Branding YogaA Harvard Business School Case byRohit Deshpande, Kerry Herman, Annelena Lobb
Analysed by Vishnupriya Aryabhumi
IIT Madras
What is branding
• The process involved in creating a unique name and image for a product in the consumers' mind, mainly through advertising campaigns with a consistent theme.
• Branding aims to establish a significant and differentiated presence in the market that attracts and retains loyal customers.
What is Yoga?
• A physical, mental and spiritual discipline that originated in ancient India
History of Yoga
• Indus valley archeological relics• Vedas• Mahabharata• Panatanjali’s Astanga Yoga
Types of Yoga
• Hatha Yoga (includes physical postures and breathing exerises)
• Karma Yoga• Bakthi Yoga• Gnana Yoga• Raja YogaEach type focuses on different ideas of yoga
Yoga came to the US
• Began in mid-19th century• Thoreau and Emerson- Indic and Hindu
Literature• Swami Vivekananda (1893) followed by Sara
Bull • Margaret Woodrow Wilson (1940)• Indra Devi (1947)• Richard Hittleman (1940s and 1950s) –Hata
Yoga• The Beatles trip to Maharshi Mahesh Yogi (1968)
-Transcendental Meditation
Popularity in US
• Hatha Yoga and TM became very popular in US
• Maharshi+ Chopra used a holistic approach eliminating the division between mind and body (essentially Hindu or more broadly Asian ideas) – became very popular in US without actually acknowledging the sources of the ideas
Situation of the case
• The main players– Bikram Choudhury– Tara Stiles– The Hindu American Foundation (HAF)
Yoga Teachers
Bikram Choudhury vs Tara Stiles (1/3)
Bikram Choudhury Tara Stiles
Born in
1946, Calcutta, India 1981, Illinios
Before yoga
Student of yoga since he was four years old
Ballet dancer, dancing and commercials
Beginning of US saga
1971- arrived in US, started teaching Yoga
2006- posted promotional yoga videos on youtube through Ford agency
Bikram Choudhury vs Tara Stiles (2/3)
Bikram Choudhury
Tara Stiles
Books 1979- Bikram’s Beginning Yoga Class – his First copyright
2006- Slim Calm Sexy Yoga
Patents or copyrights
26 asanas and 2 breathing exercisesSued other yoga studios on violation of copyrights
None--- YET!
Studio(s)
5000 studios in 220 countries5 million USD revenue per annum
First studio in 2008
Bikram Choudhury vs Tara Stiles (3/3)
Bikram Choudhury
Tara Stiles
Yoga style
Hatha YogaAll about Sanskrit Verbatim
“Cool” YogaZero Verbatim
We see two different paths of two successful yoga teachers
There’s Bikram Choudhury, the founder of Bikram yoga in America, who has aggressively fought to patent his approach to traditional yoga style.
Then there is the former model and ballet dancer Tara Stiles, who isn’t particularly interested in yoga’s roots or rules, but rather in mixing up different styles of yoga to create a beneficial exercise.
Yoga- Present Stats
• 16 million practitioners in US• Meditative to athletic styles• 6$ billion industry• Existence of copyrights and Patents
From a Business perspective
So, What’s the point?
• Huge industry
• It’s all about creating value for a large audience.– Can be achieved using marketing and branding
• You need legal protection for your branding (as Bikram did)
We have seen two successful yoga teachers who have reached out to different target markets in their own style and cashed the market demand
Now the questions and contradictions!
• Is Copyrighting asanas a reasonable move?
• It is a part of India’s traditional knowledge. How can one person have any control over it?
• Isn’t it necessary to acknowledge the “Hindu” roots of yoga?
And finally…• Should Hinduism regain control over
the brand-Yoga?
The religion perspective
This is where HAF comes in!!
“Take back Yoga- Bringing to light Yoga’s Hindu Roots”
Objective of HAF
• The Yoga Journal magazine did not acknowledge the association of yoga with Hinduism.– Associated it with Jainism, Buddhism
and Christianity
• So, the objective of HAF is to make them acknowledge the connection between Hinduism and Yoga
Summarizing the case…
• The case examines the different paths of two successful yoga teachers who have used branding to their advantage in profiting from huge industry of Yoga
• On the other hand, case also voices the arguments of entities that are against commercializing Yoga and bringing in religious aspect
Central Dilemma of the Case
Is everything brandable—and should everything be brandable?
1. Should yoga be branded in connection to Hinduism?
2. Should Yoga be commercialized or not?
3. How to deal with this, business vs religious outlook of Yoga?
1Should yoga be branded in connection to Hinduism?
Argument
• The case clearly states that Yoga has its origins in ancient India
• In 1940, When Margaret Woodrow Wilson, daughter of former President Woodrow Wilson, left the U.S. for an ashram in Pondicherry, India, a clear enough connection between India and Hinduism existed that the U.S. press seized on the idea that the daughter of a U.S. president had decided to “become Hindu.”
The Religious perspective
Argument contd.,
• But now, being Indian is not synonymous to being Hindu
• So it would not be appropriate to say that “Yoga is one of the greatest contributions of Hinduism to mankind”
• In fact, Yoga should be secular and should not be linked to any one particular religion as rightly said by Stiles-“People need Yoga, not another religious leader”
2Should Yoga be commercialized or not?
Argument
• Patents are to discourage intellectual property theft. But this should not be misused. Bikram could have patented his technique of doing yoga in elevated temperatures but is copyrighting the classic asanas ethical even though its legal?
• So India headed the effort to catalogue the traditional knowledge to prevent the “grant of bad patents”. (as in Bikram’s case)
Branding and legal rights should not be misused. Any product should not be commercialized beyond reason.
The Business perspective
3So how to deal with the two outlooks??
Some suggestions…(1/2)
• Balance tradition and Innovation– B.K.S. Iyenger Vs. Bikram Choudhury
• Be authentic– Build an authentic style of Yoga based on
the classic principles, innovating and differentiating the style
• Understand Legality vs ethics of branding yoga– Do NOT forget the essence of yoga in trying
to brand it
Some suggestions…(2/2)
• Refrain from overstatement– Acknowledge the sources of the basis of
your modified/branded style
• Remember what yoga is about–When branding a unique form, consider
whether the practice has ceased being yoga. ( might become aerobics or gymnastics!)
Conclusion…
“The key to reconciling marketing and yogic principles may lie in taking advantage of branding’s beneficent
aspects without going overboard into abusing an emphasis on marketing.”
Conclusion contd.,
• You need legal protection for your branding• Branding yoga has both a positive and a
dark side. It is easy to look to the abuses and forget that branding, like other marketing tools, can serve a useful purpose
• Yes, Yoga is brandable but…be reasonable and ethical about
it
Credits
• http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/branding.html#ixzz3eecZslso
• Branding a Style of Yoga by MICHAEL H. COHEN, J.D., M.B.A. in the YOGA JOURNAL dated Aug 28, 2007
• thelimetreeyoga.comDisclaimer
"Created by Vishnupriya Aryabhumi, IITMadras, during an internship by Prof. Sameer Mathur, IIMLucknow.
www.IIMInternship.com"
Top Related