“We are intentionally creating a space where the majority of students are black and brown people. It’s a completely different energy when you walk into a Black to Yoga class than any other yoga studio I can think of.”

– Kirsten Rogers and Maureen Miller, Co-founders, Black to Yoga

The founders of Black to Yoga are veteran yoga teachers. Over time, Kirsten Rogers, Maureen Miller, and Zenovia Forbes noticed an uncanny pattern in the demographics of most of the classes they taught: they were very white. As black women living in a racially diverse city, they saw room — and a calling — for a different kind of yoga.

So the three launched their Oakland-centered yoga business to bring yoga to black women across the city. Of their yoga classes, Miller says, “It’s very different than any other class I’ve taken or taught. It’s a place I can come be me, and bring what I have: my sense of humor, joy, my sense of lightness, my sense of play. People are happy to be in the space and appreciate the community vibe we’re building.”

Black to Yoga looks to create a space that’s comfortable for the black community. “My playlists are one of the most important parts of my classes,” says Miller. “I get to bring in some funk, some soul, and some old-school hip hop that I might not necessarily bring into the other places I teach. It creates a different energy and vibe, and really sparks a sense of joy in my classes.”

The takeaway

Look for inspiration in your own community or cultural circles. What is missing that you could provide? Just as the founders of Black to Yoga saw an opportunity to change the dominant yoga paradigm in their community, there might be a perfect opportunity awaiting you. 

Figure out what makes your offering different than every other workshop, retreat, or festival out there, and build a narrative around that to create your event brand.

Top health and wellness trends for 2020

As we charge into a new decade of wellness, it’s a great time to check in with “predicted wellness trends” from top sources. Here are nine predictions to inspire your upcoming events:

Well + Good’s “Wellness Trends 2020” list:

1. Cannabinoids — not just CBD but CBG, CBN, and more
2. More types of and wider access to fertility treatments
3. Sustainable beauty products without plastic packaging

The Essence “Year of Self Care” list:

4. Fitness pop-ups
5. Emotional wellness
6. Alternative medicine (think acupuncture and acupressure)

Mindbody’s “Wellness Trends to Look Out for in 2020”:

7. Spa retreats
8. Nutrition/cleansing events
9. Wellness festivals

Honoring roots while making it your own

When Christian Dior uses Native American imagery in a fragrance campaign or Katy Perry vogues as a geisha on live television, it may seem like harmless fun. But a lot of people would consider it cultural appropriation. Likewise, when a yoga teacher born and bred in Dayton, Ohio, suddenly starts speaking in an Indian accent and throwing Sanskrit terminology into a power yoga class willy nilly, the question arises:

How much is it okay to borrow from a cultural lineage in the name of wellness?

A lot of wellness modalities originally came from the East. Yoga, meditation, and the healing art of Ayurveda all have origins in ancient India. Acupuncture and feng shui began in China. When we Westernize them, it can be tempting to adopt all the traditional trappings, but beware of inauthenticity in your approach.

Here are some ways to avoid appropriating other cultures in your wellness practice:

1. Come from a place of humility, taking the time to learn everything you can so you are fully informed about the history and culture of your modality.
2. Be respectful of symbols and iconography that may have important religious or cultural significance. For instance, the Om symbol often used in yoga marketing was originally intended to represent a sacred sound.
3. Above all, consider your students and what they need. Speaking in Sanskrit might make you feel more legit, but to your urban American audience it can have an alienating effect, especially if you do not take the time to educate them about its meaning.

Bottom line: Learn about the roots. Respect the path. Then make it your own.

“Black women deserve authentic connections that are healing and spirit led. Our goal is that attendees feel safe, free, and accepted!”

– Tiffany Wright, Co-Founder, Coco Coalition

When you think brunch you might not think “healing vibes,” but that’s exactly what Tiffany Wright, Maereg “Mimo” Haile, and Jasmine McGee had in mind when they first launched Coco Coalition. 

In 2015, the trio threw the first “Black and Beautiful Women’s Brunch” with the goal of creating a safe discussion space for black women in the wake of the murder of Sandra Bland. But the conversation has since grown to encompass ways black women can practice self-care in a challenging time and culture. Now a social enterprise, Coco Coalition creates opportunities for women of the African diaspora to connect, grow, and thrive. 

At first, Coco Coalition hosted events in Oakland, a community Wright calls a “social-impact space,” where it’s relatively easy to sell out an event within a few weeks based on word of mouth alone. But as the event brand has spread to other US cities such as Los Angeles, Washington DC, Chicago, and Atlanta — and as far as Johannesburg, South Africa and Accra, Ghana — outreach has become more tactical. Here’s what they do:

• The trio lean into Instagram paid ads and partner promotions to get the word out beyond their own circles.
• They partner with affiliates and other types of local promoters to bring in attendees. The founders of Coco Coalition rely on Eventbrite data to track those ticket sales so they know which partners are performing best.
• Most of all, producing events that attendees are passionate about means they come back — and bring friends. In this way, word of mouth remains critical to the marketing strategy.

The takeaway

With any event, finding the audience that aligns with your vision is critical to selling tickets. But for wellness events that cater to a specific audience, you have to get tactical about dialing in on your marketing.

Above all, your goal is to find the people who won’t just sign up to come to your event, but passionately proselytize it to their friends. You want to find your people.

“I want to be able to elevate black women and give them a platform and opportunity. Finding ways to help each other brings us together.”

– Leco Madoshi, Founder, Tryb

Tryb is a space for black women to come together and uplift each other by learning about one another’s  careers, passions, and interests. Founder Liku Madoshi, a lawyer “by day,” saw room for an event beyond the status quo of career-related gatherings and networking events. Tryb’s monthly events are a powerful wellness resource for black women in the Oakland, California area.

Madoshi’s goal is to create a safe space for black women to come together, but she recognizes that everyone involved in an event is instrumental to the message the event sends. So she thoughtfully sources vendors, partners, venues, and suppliers from the same demographic she serves. “I’ve brought in a mental health professional who’s a black woman,” Madoshi explains. “The vendors at our last brunch were all black women, including the bartender and caterer and the amazing DJ.” 

To find the right partners and resources, Madoshi looks within her own community first. She also uses her Instagram page, which has a healthy following, to get the word out. 

“When I first started Tryb,” says Madoshi, “I knew I wanted it to be by black women, for black women, and specifically centered around black women.” The connections she engenders at these events help boost the careers of black women in her community as well as the general sense of wellness they feel in being connected to a larger tribe. 

The takeaway

If your meal-prep wellness event is sponsored by a greasy fast-food chain, you lose credibility with your audience. You might be saying “I care about your health” with your words, but you’re certainly not saying it with your actions. Hire or partner with the wrong people, and you create brand dissonance (at best) and PR problems (at worst).

Instead, align with partners with values that line up with your own. Tryb’s mission is to uplift a community of black women. As Madoshi notes, “ideally, partnerships will always be with organizations that uplift black women and support the mission of Tryb.”

Be persistent in finding the right partners

Atsuko Bolinguit is the workplace programs coordinator at Eventbrite. Part of her job is to bring in wellness specialists to lead both regularly scheduled and pop-up events for employees. While Bolinguit’s budget for hiring yoga instructors and other wellness advocates is not huge, she’s fortunate to be working in a community with more than its share of wellness talent. Still, she has to be mindful of whom she hires. 

“When I’m not sure,” Bolinguit says, “I bring them into the office and do a trial to see how it goes and whether people like it. Especially when it comes to yoga classes, the vibe can be quite different with different teachers. Around here, a lot of people take yoga classes regularly, so they know what they like. I collect feedback to make sure the instructor is the right fit for our culture.”

Streamline your event operation with automation

Yes, #wellnesslife is more about vegetables than vegging out to video games. And it’s been well-documented that excess screen time messes with our sleep and creates anxiety. But the right technology can actually help you streamline your screen usage and free you up for the more meaningful elements of your event planning job.

Using a ticketing platform that integrates with other tools helps you simplify your entire operation. When you choose, look for advanced options like:

• Event distribution — Instantly post your event listing across your social media platforms when you publish your event page
• Sell anywhere — Sell tickets directly through Facebook and other event discovery sites to increase your ticket conversion rates
• Increase marketing ROI — Use tools that optimize and track your ad efforts right from Eventbrite
• Simplify your planning — Apps can help you streamline all sorts of mundane tasks including email marketing, contract signing, and anything else that involves a lot of daily or weekly repetition

With a ticketing platform as a central hub, you can build in automated marketing efforts and share data across systems.