The Yoga Teacher Who Scaled from 5 to 50 Virtual Students
Nandi Mthembu started teaching yoga in Stellenbosch parks in 2020. When lockdown hit, she moved to virtual classes on Google Meet. Her biggest challenge? Getting people to actually show up.
"I'd post class times on Instagram. People would comment 'interested' but never follow through. I had no way to collect payments upfront, confirm attendance, or share class links efficiently."
Teaching 5-person virtual classes wasn't sustainable. Nandi needed to scale.
"I looked at class booking platforms. They wanted R2,500/month or took 25% commission per class. For R99 classes, the math didn't work."
Cazual PRO became her virtual yoga studio.
cazual.co.za/zenwithnandi now handles everything:
- YouTube channel with free 10-minute morning yoga (her lead magnet)
- Instagram feed for community building
- Google Meet link for live virtual classes
- R99 per-session payment through PayFast
- Cross-promotion with Coach Tumi (fitness) and Jenna Visuals (wellness photography)
"First week, I had 12 paid signups. By month two, I was running 3 classes daily with 50+ regular students. That's R14,850/month revenue from a R99/month platform."
The structure solved her no-show problem too. Students pay upfront through PayFast, get the Google Meet link via email confirmation, and show up ready to flow.
"Cazual gave me legitimacy. Before, I looked like a hobbyist. Now I look like a business. Students take me seriously because my online presence is professional."
Nandi's expanding to recorded class libraries and one-on-one sessions — all managed through her single Cazual page.
"Virtual yoga isn't the future. It's the now. Cazual helped me meet it."