Sudden yoga studio closures shock staff and customers

A statement on the CALM website said the business was closing "with a heavy heart"

Customers and staff of a yoga business, which closed unexpectedly, say they are shocked and worried they may not get back money owed to them.

CALM, which had premises in Burton-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, and Derby, announced it was shutting "due to ongoing health challenges" and that all creditors would be contacted.

One former employee from the Burton office said: "It has taken away my sanctuary, a community I'm so grateful for, an income I need and left me with a huge loss and hurt to process."

Staffordshire Police said it had received a number of complaints and the matter had been referred to Action Fraud, the national reporting centre for fraud and cyber crime.

The former member of staff, who did not want to be identified, said she did not know the couple who ran the business, Blair and Vanessa Davies, and had heard nothing from them since it closed.

She said she learnt about it when a message was posted on the company's website and that staff had been trying to support each other since then.

Cerys Chaderton-Fears, who had been a member at the yoga studio since January 2023, said "CALM always felt like a safe space to me".

She added the sudden closure and lack of response from those running the business had been "hard to accept" and destroyed her faith in fitness studios.

She doubted she would get back the £170 she paid and added she was glad she chose not to take up an invitation to invest money in the studios, to help pay for renovations.

Another customer, who did not want to be identified, said she knew Mr Davies very well and had made some great friendships at the yoga classes.

She said he was "genuinely a nice man so I do not understand," but the couple had "not been hands on with the studio for some time".

The BBC has attempted to contact Mr and Mrs Davies for comment.

Buckso Dhillon started working at the studio a year ago and said "every single month I had to chase my invoice".

She added she was still owed about £700 by the business and was "incensed" with the situation, which also affected a number of foreign workers.

"It's the people that haven't got a voice that I feel I've got to speak up for," she said.

Buckso Dhillon said she was still owed money by the business

Burton Parish Council's Linda Cunningham said she was not a customer herself but was trying to help those who were.

"People are traumatised, their hearts are broken," she said.

Some customers were close to finishing courses run by the yoga studio when it shut and have been relying on them to start new careers in yoga, she added.

Ms Cunningham had suggested arranging a public meeting to discuss people's concerns and she was "really shocked" by the closure of the business.

A statement on the CALM website told customers the decision to close had "not been made lightly" and was done with "heavy hearts".

It also said that, because of the health issues mentioned, "it has become clear that stepping away to focus on recovery and self-care is the best path forward".

A professional company had been brought in to handle the closure of the company and all related matters, it said, and promised "details to follow".