Sep 12

Sep 12 Veteran yoga instructor to open new studio this fall in downtown Rochester

After 10 years as an instructor at the Rochester Athletic Club, Heather Ritenour-Sampson is opening a yoga studio of her own.

Yoga Tribe is slated to open in early November at 328 South Broadway. The space was formerly home to the Cube, a community co-working space.

Ritenour-Sampson will offer classes in the Prana Vinyasa style of yoga, which is inspired by the teachings of renowned instructor and global activist Shiva Rea. Ritenour-Sampson is the only instructor in Minnesota to be certified with more than 500 hours of training in this type of yoga.

Yoga Tribe plans to employ 5-10 instructors at the studio. Initial plans call for the business to be run like a cooperative, allowing each teacher to build their own following and earn their own income.

In addition to normal classes, Ritenour-Sampson said she also wants to offer opportunities for children, the disabled and others who might want to try yoga for the first time. "We want everyone to feel like they belong," she said.

Ritenour-Sampson first had the idea to open her own studio back in 2008. However, starting a family made for poor timing. It was only recently when she began exploring the possibility again.

"I thought, 'maybe there's something bigger out there for me,'" she said. "I wanted to test myself to see how much I can offer this community."

Working with commercial realtor Bucky Beeman, of Realty Growth, Inc., she began looking at different spaces around town. By chance, the two stopped in the Cube without knowing the space would soon be available.

"I want this space," she recalled saying after the visit. The following day, she was on the phone with Beeman working out the details of the lease.

Ritenour-Sampson called downtown the "perfect fit" for the studio. And as an added bonus, Yoga Tribe will be located less than a block away from the Limb Lab, which is owned by her husband Brandon.

Prior to the opening, Ritenour-Sampson plans to offer pop-up events around town. Those classes will be posted to Yoga Tribe's online calendar.

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