Spotlight on Kate Durand, Founder and Owner of YO BK in Wynwood

In honor of Women's History Month, we are celebrating some of the amazing women right here in Miami. Let us introduce you to Kate Durand!

Durand is the founder and owner of YO BK, a new-to-Miami yoga studio with two additional locations in New York. Located at Oasis in Wynwood, the new studio offers Inferno Hot Pilates (HIIT), Traditional Hot Yoga (Bikram), Power Yoga, and Yin Yoga classes.

During college, Durand discovered her love of hot yoga, biking 5 miles every day to the studio. That was when she realized her dream to teach yoga and have her own studio.

"I was inspired by my amazing mentor, Lisa Ingle, who owns three studios in San Antonio, Texas. I started practicing with her during my first semester of college and knew right away I wanted to teach and one day own a studio," said Durand.

Even once she graduated and moved to Beijing and then Bangkok to be a kindergarten teacher, she always made sure there was a yoga studio nearby. When she moved back to the States in 2011, she became a yoga teacher and opened her first studio in 2015 in Brooklyn.

Durand said, "Upon becoming a yoga teacher, Lisa guided me towards studio ownership and helped me narrow my real estate search down to Brooklyn and Miami, where our studios now live! Her guidance as a multi-tasking mother and business owner showed and continue to show me the way."

By 2018, she was able to open her second Brooklyn location. With a schedule of sold out classes, things were going great... until the pandemic.

"A big part of my success came from the ability to pivot - our NYC studios moved to online classes the DAY after the city shut down," said Durand. "We quickly moved to outdoor classes and finally back in-studio. As much of our competition closed, we continued looking for what was possible and are even stronger now because of it."

It was shortly after the pandemic that Durand had the opportunity to open her third location right here in Miami. She says there is never the "right time" to open a business.

"The only answer is to work hard, ask for help and put one foot in front of the other. Part of standing in our power as female entrepreneurs is asking for what's needed. Sometimes my tendency to want people to like me gets in the way, and I'm working to balance empathy with forging forward each day!"

"I love wearing many hats as a business owner. I'm a mom and a wife, so my time at the studios is even more special, knowing that it supports my family and I am showing my 10 year old son that women can be loving, focused and brave," said Durand. "At the studios, I teach, market, support our team and sometimes plunge toilets. I love that each day is different and brings in a wide variety of people."

For the full YO BK class schedule, head to yo-bk.com/miami. Their opening special of 2 weeks for $27 has been extended until March 15th.