On a sunny afternoon, Earth Day coincidentally, I sat down with Janelle Holter at a local Boulder coffee shop to talk about her animal advocating and outdoor inspired yoga brand called TVLA (pronounced Tula) YOGA, LLC.
Janelle is full of positive passion and so is her managing partner, John Gregory Sackett. Together, the duo are the heart and soul behind a new Boulder-based yoga lifestyle brand that has a very direct mission: Develop an e-commerce platform that offers eco-friendly products that can be used in any yoga environment from studios to gyms to festivals. Their goal is to help people with their alignment (especially when no mirrors are present) and to feel fresh in custom designed active/lifestyle merchandise that gives a portion of profits back to the Colorado community through donations to local animal shelters.
When I ask Janelle to tell me about Tula, their Golden Retriever for whom the brand is named after, Janelle lights up, “Tula is the longest relationship I’ve ever had! It’s been 9 years, and she is still my baby.” She even goes on to say that, “Tula is a prime example of staying motivated: She takes on each new day with a tail wag, passes no judgment and greets strangers with kindness and compassion.”
Janelle came to Colorado with the end goal of enrolling into graduate school to be a veterinarian. It didn’t take her long to also find a love for yoga and the benefits it possessed. After graduating college at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Janelle moved to Boulder and became immersed in the yoga and fitness world, completing seven different certifications from Kickboxing to Yin Yoga. At one point she was teaching 18 classes a week, facilitating teacher trainings, helping as the retail specialist for the CorePower Yoga studios in Boulder and vet-teching at Worthington Animal Clinic on the side!
In August of 2017, Janelle shifted gears, accepting a position on the corporate team with Yoga Pod as the National Director of Education and Brand Integrity for the company, and was quickly promoted to Chief Brand Officer two months later. She helped support and facilitate the opening of seven plus Yoga Pod studios in the span of less than nine months, all the while still teaching regularly, leading international yoga and surf retreats and working at the vet clinic she’s been at for 10 plus years.
I asked her, how do you have time to commit to exploring and launching a new brand? She laughs and says, “A lot of late nights, no weekends and plane flights!” She also says, “You have to know how to pivot in order to make your dreams work.”
Having helped facilitate 20 plus yoga teacher trainings and lifestyle programs, Janelle knows the importance of alignment and how impactful it can be to maintain a healthy lifestyle. It is her mission to share innovative, alignment-based tools to support a sustainable yoga practice, whether at home, in a studio or at your favorite yoga festival. TVLAis already selling an eco-friendly cork block, but they will also be launching an alignment based yoga mat and no- slip alignment towel too. Their website offers lifestyle clothing and custom hats that are perfect for any activity — outdoors or post sweat session. Keep an eye out for their Colorado inspired yoga leggings coming soon — made in Denver from recycled plastic water bottles and spandex!
Janelle is the kind of person that takes care of others, the kind of person who gets “chills” when you tell her how you came to yoga and what it means to you (because she gets it and lives for it), and so having just graduated myself from 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training this weekend, I had to ask Janelle what is her why?
Janelle says, “Because today is a present.”
Janelle’s sister was diagnosed a few years ago with leukemia at the age of 34. She had three boys under the age of 10 years, and it turned her entire family’s world upside down. Janelle said “It was a reminder that you cannot take your health, your goals, your job — and especially your family — for granted.”
So at the age of 30, Janelle is putting her passion and strong work ethic to the test, because she understands that everything she has today is not promised tomorrow.
Through a little soul searching, a clear vision and a solid support system, Janelle is showing that she is a female entrepreneur that isn’t afraid to make big moves. She says, “The most challenging thing is being patient and not rushing it. You can’t rush a good thing.”
You can find more about Janelle & John’s company at: www.tvlashop.com or on Instagram at @tvlayoga.
