Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Willey.
Hi Chris, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I remember Saturdays helping my grandmother, a vice president of the Sierra Club, to sell her natural plant-based salves at the local farmer’s market. Many holidays were spent exploring marshes and shucking oysters with my uncles who work for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. My wonderful family taught me the importance of caring for the environment and for oneself to preserve all that we love.
Their wisdom translated into my first passion, building surfboards. Learning environmentally unfriendly traditional surfboard manufacturing can be, I set out to use non-traditional materials that were eco-friendly, durable and high performing. My pursuit for a better, greener material ended with the discovery of cork. Cork outlasted and outperformed any other natural material and, best of all, it provided a non-slip surface even when wet, eliminating the need for wax for traction.
One day a light bulb when off in my head. Working out of my garage with the help of my parents, we set out to create the first prototype cork yoga mats, hand-laminating the cork and recycled rubber layers together, working well into the night. The minute we introduced the mats to the local studio, I knew we were onto something special. Teachers would grab the cork mats before any students could get their hands on them.
Yoloha blossomed with our move to Charleston, SC 9 years ago. It was here that we opened our first yoga studio on James Island within our warehouse. It’s been a wonderful journey both innovating sustainable yoga products and growing a vibrant wellness community in Charleston.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There have been many struggles along the way. The lockdown during covid brought immense growth to Yoloha but along with that I struggled with the stresses of running a much larger business almost overnight. Hiring new employees, keeping up with inventory, and much more while raising a new family with a 3 and 1 yr old.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I started my career out of college working as a graphic and web designer for a hotel and restaurant management company in Ocean City, MD. It was here that I learned and developed my skills in marketing in many forms. From graphic design (logos, billboards and hotel brochures) to photography, and building websites. This gave me the skills to set out a create a brand, which eventually became Yoloha without the need for hiring a marketing team.
What were you like growing up?
I was pretty shy and reserved. Very into sports, being active, and art. I struggled with school at times as structure was a challenge. Surfing became a huge passion of mine out of school which led me to traveling and experiencing different cultures around the world. This really helped shaped where I found myself in my career and motivation to develop a business to work on my own.
Pricing:
- Yoga mats start at $59
- Studio Memberships start at $59 month
Contact Info:
- Website: https://yolohayoga.com
- Instagram: @yolohayoga
- Facebook: @yolohayoga
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@yolohayoga
