M E D ITATI O N
LODRO RINZLER
Plant walls inspire people to breathe more deeply
CEO, MNDFL, NEW YORK, US
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PHOTO: MONICA LEE
bout two and a half years ago, my business partner Ellie Burrows approached me about opening a studio which embraced all types of meditation techniques. She wanted to try out different practices under one roof without it involving too big a time commitment, and proposed that if I could sort out the content and teachers, she could design the look and feel of the place. Run along the lines of the yoga studio model, MNDFL has drop-in sessions of
Within a few years, I predict meditation studios will be as mainstream as gyms – Lodro Rinzler
MNDFL CEO Lodro Rinzler
30 to 45 minutes, with around eight or nine classes offered each day starting at 7.00am. It’s a very calming space: the full plant walls immediately inspire people to breathe more deeply. We attract a real mix of people: all ages, races, genders and socioeconomic backgrounds, reflecting the diversity of New York City. Some
PHOTO: NATALIE BAXTER
MNDFL in New York will soon start to offer online content
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come once a week, some come every day. Most are brand new to meditation, but for those who have been coming since the start, we now run advanced classes. As an introduction, we offer unlimited usage for US$75 for one month, after which people tend to buy a package of their favourite classes. Classes range in price from US$10 to US$25, depending on the length of the class and the experience of the teacher. This trend is definitely here to stay. Meditation is more mainstream now and there’s a lot of scientific research to show how beneficial it is to the mind and body, helping people sleep and boosting the immune system. We’re getting enquiries from across the US, the UK and Australia, so it won’t be long before studios open internationally. Within a few years, I predict meditation studios will be as mainstream as gyms. However, while we now have two studios in New York and are launching a third, we aren’t planning a mass rollout. Instead, we’ll be supporting the existing studios with online content.