It didn’t take long for Lauren Morse to fall in love with yoga. She spent the past few years of her life as both a daily practicer and an assistant teacher at a local studio, all the while urged by friends and family to seriously consider opening her own space.
“My mom was always telling me to open a studio and I thought, ‘Yeah, of course, one day I will,’” says Morse, who finally decided to take the leap about a year ago after losing her mother to stage four breast cancer. “After she passed away, I thought, ‘Rather than keep putting this off, I’m going to take the big jump.’”
Last April, Morse found a vacant space on Grand Rapids’ west side, where the new
West Side Hot Yoga held its grand opening last weekend.
“The west side is a great place to be … and this building is just gorgeous,” she says. “It just has the perfect feel of a yoga studio — I was inspired the second I walked in.”
Morse opened the 1,400-square-foot studio, located at 769 Seward Avenue NW, with help from investor Brian Prevost, who has worked alongside her as a partner since the beginning.
“His goal is to find people who have these inspirations or desires to start a business, but would have a hard time coming up with investment or just don’t have the means to do it themselves,” she says. “He’s helped lead the way with the funding of the project and it’s been an amazing opportunity to work with him through all of this.”
Morse did a lot of the renovation work herself and was able to partner with several local vendors, including Stella & Dot Jewelry, PURE Haven organic personal care products, LulaRoe clothing, and doTerra essential oils to host a sneak peek preview last week, prior to Saturday’s grand opening.
With her own background in mindful Vinyasa, Morse says West Side Hot Yoga is a modern spin in a classic space, the first hot yoga studio on the west side to offer a state-of-the-art Reme Halo air-filtration system that purifies the air to a hospital-grade health standard.
“West Side Hot Yoga offers a refreshing atmosphere for all, from beginners on their mat for the very first time to the veteran yogi who is looking to take their practice to a whole new level,” Morse says. “We are so excited to open the doors and get flowing.”
For more information on West Side Hot Yoga or to view a full menu of services, pricing, and class schedules, visit
West Side Hot Yoga online or find it
here on Facebook.
Written by Anya Zentmeyer, Development News Editor
Images courtesy of Lauren Morse/West Side Hot Yoga
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