We all remember the days of slipping and sliding on our yoga mats during sweaty Bikram and Vinyasa classes. Try as we might to keep calm and to keep our focus on our dristi point, a slippery mat was the ultimate distraction from our goal of one-pointed awareness. Then, a revolution in the yoga studio arrived in the form of yogitoes® yoga towels.
Yogitoes®, a privately held yoga towel brand, single-handedly transformed the yoga product industry with its Skidless® technology. Yogitoes towels are made with 50 percent recycled polyester, designed to create a super absorbent, hygienic layer that prevents slipping. From noticing an unmet need, yogitoes® pioneered a new market in the yoga product category, and the yoga world noticed.
One company that grew particularly fond of yogitoes’® innovative efforts was Manduka, purveyor of high performance yoga gear. On July 31, 2013, Manduka, whose products include yoga mats, towels, yoga straps, water bottles, and bags, announced that it acquired yogitoes®.
Manduka and yogitoes® both share a history of innovation in the yoga world, as well as a mission for making the practice of yoga more accessible, joyful, and inspiring. “We have a deep respect for the yogitoes® brand and share many of the same values,” said Sky Meltzer, CEO Manduka. “Both Manduka and yogitoes are fanatical about quality, sustainability, innovation and, most importantly, the teachers and yogis who make up this amazing community.”
With their commitment to eco-responsibility, Manduka is praised for their green technologies, as well as for implementing better-than-fair labor practices.
Manduka’s acquisition of yogitoes® gives customers a single source for high quality and sustainably produced yoga essentials. Yogitoes® products will continue to be available at yogitoes.com until 2014. Once the new year hits, customers will find yogitoes® at Manduka.com. As practitioners, we look forward to the future as these two lines continue to integrate its revolutionary Skidless® technology and innovation efforts, into other yoga products.
By Vanessa Harris
