Brigette Braly opened her Santa Ynez facility in August 2023
Brigette Braly has a deep interest in mental, physical, and spiritual health and community. She grew up in the Valley and in August 2023 opened her first yoga studio, called SHIFT Studio, in Santa Ynez, which offers daily yoga classes in multiple forms, along with infrared sauna therapy, a cold plunge, and massage therapy to help the community to reach these goals, one shift at a time.
“I come from a family of entrepreneurs where ‘doing your own thing’ was always talked about,” said Braly. “I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I always considered myself a late bloomer. During COVID, the only commercial yoga studio had closed and I started looking into opening up my own yoga studio. I looked into the legal aspects of owning my own business then went looking for available spaces to open up my new yoga studio. All of a sudden, things fell into place so I felt compelled to pursue it.”
Becoming a yoga teacher was not a part of Braly’s life plan. Initially, her dream was to go to Italy. She attended the University of Colorado at Boulder, where she studied Italian and learned yoga.
“After graduating, I went to culinary school in Italy. Spending one year in Italy studying was fabulous. I returned to Los Angeles and after working in a kitchen for several years I realized that it was not my calling, yoga was,” she explained.”Yoga was a lifesaver for me. I realized all that yoga gave me through all the different chapters of my life and I acquired my first-level certification 10 years ago while living in LA.”
“Growing up, school was very difficult for me since I had ADHD,” she said emotionally, recalling the past. “Yoga has taught me how to focus, breathe, slow down, and to actually feel my body. Meditation has also been a valuable tool.”
But living in Los Angeles was not for her. Braly moved back to the Valley in December 2019, just before the COVID pandemic broke out.
“When I returned home, having been away just shy of 10 years, I started teaching yoga at Juicy Life in 2020. When it closed, I started to consider doing something on my own,” she said. “It took me a year or so to get the ball rolling. I looked at a few places but none of them felt right. Then I found the perfect spot. Originally I didn’t consider this space as viable as the rent was just a little more than I wanted to spend. But once I saw it, I loved it. It’s in the perfect location in a beautiful building in downtown Santa Ynez. I contacted Renee Allen Properties and met with the owner of the building Arthur Osha and we started having existential discussions immediately. We seemed to hit it off. He had other offers he said, but he liked the idea of a yoga studio and we eventually signed contracts.”
SHIFT offers daily yoga classes given by one of its 10 teachers.
“All of the instructors here have been teaching yoga for between 10 and 15 years; they are well qualified,” she said.“The studio also offers infrared sauna therapy, a cold plunge, sound baths, and massage therapy. Celeste Pearlman is our massage therapist who is certified in 14 different massage techniques. She previously worked at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara and the San Ysidro Ranch.
“This spring we are looking forward to offering facials and breath work. We also offer a group meditation every Sunday, following class, for whoever wants to join in. My goal is to share all the tools we’ve accumulated and to not do life alone.”
For Braly, it’s more than what’s being done inside the business.
“It’s so much fun to see people get into some really deep conversations in the parking lot after class. I love that,” she said. “It’s really a big honor for me to have a business in the town I grew up in and love.”
SHIFT Studio is at 3563 Numancia St., Suite 103, Santa Ynez.
For more information visit Instagram @shiftstudiosyv, info@shiftstudiosyv.com or call or text (805) 717-5071 or visit www.shiftstudiosyv.com, which she said is “a work in progress” where you can find the names of all the yoga teachers and substitutes.
