Opening Minds with Wine & Yoga, Morgan Perry, Vino Vinyasa

During a career sabbatical from wine PR at a yoga teacher retreat, Morgan Perry tried combining wine education and yoga with great success. Her classmates practically forced her to found Vino Vinyasa, which has blossomed into six cities. With a focus on creating great experiences rather than selling wine, Morgan has created a platform where people learn about wine and end up seeking out the wines featured in classes.  Detailed Show Notes:  Morgan’s background - wine PR, been in wine for ~15 years, became a yoga teacher in 2017 Wine & Yoga synergiesBoth are about mindfulness - yoga and the wine tasting processNot for hard-core wellness or yoga people Vino Vinyasa For the yoga teacher exam, the teacher encouraged something different, tried yoga & wine, and got a fantastic reception6 cities - NYC (2017), Austin (2018), Nashville, Chicago, LA, Houston Vino Vinyasa programming45 min Vinyasa yoga (all levels), followed by wine tasting of 2 winesTaste wine after yoga - people are relaxed and have “yoga brain” in a quiet, focused environment → people may be better tastersEmbed wine facts during yogaA comparative tasting of 2 wines, usually themed (e.g., Rose, Sauvignon Blanc)All instructors have a wine background (min WSET 1)2-3 classes/month, 20-25 people/class for intimacy (capped at 30)~30 classes/themes developed to dateVery intentional class structure, certain poses not suitable for teaching Business modelThe core business is to get people to do more classes and events, not be overly salesy with wineDo private events (90% are bachelorette parties)Sell swag (t-shirts), co-branded bottlesLook to be good value (avg class price $30) vs. regular yoga classes (avg ~$20-25, range from $10-35 for drop in class) Students often seek out wines after classes Wine selection for classesVenue dependant, venues carry liquor licensesCity Winery (NYC) - chooses the wines based on their selectionOther venues - can get wines donated for classesPrivate events - Customers can select wines/themesHave worked with PR clients for winesSome wineries sponsored virtual classes during Covid MarketingPR background has helped and got early press (e.g., digital Good Morning America), mostly wine marketEmail newsletterIG is the best channel, does some boosting, and is focused on growth during Covid (~11k followers)Digital marketing has focused on both wellness and wine people~15-20% of people have attended multiple classes Private eventsBachelorette parties, birthdays, corporate events (e.g., Binny’s in Chicago)The focus area for growthSame format as classes Wellness & wine marketOther wine + yoga classes are not educational; some are tied to multi-level marketing wine programs that have long sales pitchesSees more yoga at wineriesThey have been approached by a couple of spas for partnerships, but the economics were not favorable yet (i.e., yoga teachers often are not paid well, ~$30/class) Get access to library episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.