Yoga Changed Her Life

Now, Tamara Johnson is helping others transform theirs through her nonconventional, all-inclusive style of yoga.

By LaRue V. Gillespie

Photos by Walter Photography

Tamara Johnson’s life today is quite a departure from her stressed-out, burned-out days donning flashy suits and high heels and running full steam ahead from one obligation to the next. This new version of herself has her looking inward, practicing self-love and meditation, and being OK with just being. For her, it’s about balance and mindfulness, skills she’s learned and honed through yoga.

“Yoga allows you to experience the power of being in the present moment,” says Tamara, the founder of Ensō Apothecary. “Living in the past keeps you depressed. Living in the future keeps you anxious. But being mindful about staying in the present moment is powerful and liberating.”

Tamara’s journey was not a smooth one. She found herself ensnared in the rat race and a loveless marriage. Caving to societal pressures, she said yes more often than she should and constantly poured from an empty cup. She gained 30 pounds and was facing surgery to alleviate daily migraines. Instead, she turned to yoga and switched to a plant-based diet. Not long after, her migraines ceased.

“Once your mind, body and spirit are allowed to work in unison, you release what no longer serves you — stress, trauma, weight, bad habits and more,” she says. “You are free to be your true, authentic self — no mask, no code-switching, no self-doubt. .… I want this for everyone.”

Ultimately, Tamara found a new path forming in front of her — one that would incorporate yoga and make it welcoming and available to a more diverse range of people. She moved from Dallas to Mansfield in 2014, changed jobs, filed for divorce and began taking back her life.

As a hobby that turned into a side hustle, Tamara made clean, 100% vegan soaps and sold them at trade shows and local markets under the name Ensō Apothecary. Word spread and her business grew. By January 2019, she left corporate America to build Ensō full time.

In October 2019, she secured a brick-and-mortar location on East Rosedale Street in Fort Worth where she could showcase her handcrafted, clean beauty products. She thought she had such a gorgeous studio space that she decided to incorporate yoga classes into her business model, making it more of a total mind-body wellness concept. This is where her nonconventional, all-inclusive style of yoga was born, and this concept is the one she wants to bring to the masses.

“Most yoga studios are based on a very indoctrinated practice. So they stick with a certain flow and a certain type of music,” Tamara explains. “However, that excludes a lot of people.”

Her style of yoga fosters authenticity, so she, the other instructors who make up the Ensō collective, and everyone of every color and background attending the classes feel included and comfortable. For instance, hip-hop or heavy metal music might be wafting over the speakers, and it wouldn’t be uncommon to hear laughter.

“We allowed everyone to be included and be immersively engaged in the space,” she says. “It was magic.”

Just as Ensō was amassing a solid following, the pandemic struck. And, like so many small businesses, Ensō was forced to shutter its doors in late 2021. It was a devastating blow to Tamara, and she admits she sank into depression, finding comfort in DoorDash deliveries. But, remembering the tenets of yoga, she began centering herself again and climbed her way out of the setback.

Tamara kept her business alive through community partnerships with Texas Wesleyan University, Market by Macy’s and the Near Southside Community, where she could host monthly pop-ups to sell her skin care wares and offer outdoor yoga classes. In November 2022, she teamed up with The Pool at Near Southside to relaunch her yoga program.

“The Pool … offered us the space to use as a temporary location until we settle into our future studio,” she explains. “Sharing the space with an art gallery provides the perfect backdrop for our sessions.”

Tamara is still optimistic about opening a new physical location one day, preferably on South Main Street in downtown Fort Worth. While she works to raise funds and seek partnerships with like-minded investors to secure her new physical space, she’s continuing with her mission to help others transform their lives through yoga.

“My daring to show up authentically has made a positive impact on thousands of people through creating Ensō Apothecary,” she says. “I am just scratching the surface. My small business has evolved beautifully over the past five years, and I have plans to scale globally. Stay tuned.”

To shop and find an upcoming yoga session, visit ensoapthecary.com