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Yoga studio opens in CAN BE incubator

January 27, 2009
For more information contact Precision Design, 570-455-3533

Mystic Yoga, a new client in CAN BE’s business incubator, opened in the incubator recently. Celebrating the studio’s grand opening on Tuesday night are, from left: Kevin O’Donnell, CAN DO president; Jack St. Pierre, CAN BE executive director; Michele Fisher, Mystic Yoga owner/operator; Fisher’s husband, Bill Fisher; Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta; Leann Fallabel, Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce vice president of marketing; and Dan Guydish, Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce membership director..

West Hazleton - An introductory yoga class, social time and a ribbon-cutting by Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta marked the grand opening of Mystic Yoga in CAN BE’s business incubator Tuesday night.

The grand opening included hors d’oeuvres by Peg Bono of the Dragonfly Café as part of Mystic Yoga’s vision of healthy eating.

CAN BE is a division of CAN DO, Inc., and operates its incubator, the Greater Hazleton Business Innovation Center, in Valmont Industrial Park. The incubator program was started to help assist entrepreneurs as they launch successful businesses, adding jobs and strengthening the local economy.

Certified yoga instructor Michele Fisher operates Mystic Yoga, where she will offer a variety of yoga classes at various times throughout the day and on weekends.

“If practiced regularly, yoga can lead to a healthier and more balanced lifestyle, both physically and emotionally,” she said.

Fisher has been teaching yoga for years, previously as an independent contractor through Northeast Sports and Fitness in Mountain Top and the Greater Hazleton Health and Wellness Center in Hazle Township. She is a student of the Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga Institute, founded by yoga master Baron Baptiste, and is one of only five certified Baptiste instructors in Pennsylvania.

Classes at Mystic Yoga will include Baptiste Power Vinyasa yoga, prenatal yoga, yoga basics, meditation, breathing practices and relaxation techniques, as well as private sessions and corporate classes.

“Baptiste yoga is a particular style of power yoga done in 90-degree heat that involves physical and cardiovascular strength in addition to focusing,” Fisher said. “I’m committed to my own growth in addition to my students’ growth, and Baptiste yoga has really transformed my life. It’s pushed me to grow as a student, as a person and as a teacher.

“Yoga is not just a workout, but it’s a path to personal transformation,” she added. “I’ve been doing yoga since 1997 and can’t imagine my life without it.”

Mystic Yoga classes are open to everyone interested, regardless of prior yoga experience, age or body type.

Since the studio is located in the CAN BE incubator, Fisher is offering special class rates for employees of all four of CAN DO’s parks (Humboldt Industrial Park, McAdoo Industrial Park, Valmont Industrial Park and the CAN DO Corporate Center). She plans to offer a wellness and stress reduction program to companies throughout the park.

“I’ve already seen the many benefits of being in the incubator. For one, the business help I’ve been getting from Jack has been very valuable. He’s provided a lot of assistance to me in writing a business plan, which I think will really help the success of the studio,” Fisher said. “CAN BE’s incubator is in a great location near Interstates 81 and 80 as well.

“Also, I feel confident my studio will do very well when I consider the excellent success rate for clients of business incubators,” she said.

Jack St. Pierre, CAN BE’s executive director, said, “Mystic Yoga really shows the continuing diversity of our client base in our incubator. Clients can use the space available to them here in a variety of ways, and the fact that Mystic is a true start-up and offering wellness programs to the industrial park community makes the studio a great fit. Several spaces are still available in a variety of sizes for interested entrepreneurs.”

For more information about the incubator program, call CAN BE at (570) 455-8334 or visit www.canbe.biz. To learn more about Mystic Yoga, call (570) 582-9641 or visit www.mysticyogastudio.com.