Today we’d like to introduce you to Steve Hart.
Steve, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Riffs Studios started in Park City, Utah in 2010 under the name Riffs Acoustic Music. I was fresh out of college and looking for something to do for work, and my father had recently retired from his career. He decided to open up a guitar store in our hometown, and I got on board to help him.
A couple of years later, I realized I loved the work, but wanted to move out of my hometown and head towards the beach, so I decided to open up a second location of Riffs Acoustic Music in the Bird Rock neighborhood of La Jolla. The stars aligned and I got the perfect location to recreate our business. I built a beautiful back patio behind the main store initially with the intention of hosting small acoustic shows like we did in Park City.
It did not take long for me to see that the brick-and-mortar guitar business was in decline, as many of my fellow guitar shops in San Diego were going out of business, and I was having trouble bringing in many people to the concerts I was hosting once a month. The space was so beautiful that I knew I needed to use it for something else, and I had the idea to host a live music yoga class.
It was an instant hit, and many people asked that I keep doing it. With relatively little experience in yoga and no idea how to run a yoga studio, I decided to try it anyway. We struggled for a few years trying to figure out what we were doing and establish our identity as a combined yoga and music studio until a life-changing event occurred. In 2014 I suddenly lost my mother, and it completely rocked my world.
After months of darkness and depression, I found the light in the practice of yoga and dedicated my life to the practice. I eventually went and got a teacher training certification, where I met a guy who was about to partner with his friend that was already running a successful yoga studio in Chicago. She happened to be coming through San Diego just a couple weeks after my training and agreed to sit down with me and tell me all about how to run a successful yoga business.
At that point, we rebranded to Riffs Studios and focused more of our efforts into growing the yoga program alongside the music program. Eventually, I came across the world of sound healing, the perfect blend between yoga and music, and I fell in love. Riffs continued to grow, and we found our identity as our community formed around us.
Most recently, we’ve gotten into the apparel business, printing all of our own branded clothing while developing positive affirmations that we hope will spread light outside the walls of our business.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
In no way has it been a smooth road. There have been many times where I’ve considered giving up, and a couple of times where I even tried to, but thankfully I was able to push through.
My biggest challenge was certainly dealing with the passing of my mother, which destroyed me emotionally and the business suffered because of it. Many times did I wonder how I would ever pay the bills that month. Many times did I consider closing up shop and getting a more traditional office job. I even tried to sell the business a couple of time unsuccessfully, and I thank myself almost daily for persevering.
Nowadays, things are great! Our community is strong, our staff is amazing, and I love going to work each day. I even live next door to the studio! Not that we still don’t face challenges, but compared to what I faced in the last six years, they are nothing we can’t handle.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Riffs Studios – what should we know?
At the very core of our business, we are about vibration. Whether they come from a guitar, singing bowl, and symphony of breathing yogis, we are working to utilize positive vibrations to elevate consciousness, providing improved health and happiness to everyone who walks in our door.
We are probably best known for our outdoor, live music yoga studio. Surrounded by bamboo and banana trees, our 1100 square foot redwood deck, combined with ocean breeze, soothing music, and hummingbirds flying about it an atmosphere like no other. Practicing yoga outdoors is amazing, and the atmosphere we’ve created has helped thousands to improve their lives.
Though space is amazing, I am most proud of our Yoga Teacher Training programs. We’ve hired some of the most passionate and dedicated teachers here, and our YTT program continues to help others find their way up the same path. Many of our graduates have had life-changing experiences, and several are now sharing that around San Diego and the world as they teach professionally.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
So many. My parents first and foremost. My mom is my guiding light. I promised her on her last day that I would make her proud and everything I do at Riffs in an attempt to do so. My dad has supported me through everything and has kept me going even in the darkest of times, as did both of my brothers.
Otherwise, pretty much everyone involved at Riffs has been a huge part of our success.
Karina Gerschler has done an amazing job bringing in the best yoga teachers in the city, and her work with Jenn Richardson to facilitate our Yoga Teacher Training programs has been remarkable.
Courtney Preis and Jordan Reimer have been instrumental in taking the business to the next level with their dedication to our mission and passion for our product. I couldn’t have done it without these two, and the several other employees that came before them.
Tylor Green and Russell Ramo have been pillars of our music lesson program, and Tylor is now our longest standing employee at Riffs.
On a larger scale, our entire staff of teachers and the community of Bird Rock as a whole are reason we have been successful. The support they have all given, and they patience they showed as we figured things out, gave me the strength to keep going and renew the lease when I was first faced with the decision to continue operating.
Pricing:
- New Yoga Students- $49 for the first month of unlimited yoga
- New Music Lesson Students- $50 for two 30-minute music lessons
Contact Info:
- Address: 5510 La Jolla Blvd
- Website: www.riffsstudios.com
- Phone: 8584562477
- Email: steve@riffsstudios.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/riffsstudios
- Facebook: facebook.com/riffsstudios
- Yelp: yelp.com/biz/riffs-studios-la-jolla
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