the time thought my newfound calm reflected a lack of urgency despite rave performance reviews and positive client reviews. I wondered how my calm demeanor could be viewed as anything less than an asset.
When the company underwent structural changes and offered severance payments, I thought what if I bet on myself and utilized those resources to open a yoga company? I wanted to share the peace that yoga cultivated within me and this was an optimal opportunity. With a yoga teacher certification and educational background in business management, I knew I had the fundamental skills needed to create a business that could thrive and serve as a source of good in the community. My yoga studio opened in a historic African American church in a community that was predominately African American and had no existing yoga classes. Since then, we have expanded to multiple sites, hosted retreats, and developed two yoga teacher certification programs.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Our biggest challenge is finding ways to offset the cost of providing accessible and affordable offerings. I would like assistance creating a sliding scale model that uses high-ticket products to offset the cost of the discounted community services we offer.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I Am Yoga targets African American clients, a population that has some of the most challenging health outcomes and the highest trauma exposure rates due to racism and economic oppression. The work of I Am Yoga is two-fold, it teaches clients how to manage their own stress and live a healthier lifestyle but also can certify them to become yoga instructors and expand yoga access in their communities. Our yoga training program gives clients a marketable skill that can also help improve their economic status. The impact I hope to have on my clients is transformational because it addresses their physical, mental, social, and financial needs.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
I Am Yoga is developing practical solutions to the pervasive problem of inaccessibility in yoga. As a resident of Charlotte’s Northwest Corridor, a predominately African-American area without any yoga studios or class offerings, I am doing my part to close the wellness gap by providing affordable classes and instruction in local communities populated by people of color.
We have graduated 87 students from our yoga teacher certification program but what makes me most proud is who we have graduated and what it will do for representation and accessibility in the yoga field: 88% of our teachers have been African American women, 2% transgendered, and 5% senior citizens with our oldest graduate being 70 years old. If each of our graduates only taught 10 students in their lifetimes that could mean 870 more students introduced to the healing practice of yoga. The diversity I am Yoga is creating in the yoga field will have a great impact on who has access to yoga and a great influence on the perception of who can practice yoga. Making yoga accessible to populations who once believed it was not for them is one of my greatest accomplishments.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://iamyoga.life
- Instagram: iamyogaclt
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IAMYOGACLT/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@kieshabattles1738
