Branding Yoga

The practice of yoga has a rich tradition of founders and followers dating back hundreds of years. According to the Branding Yoga case, as early as the “third millennium B.C.E.” yoga has been written about in ancient text and taught by swamis, gurus and other leaders. In fact, the practice of yoga has brought value to countless generations in various ways. In Hindu traditions, the practice of yoga gave some followers a way to achieve a higher level of afterlife. For others yoga offered a way to quiet their minds or to strengthen the body. However, the branding of yoga has created new value to yoga gurus/teachers, consumers and marketers of yoga. Two big influencers of the yoga brand value creation and transformation are Bikram Choudhury and Tara Stiles.

Bikram Choudhury and Tara Stiles were both yoga followers before they became two of the central figures in branding yoga in the United States. Their backgrounds, yoga experiences, and distinct approaches to developing their individual yoga businesses were very different. However, the commonality they shared was in developing the value of the overall yoga brand through offering their new varieties of yoga. To begin the analysis of how of the value was created and for whom, the five levels of value as defined by the pyramidal model is a valuable tool:

Features and Product attributes: The foundation of the value created in branding yoga is in attributes such as standardized practices, national affiliates, various style choices and an overall increase in yoga product choices. Although, as stated earlier, their approach to yoga differs widely, Bikram and Tara were both pioneers in creating new yoga brands and making it available and attractive to a larger audience. A result of the new yoga brands, other yoga products have emerged such as Christian yoga and toddler yoga. It seems the yoga product can be crafted to fit many segments. Also, by differentiating yoga by the needs of specific segmented