Help Karma Yoga Escape Covid Debt

Olivia Jeffers is organizing this fundraiser.

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Hi, my name is Olivia Jeffers. I'm the steward and owner of Karma Yoga, a small yoga studio in Falls Church, Virginia. We opened in 2019, a couple months short of the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite the challenges, we stayed open.

I've always operated the studio as a spiritual community first, and a business second. I have a civil engineering and business degree, and understand the importance of foundations and finances, not just in buildings - but in bodies and communities.

We had a couple things working in our favor. We were in a second floor location, so we avoided paying Triple Net costs for ground floor retailers. Our landlord was willing to work with us on an earnings basis, and we were able to go online immediately (that wasn't easy).

However, our revenue was still slashed by 60% - and we were working 3x as hard to offer online, in-studio and outdoor classes. We were not allowed to use outdoor park spaces without paying rental fees. Because my business was too new and too small, we did not qualify for any of the $953 billion given out as part of the PPP grant.

During this time, to make it work - I only paid myself $1,500 per month for the last 3 years. Luckily I was able to do this, but it has come at the cost of my own wellness. I've put off getting medical procedures done so that I can pay down debts. I continued to offer classes and pay teachers, when other studios closed.

This came at a cost. What started as $15,000 in start-up debt on a 0% credit card, became high-interest credit card debt the month after Covid closures began. When Covid hit, I started getting slammed with 19% compounding interest payments. Since our earnings were so lumpy, with several waves of Covid closures and slow re-openings, each time things got slow - the interest would pile on. After 3 years, the debt is compounding faster than we're able to pay - even in our best months. I'm not able to consolidate the debt with banks, due to lack of capital (in fact, that's why I needed to use a credit card in the first place... I couldn't get even a small startup loan!)

Most studios earn 10%-15% profit margins. For independent businesses, profit is the owner's only source of income! So $20,000 profit - actually just means a $20,000 salary

Without the high interest Covid debt, the studio would be doing well. I would be earning $36,000 per year, and I would also be able to pay off startup debt to friends and family (thank you!!! and thank you for your patience, I know it's been a long time...)

What I'm asking for - is some help! We are financially solvent. We are small, and want to stay that way. I don't want to bite off more than I can enjoyably chew. We have great classes and great teachers. We offer community events, and give many people platforms and opportunities to grow and practice yoga.

Would you consider making a donation to help us get out of Covid debt, so that we can start pouring more love and time into this community?

P.S. If you'd like to help out and practice at the studio, we are selling 6-month unlimited class memberships for $648 (saves 10% on monthly membership) and a 1-year all-access membership for $1,632 (saves 15% on monthly membership) - this helps us a lot too! You can buy these for yourself or a very good friend or family member. We are only selling these until our debt is paid off :)

P.P.S. If you'd like to join me on retreat to Morocco from December 1-9, purchasing this retreat also helps us! (after speaking with our venues, the retreat is still on - now more than ever, the Amazigh villages need our tourism income to recover from the earthquakes).

P.P.P.S. We'd love to offer that anyone who donates can leave their favorite quote or mantra on our community board. If you're not local, be sure to include the quote or mantra in your comments to be written on the wall.

Behind the Scenes at Karma Yoga...