Gaiam sells yoga products through their extensive website and other channels like department stores and cable television. Gaiam does not promote one particular style or format of yoga, rather they market to yoga students of all levels and abilities. Gaiam tries to fulfill the needs of yoga students and instructors through the sale of ecologically and socially conscious products.
History
Gaiam opened in 1988 in Boulder, Colorado. They focus on marketing high-quality, environmentally-friendly products. Gaiam calls the section of their website which sells yoga products their "Yoga Studio." According to Funding Universe, Gaiam began selling yoga DVDs and other media after their purchase of Living Arts in 1998. Gaiam, as Living Arts, also produces yoga programs for cable including the Discovery Health Channel. Gaiam sells their yoga products in popular stores like Target and Dick's Sporting Goods.
Significance
Gaiam's yoga mat bags, mats, DVDs and eco-friendly clothing are popular sellers in the mind-body sector. The yoga instructors featured in their DVDs include popular names like Rodney Yee, Seane Corn and Suzanne Deason. The yoga section of the Gaiam Life website includes an informational section with yoga facts and articles. This section also recommends products according to whether a student is new, advanced or seeking medicinal effects of yoga.
Yoga Accessories
Because Gaiam focuses on selling products made from sustainable materials, their yoga accessories sell well among yoga-minded consumers. Some of the yoga mats they sell include hemp or biodegradable rubber. Their yoga block made from cork is a top-seller. Gaiam also sells duos or trios of products. For example, a price might include a yoga mat, mat bag and water bottle. In the "Wellness Clinic" section of their website, they also sell items for meditation, including chimes, meditation chairs, music and DVDs.
Yoga Media
The first time many people hear about Gaiam is through their yoga media. DVD titles like "A.M. Yoga" and "Quick Start Yoga for Weight Loss" line the fitness aisles of department stores. Gaiam now has online yoga classes for a membership fee. Rodney Yee and Colleen Saidman teach four weekly podcast classes and include online member support. Gaiam yoga DVDs include classes for students of various styles and formats of yoga including Ashtanga, Kundalini, Family Yoga, Prenatal and Postnatal. They sell music for yoga as well.
Apparel
Just as Gaiam sells yoga accessories made from recycled and biodegradable materials, they sell environmentally friendly apparel. They sell clothing constructed from bamboo, 100 percent organic cotton and ActiveSoy. Along with yoga pants, shorts and tanks, they sell other products popular for yoga studio wear such as yoga socks and after-class tunics. Gaiam has playful t-shirts as well. For example, one in particular plays on the phrase, "Have a Nice Day," by saying "Have a Namaste" instead. Note that "Namaste" is often said at the beginning or end of yoga classes.
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