This Side Hustle Spotlight Q&A features Michelle Wahler, co-founder and former CEO of the sportswear brand Beyond yoga. Wahler launched Beyond Yoga with Jodi Guber Brufsky in 2006. A few years later, Levi’s reached out to Wahler via LinkedIn direct message, ultimately acquiring the company for $400 million in 2021. Under Wahler’s leadership, Beyond Yoga has achieved 19% year-over-year growth and surpassed $115 million in revenue in 2023. Responses have been edited for length and clarity.
Image Source: Greyson Tarantino. Michelle Wahler.
What was your day-to-day occupation or fundamental occupation when you began your side hustle?
After graduating from the University of Florida with a degree in graphic design, I moved to New York City to work in publishing, initially at People magazine and later Harper’s BazaarIt was then that I began drawing illustrations of my friends that I’d put on T-shirts to give as birthday gifts.
This hobby of mine eventually turned into a company I called Unsweetened, producing clothing and accessories featuring women—in what I saw as their “unsweetened” version.
Where did you get the inspiration for your extracurricular activity?
[At my magazine jobs]I saw firsthand how Photoshop was used in the industry. Both were incredible experiences, but they shed light on the unrealistic expectations that the media placed on the market and the minds of its consumers. I had spent my entire life watching amazing, intelligent, beautiful women not see themselves as who they were and trying to fit into one idea of beauty. As this frustration grew, I struggled to make ends meet, working long hours for little pay, but gaining a ton of invaluable experience! At the time, my best friend and roommate’s birthday was coming up, and since I didn’t have the money to buy her something great, I made a decision to give her a birthday present – I sketched her and put the illustration on a t-shirt.
All my friends loved it, so for the next yr, everyone got one of those unique drawings of themselves on a t-shirt. These illustrations celebrated them for who they were—curves, profession, and fun! I called these the “unsweetened” version of themselves, and before I knew it, I used to be selling them. I felt so fulfilled doing something I loved while also promoting body positivity and confidence from the inside out.
What were the first steps you took to start your side hustle?
On PeopleI had a cubicle right in front of the publisher—a high-traffic cubicle!—and I hung all my sketches on the wall. People began asking me to do them for their friends, and before I knew it, I used to be buying a T-shirt press, getting a wholesale license, buying T-shirts, printing them, and wrapping them up in my shared apartment after my roommate went to bed.
The shirts were a success, and I started spending all my free time working on Unsweetened. I sold shirts at holiday bazaars and craft shows, and eventually got a booth at the New York City Gift Show and the Los Angeles Gift Show. I finally left New York with the intention of doing a full run of Unsweetened on the West Coast; nevertheless, things quickly modified once I arrived.
What made you select to turn your side hustle into a full-time business, Beyond Yoga?
I moved to California and met Jodi in a short time. [Guber Brufsky]who became my future business partner. I immediately fell in love with the mission of Beyond Yoga, put Unsweetened aside, and jumped headfirst into building Beyond Yoga—a brand that ultimately permanently modified the standards and expectations of the industry. Today, size inclusivity is something that’s taken for granted for a recent brand just starting out, but 20 years ago when we began building Beyond Yoga, that wasn’t the case. It’s truly something we began, and I’m proud to be a big a part of that movement.
Image Source: Courtesy of Beyond Yoga
The idea of creating a clothing line that celebrated women of all shapes and sizes was very exciting to me. After meeting with Jodi, I shared a few business and product ideas. From there, I spent the next 18.5 years building Beyond Yoga from an idea to a global brand, employing a whole bunch of individuals (directly and not directly), generating over half a billion in revenue, and running a profitable business without taking on additional funding.
What were the biggest challenges you faced while creating Beyond Yoga and how did you overcome them?
In the starting, when I used to be building Beyond Yoga, every thing was a challenge! Getting into stores and finding trusted wholesale partners, learning the ins and outs of the business, learning every thing on the fly, and building a team from the ground up. It was exertions, but very rewarding and a time in my profession where I learned many useful lessons and skills.
Some of the biggest challenges I faced included understanding fabric shrinkage and how to incorporate that knowledge into the pattern, getting to know the ERP system, learning about merchandising and forecasting, hiring and firing employees, learning how to delegate tasks—the list goes on.
It was a long journey, and in the starting we were a very lean and green team. We did absolutely every thing ourselves and there was a lot to learn. Things began to change about five years into the business, which is also the time of one of my most influential hires: our COO/CFO. Having him on board helped me feel more comfortable about investing in our team and moving up through hiring more experienced professionals.
Image Source: Courtesy of Beyond Yoga
What has been the experience of the company’s development over the years? What have been the most vital moments?
Growing Beyond Yoga into what it is today was no small feat, but I’m incredibly pleased with it. While we have invested more aggressively over the years, we have at all times run the company for growth, investing every penny back into the company. When we reached about $20 million, we thought it was time to bring in investors. After learning some useful lessons, we stepped back from the market and decided to focus on profits and controlling our own destiny.
A notable milestone was my discovery of Space Dye fabric, which became the foundation of the company. It was groundbreaking—so soft yet durable, with the perfect amount of stretch and flex. It quickly became a fan favorite and is still a huge a part of the Beyond Yoga collection. I like that a fabric meeting in 2013 led to so much growth and became a pillar of the brand. My love of material gave way to a style revolution that transformed the sportswear landscape that is still being imitated today.
Another necessary moment in my profession was becoming a mom, where I learned how to balance work, love, family, and friends. That’s where Beyond the Bump was born. Becoming a mom and watching my friends and colleagues go through that transition helped encourage me to create our Beyond the Bump line. After being so upset with the lack of comfortable maternity and post-pregnancy clothing, the only way I could find options I liked was to design them myself, so I did. It’s grow to be one of our most successful brand extensions and a good way to introduce recent customers to Beyond Yoga.
When and how did the Levi’s acquisition occur? Why was it a “full circle moment”?
When Levi’s approached us, we didn’t want to sell at that time and truthfully, I do not think we might have sold to anyone else. I used to be honored! Levi’s is an iconic brand and after learning about their values and principles of putting them above profits, I used to be excited to explore the opportunity.
The more we looked into it, the more it appeared like the right alternative to give our company a legacy that will outlive me and the team. Negotiating a deal of that caliber and scale was something I had never done before, so naturally it was exciting. It was definitely one of the biggest challenges of my profession, but also one of my best accomplishments. It was a unique experience and I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to learn about this side of the business.
Image Source: Courtesy of Beyond Yoga
Throughout the process, from starting my very own company to negotiating one of the largest women-led sportswear sales in the industry to date, I have stayed true to myself, our shareholders, and the company I have poured my heart into over the years. I would not trade it for anything.
What advice would you give to others who want to start their very own profitable side hustle or run a full-time business?
My biggest piece of recommendation is to make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons. Do it because you’re passionate, do it because you would like to create and give it your all, do it because you think you’ve solved a problem that can profit people, or because you’ve created a higher version of something that already exists.
Once you know what you are going to do, get began. Don’t wait for the perfect moment – it won’t come! Sometimes you simply have to jump right in.
This Women Entrepreneurs® This article is a part of our series in which we describe the stories, challenges and successes of ladies running a business.