Reopen Heart N Soul Studio after Covid-19

Help Our Small Community Yoga Studio Re-Open:
A Fundraising Appeal during Covid-19

Fundraising Goal: $10,000 (to cover Rent, Utilities, Studio Renovations, Payroll and Reopening Costs) by June 10th, 2020. 

Heart N Soul Studio  opened its doors in February 2005. Since our opening date, more 20,000+ students have walked through our doors and practiced yoga with us. Isabella Gutfreund, the Owner of Heart N Soul Studio, has been teaching yoga in Northern Virginia for over 16 years. We specialize in Ashtanga style, Vinyasa and Rocket yoga. 

When the Covid-19 State of Emergency was declared in Virginia in mid-March 2020, we made the difficult decision to officially close well before the "Stay at Home" mandate was released. Months before, we were expanding to bring more offerings for our studio. As a result of this government mandate, we had to quickly move out of our leased space with no concrete plans to reopen.

Since closing our doors to do our part in "flattening the curve", Heart N Soul started offering Zoom classes to support our yogis during this unprecedented time. We are very grateful to our students who have continued with us on Zoom and are lending their financial support during the pandemic.

Our studio has always relied on the sale of class packages and student memberships to generate revenue. We lost 80% of our revenue and expected income for March and April 2020 as a result of the studio closure, and expect the same for May going forward. In addition, Isabella has applied for grants, loans, etc. since March 2020 and to date, has received no government assistance. :-(

We also had to find a new space to lease during the quarantine so that we are ready to open again after the restrictions are loosened. We would like to re-employ our employees, reopen the business and rebuild our yoga studio after the "Stay at Home" order is lifted in our state.

The economic forecast is looking pretty grim for the months and year to come. Therefore, we are asking for $10,000 as a fundraising goal to help sustain us before, during and after we re-open the studio. The funds will be used towards the following: 

- Rent
- Utilities
- Studio Renovations (new floors, painting, materials)
- Payroll (to bring employees back)
- Reopening Costs
- Business License/Insurance
- Small Business Taxes 

Our studio has always believed: "From darkness comes a light..." and we are eternally grateful to all of our students for supporting us all these years. 

**No donation is too small. We know that these are also tough economic times for our students, so every little bit will help us to continue bringing yoga back to our community.  We appreciate your sharing this post with your family and friends as well. 

We will provide updates as we make plans to reopen the studio... including photos, videos, etc. all in due time. 

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for keeping the doors of Heart N Soul Studio open these past 15 years. We greatly appreciate you all and look forward to welcoming you back to the studio soon!

***

More About Heart N Soul Studio:

We are a small, community-centered, female owned and operated yoga studio in Fairfax, Virginia. Our yogis are our family members. In addition to studio classes, we also offer international retreats, community Yoga in the Park classes, workshops and donation based classes. Many of our students have been with us for 15 years and have credited their physical and mental wellness to the healing practice of yoga.

As our teacher, Isabella is able to find that special connection with all of her students (ranging from age 6 to 80) and challenges them to grow, both on and off the yoga mat. In addition, Isabella's wealth of knowledge in not only the physical practice, but also in anatomy, pranayama, meditation and spirituality, has benefited many of us in our daily lives. She is truly passionate about what she does and lives her yoga every day.

"You don't have to be flexible to do yoga. Everyone works at their own pace."