Yoga comprises of mental, physical and spiritual practice prospects that include meditation, pranayam, mantra chanting and asans, which ensure the improvement of our mental and physical well-being. A large part of yoga is about finding one’s center and balance be it physically or even mentally in some cases.
With certain asans that are simply hard to hold, one requires a surface or support that can stop them from slipping or even having a fall at times, who would not want to be stable and avoid that hand slipping, or that foot twisting. The rate at which yoga as a practice is gaining popularity and importance, brings along immense scope in the market for monetization. Nowadays it is not uncommon for big sports brands to have a separate yoga section in their store.
People in the business have realized that yoga requires equipment too, especially for the ones just starting out. All kinds of fancy mats, blocks and outfits for yoga are sought after by Gurus as well as armatures.
Everything that looks and feels fancy, sells in the market. With the capacity of people to spend increasing, it is only natural for companies and brands to fetch this opportunity that people have thrown at them.
The first thing that comes to ones’ mind even before the right outfit, while talking about yoga is the yoga mat!! This is where Yoga mats come into playing a very important and an almost irreplaceable role.
Rubber, cork, jute all possible kinds and sizes of mats are now preferred and made available to the consumer. The yoga mat market as we are now calling it, is expected to see a boom by the year 2029, with up-to a growth of 6.40% according to a research report by Polaris Market Research.
Everyone has started using exercise mats ever since the pandemic struck and brought the world to a stand still, practicing and seeing results in the mind and body through this form of exercise, which is totally natural and scientific at the same time. People have come up with all kinds of ways to promote yoga, be it in the form of a yoga cafe, yoga with animals, yoga in the woods, by the ocean. Almost all kinds of possibilities are being explored taking into account the sudden upsurge the yoga industry is going through. We have gotten more and more aware of the benefits yoga has to offer, be it lifestyle changes, Heredity problems, obesity, different kinds of disorders, yoga has been able to win hearts by reducing or solving many such problems.
The best part about this practice is that it can be done within the comfort of our homes and does not require too much equipment that can make holes in our pockets… all we really need is a yoga mat.
There are a few Indian brands that have taken the lead in India and stepped into the game.
Kosha Yoga Co is one such example. This is a Mumbai based brand started by Harneet and Alok Jayakar. They have come up with Foliage yoga mats. These mats are made from natural rubber and provide extra cushion and grip.
There is also The Bengal Mat by Priyanktha Iyengar, a Bangalore based brand which promotes the use of natural rubber and jute, they provide a non-slip mat that offers support and balance to the yogis.
Internationally we have brands such as Adidas, Aloyoga and barefoot yoga co. Influencing the yoga mat market in a big way.
This industry will also benefit others such as the PVC, jute, Rubber and cork manufacturers, not just that, industries will have to do some brainstorming when it comes to providing eco-friendly mats made with Jute, cotton or natural rubber to eliminate the harmful impact of materials such as the PVC, since the world is shifting towards sustainability and conscious decisions. This in turn will also promote the innovation of new products and machines to build them.
With things moving in the right direction which is towards sustainability and earth friendly mats, at the same time helping India’s vision to promote and spread the word about yoga and its benefits, this seems to be the perfect win-win situation.
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