Today we’d like to introduce you to Inner Sense Healing Arts Collective .
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
In 2016, a vital and important studio of yoga teachers and healers in Chicago was torn apart by greed, manipulation, and abuse. It rocked our community. It destabilized many individuals as they no longer had a place to call home for their spiritual and wellness practices. It was out of this collective grief and loss that Inner Sense Healing Arts Collective was born.
Inner Sense is not about one person or group of people. It’s about a widely felt desire for a new way of doing things. It is about the decommodification of yoga. The co-founders – now officially the Board of Directors to the nonprofit organization – are the five people who birthed this idea thing into being, but this project is truly a community effort.
At Inner Sense, we are building a space that welcomes folks of all ethnicities, ages, sexual orientations, and abilities. We also welcome folks who have limited resources to pay for healing practices.
Through community engagement, accessible pricing, and donations, we aim to run a thriving business that creates opportunities for sacred movement practices, connection to self and community, self-care through bodywork and acupuncture, and exposure to art and music. Our dream is to bring people together to end the suffering associated with loneliness and isolation that is so pervasive in today’s society.
We are thrilled to have opened our space on October 13th with regular weekly classes.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
This road has been challenging and riddled with both highs and lows. For two years, the five of us have been spending all day together on Thursdays and some time on other days brainstorming, planning, researching, learning skills we never thought we’d need to know, combing through legal documents, and through trial and error figuring out the best way to make this thing that we needed to happen happen. Figuring out how to get capital has probably been the biggest challenge. None of us were able to support the project financially and all of us needed to work full time to support ourselves while we were building. There were a couple of periods of time where things felt very stagnant. There were many times where we doubted our ability to do this. But we leaned on each other’s strengths and optimism, we reached out to our community for guidance and resources, and we are already further along than has felt possible many times in the past. Through fundraising and pop-up events, we have finally managed to raise enough money for us to open a modest but lovely single room space.
Our advice is – be patient, with yourself and with those alongside you on your journey. Listen to your intuition. Believe in your vision, but don’t be so attached to the specifics that you aren’t able to adapt. Find people to work with that value your strengths and also push you out of your comfort zone to help you grow.
Please tell us about Inner Sense Healing Arts Collective.
What sets us apart first and foremost is that we are a nonprofit organization. All money made from our classes and services and fundraising goes directly back into maintaining, growing, and expanding our mission. At this time, teachers will be paid (very modestly) for their time, but the founding team who now functions as the Board of Directors are completely volunteering their time to run the organization and do not take any compensation for the classes they lead. While we’d like to eventually create paid positions for the management of the space and organization – we think it’s important to share that no one person or group of people are “owners,” and therefore no one is taking home a cut of the profit. Decisions are made through a democratic process on the Board of Directors.
Our class offerings are super unique. We put out a survey to our existing network asking what type of programming they wanted to see and invited neighborhood community members to take it as well. We learned that there was a high demand for more gentle, restorative, meditative yoga classes. We also waited to create the schedule until we onboarded our founding teaching staff. We asked them what they were passionate about teaching and chose the classes accordingly. In addition to our pretty full yoga schedule (20 classes weekly – 8 of which are gentle, restorative, nidra or meditation) we also offer diverse programming outside of yoga. On our weekly class schedule, we have a tarot class, a dance class, a community choir, a Reiki share, a hip-hop meditation workshop, a writers group, a lucid dreaming class, and more! Asking our members what they want to see in the space and empowering our teachers to teach what they most wish to share is a crucial piece of what we do at Inner Sense. We plan to implement regular initiatives to find out what our community in Avondale wishes to see in the space as well as to continue to empower our teachers to take ownership in the direction of the collective.
Another thing that sets us apart is our tiered pricing model. All drop-in prices, as well as monthly memberships, are offered at three tiers. We have a “standard” tier that is close to but still under the market rate, a “reduced” tier to make programming more accessible, and a “supportive” tier for those that can afford to pay a little more to offset the reduced price. In addition to the tiered pricing option, we are also passionate about maintaining a “no one will be turned away for a lack of funds” policy.
Who have you been inspired by?
We are inspired by the women who have faced adversity and risen strong. Whether known globally or known only to their own friends and family – we admire the grit and resilience in these women to show up as mothers, sisters, daughters, activists, politicians, leaders, and truth speakers.
We admire Michelle Obama, Anita Hill, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, Oprah Winfrey, Maya Angelou, Frida Kahlo, Malala Yousafzai, Angela Davis, Tarana Burke, Kesha, and of course, Beyonce.
Pricing:
- Drop in, standard: $17
- Drop in, reduced: $12
- Drop in, supportive: $22
- Monthly unlimited, standard: $90
- Monthly unlimited, reduced: $65
- Monthly unlimited, supportive: $125
- 10 Class package (not tiered): $150
Contact Info:
- Address: 3536 W Belmont, Chicago, IL
- Website: https://www.innersensehealingarts.org/
- Phone: 331-481-9466
- Email: ishacollective@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/innersensehealingarts/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InnerSenseHealingArts/
Image Credit:
Cindy Fandl
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