Yoga Journal Celebrates 40th Anniversary

BOULDER, Colo., Sept. 14, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Yoga Journal (yogajournal.com), celebrates its 40^th anniversary! What started back in 1975 as a 10 page, black and white, staple-bound magazine published by the California Yoga Teacher's Association, has, 40 years later, become the world's largest and most influential yoga media brand.

Yoga Journal's worldwide audience includes: editions in 28 countries; 1.5 million U.S. readers, 1.5 million monthly web visitors; 3.6 million social media followers; 8,000 people attending five major events per year; and a growing number of students at AIM Healthy University – AIM's newly launched education portal.

The September issue mark's the brand's 40^th anniversary with a special flip cover and its first ever "Good Karma Awards," honoring 40 yogis, past and present, who have changed the course yoga in America. These winners include many who are doing seva, or selfless work, in bringing yoga into underserved communities around the world.

"Since the publication of our first issue, yoga has become a worldwide phenomenon, with 20 million people practicing in the U.S. alone," said Carin Gorrell, Editor-in-Chief of Yoga Journal. "Yoga Journal has played a seminal role in this growth. As our industry and brand continues to grow, Yoga Journal remains committed to our original core mission – to be a welcoming source of information for both beginners and advanced practitioners, and sharing the deep wisdom the practice offers both on and off the mat."

On September 22, in honor of the 40^th anniversary and of September's National Yoga Month, Yoga Journal is launching a 21-Day Challenge online class to motivate and inspire our readers to practice throughout the month and over the course of next year. This Challenge includes a special invitation to be considered for the July/August 2016 cover. Applicants will send in an essay, pose pictures and a practice video. The editorial team will pick five finalists, and the winner will be chosen by the YJ community on yogajournal.com.

In the past year alone, Yoga Journal's social audience has grown 40% to 3.6 million people today. 10,000 new fans follow Yoga Journal every week, with each post reaching a average of 500,000 fans. Since August 2014, both Twitter and Instagram followers have doubled. In addition, the website is up 11% in Year-over-year digital revenue, with a 25% increase in users, a 40% increase in total visits and a 125% increase in pageviews. The print edition now reaches 1.5 million readers.

The 40^th anniversary will culminate on September 28^th with the Good Karma Awards, presented at Yoga Journal Live! Colorado (yjevents.com/ep).

For more information contact:
Dayna Macy, [email protected] 
415-591-0729

SOURCE Yoga Journal