VALLEJO – When sisters Crystal and Joselyn Reynoso moved to Vallejo over two years ago, they noticed the city lacked a hot yoga studio. Both longtime practitioners, they decided to open one themselves. In December 2022, they launched The Mat, Vallejo’s only Latina-owned hot yoga studio.
The Reynoso sisters are part of a national trend: Latino- and Hispanic-owned businesses have grown at an average annual rate of 7.7% between 2017 and 2022. Latina-owned enterprises in particular have seen growth of about 87% in recent years according to the National Latina Business Women Association.
At the same time, industry analysts note that the wellness sector has historically lacked diversity and accessibility, with many studios catering to an affluent, white demographic. The Mat, however, is going against the grain.
In August, The Mat began offering Spanish-language yoga classes on a monthly basis, led by instructor Berenice Preciado, who completed teacher training in both Spanish and English. Preciado said teaching in Spanish allows for a deeper connection with students.
“To empower women to return to their essence and peace, and to connect with their bodies, in their first language, where many feel most at ease, that’s why this matters,” she said.
Equipped with infrared heating, the studio offers classes aimed at improving physical, mental, and emotional well-being. For the Reynoso sisters, who are first-generation Latinas and daughters of Mexican immigrants, opening The Mat was a way to honor their family’s sacrifices and create something that reflected Vallejo’s diversity.
“We opened the studio to make our parents proud and to show people who look like us that this is possible, you can do this too,” Joselyn Reynoso said.
Crystal Reynoso added that they wanted The Mat to feel different from other spaces they had practiced in. “We didn’t just want to open a studio, we wanted it to feel like a place where anyone could walk in, take a deep breath, and feel like they belong,” she said.
The sisters had been practicing hot yoga and hot Pilates nearly every day for years before deciding to open their own space. They commuted as much as 30 minutes for classes, often encouraging friends and family to join them. Eventually, they decided Vallejo needed a studio of its own, one that was welcoming to all, not just those who already felt at home in traditional wellness spaces.
Preciado describes her teaching style as a blend of Hatha and Vinyasa, with a soothing and approachable pace. She often incorporates sound bowls and other calming elements to help students slow down from busy lives. Many of her Spanish-speaking students, she said, are trying yoga for the first time because of the language access.
“The language makes a difference,” she said. “Students tell me they feel more connected, more flexible, less anxious. They walk away with greater peace and body awareness.”
For Crystal and Joselyn Reynoso, offering Spanish-language classes was about roots and representation. “Spanish is our parents’ first language and our first language,” Joselyn Reynoso said. “We wanted a class where they, and others in Vallejo, could feel comfortable without translating in their heads.”
Their mother, Josefina Reynoso, recently attended one of Preciado’s classes. “I had never been to a yoga class in Spanish before,” she said. “It’s wonderful. I hope more Spanish speakers come, people who maybe think yoga isn’t for them. Yoga is for everyone.”
Entrepreneurship runs in the sisters’ family. Their father once ran a restaurant business, and their mother has built a 25-year career in lending. “Maybe we served as inspiration,” Josefina Reynoso said, “but everything they’ve accomplished is through their own effort and hard work. They’ve believed in themselves, had the willpower to say, ‘I’m going to do this.’ I’m very proud of them.”
That determination was evident in the early months of the studio, when Crystal and Joselyn Reynoso each taught up to 14 classes a week to establish The Mat as a safe, empowering, and fun space.
Today, the studio offers heated yoga and Pilates, in addition to community programming such as free First Friday classes and vendor pop-ups featuring small businesses like bakers and coffee makers. The sisters have also taught at Benicia high school and say they hope to expand partnerships with schools in Vallejo.
Their choice to open in Vallejo was intentional. Josefina Reynoso, who immigrated from Mexico City in the 1980s, said she was drawn to Vallejo’s diversity and its location in the Bay Area. “There’s such a great diversity of people and it’s so close to the entire Bay Area,” she said. “That gives people many opportunities to pursue different paths and create opportunities for themselves.” She added that many younger residents are opening businesses and contributing to the city’s growth, predicting that Vallejo will continue to transform in the coming decades.
The Mat’s growth is a great example of what Hispanic Heritage Month, observed from September 15 to October 15, celebrates: the contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans. Hispanic business owners, which represent 14.5% of all U.S. business owners in 2022. Hispanic-owned businesses generated $572.9 billion in annual revenue in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
As The Mat approaches its second anniversary, the sisters are focused on deepening their local impact. Asked what they want newcomers to feel after their first class, Joselyn Reynoso didn’t hesitate: “Proud of themselves.” Crystal Reynoso added, “Empowered. That’s what this space is about,walking out stronger in body, mind and spirit.”
This Hispanic Heritage Month, the Reynoso family’s story is one of perseverance, pride and possibility. In building The Mat, they’ve created more than a yoga studio. They’ve created a community hub where Vallejoans of all backgrounds can sweat, heal and grow together.
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