How a Director at Alo Yoga Built a Global Community
I am here with Natasia Lutes (you can call her Toss!) and I am so excited to sit down and interview her. Toss and I go way back, like wayyy back - we were actually roommates at Chapman University our freshmen year and all throughout college, and have been friends ever since. She absolutely crushes it as the Director of Community at Alo Yoga and I’m thrilled to be able to spill the tea on her day to day. She heads up events & activations (like all the ones you see on social media), works on strategic brand partnerships and oversees all community programming. I couldn’t be more excited to sit down with her and ask a ton of the questions that you all submitted on Sweat and Tell stories!
Toss give us a little intro of yourself!
Hi everyone, I’m Toss! I’ve been at Alo for a little over 4 years now and it’s been an incredible journey putting my passions and skill sets to use building an entire division of the brand that didn't previously exist at Alo. It’s been so fun for me to watch Jo and Jacqs build an online empire of their own and I’m excited to dive in and share a few things that you guys asked about!
How a Director at Alo Yoga Built a Global Community
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Jo: Speaking first hand, I’ve seen you excel in your career over the past few years and I know so many people are interested in what your career path was to get to where you are today. Tell us about the trajectory in your career so far!
Toss: My path at Alo has been very avant garde and I honestly always tell people that. I studied science in school, I was a kinesiology major and always thought I'd go to med school - I wanted to be a dermatologist. I was a complete book worm in college so when I finished school I really needed a break from the library. I decided to do my yoga teacher training and one of my goals in between going to castings (I was modeling at the time) was to acquaint myself with every studio in Orange County. I told myself “This will be my constant. I’ll get to know each community, connect with every studio owner and just get to know their WHY.” I’m a connector by nature, I love getting to know people. I was going to every studio in OC multiple times per week and one day some girl came up to me and said “So what do you do? I’ve been seeing you at every studio around the area and you know everyone!” I was totally in my hippie yoga phase and replied “Aren’t we all on this life path trying to find our purpose?'' and she was like “Well, I need you to do that for the brand I work for.” That brand being Alo. At the time, Alo was just starting to sell their signature Goddess Leggings and they hadn’t yet become the pioneer they are today. I was like “Uhm thank you so much for the offer but not interested right now.” Some time had passed and over the holidays my parents both pushed me to rethink my decision and encouraged me to jump at the opportunity. At that point Alo hired me on as a Regional Community Manager to start some sort of event programming to engage the LA community.
Jo: Your journey is such a testament to people who think their path is destined to go one direction but it completely shifts when other opportunities arise. I know so many people can relate to that, especially myself! How has your career specifically evolved throughout your time at Alo?
Toss: My role started as a Regional Community Manager in LA and my boss at the time just wanted me to find a way to bring people together and tell people about the brand, tell them why Alo is Alo and what makes us so special and different. We created this super powerful event series and it formed a complete tribe of all the best yogis LA. It was wild because I started seeing our signature tie dye Alo Yoga tote bags all over town and would think to myself “Woah- I gifted that to her!” I almost couldn't go to a studio or gym locker room without seeing the bags thrown all over. So then Alo was like “Well off to NYC you go, do the same thing there!” That was crazy because the fitness industry in New York is so different.
We started opening brick and mortars in New York and realized the fitness industry there is unlike LA in many ways. What makes people tick in LA is different on the East Coast like the “fitness cults” are polar opposites. I figured that Alo was Alo… so people would either subscribe to the brand or not. I set out to find a way to stay authentic to our brand but also tailor our programming specifically to the New York mentality. In LA everyone wants to feel like they’re a part of something, a part of the tribe. NYC on the other hand, people almost want to identify as their own tribe while still being a part of something.
At this point we were offering all of these amazing community experiences in our own sanctuaries but I realized that there was such an opportunity to capitalize on audiences very similar to our target market but that hadn't necessarily discovered Alo yet. I started hosting pop ups at places like the 1hotels, Equinox, SOHO house - places that had a similar look, feel and vibe of all that we stand for. That ultimately transitioned into a larger role involving partnerships. I started thinking: what do larger, more strategic partnerships look like? How do we bring an Alo experience around the world where we don’t have a presence yet?
Jo: How do you find who you want to work with for brand partnerships and influencers? Especially when it comes to promoting diversity and inclusion?
Toss: Obviously a brand that is growing as fast as Alo got a lot of heat and pressure this past year but the beautiful thing about our community is that we’re naturally diverse - we have always been diverse. People would send us very passionate messages saying that if they had to ask about it then it wasn't obvious enough. Diversity is, and always has been, a huge goal of ours. As far as criteria in people we look for, we want people who are KIND. You don’t have to be a yogi, you don’t have to put your foot behind your head.. but what do you stand for online? What are you sharing on your platform? What do you use your voice to advocate for? That’s what we care about.
Jo: Alo has been such a pioneer in the health and wellness space for as long as I can remember. What do you look for in Alo employees?
Toss: This is a great question. We are out to do big things which ultimately is to get people on the mat and raise the vibration of the world. We look for people who are authentic, creative, driven, unique and not afraid to speak up. We stay relevant and cutting edge through the voices of our employees.
For anyone looking to work at Alo my #1 tip is to get your foot in the door. This brand is really great at highlighting and lifting up existing talent from within. I always tell people start in a store, start at an entry level position and just get to networking internally. We are growing and evolving so fast that it’s always a possibility to create a role for yourself that doesn’t even exist yet! That’s what happened for me. Also by working really hard! Hard works pays off.
Jo: How did Alo shift during the pandemic this past year?
Toss: The beginning of Covid was a crazy time - for my team in particular because we manage all of our events and programming, which formerly only happened for us in person. We thought we would go back to normal in a few weeks but as time kept passing we realized we needed to make a harsh pivot. I kept thinking “Our community needs us more than ever right now - people need mindfulness and meditation. Whatever comes of it let’s just encourage everyone to get on the mat.” We shifted our on the ground, in person events and turned everything virtual - one of the most important things to me was to make sure everything was free and accessible to all. It’s actually been really awesome - our yoga studios cap at around 50 people MAX and we’re now getting 400+ people joining events from around the world. It's a huge testament to our reach and global community who prioritize their health.
Jo: You have always been such a confident, optimistic person and I’m so curious how you maintain that in the workplace? Tell the audience how you maintain your positivity and confidence through the highs and lows!
Toss: A lot of my industry and job is all about feeling - how do you make someone feel connected to what the brand is doing? How do you create that “cool factor,” that buzzy campaign hashtag or that next viral campaign? When you are creating an emotional attachment to a brand, you know the conversion is there long term because you’re having them subscribe to an entire lifestyle- not just convincing them on a single transaction.
That’s something super important to me, as much as we grow and expand I am constantly checking in to make sure our mission and what we stand for, the heartbeat of the brand, remains intact and at the forefront of all we do. At the end of the day, it’s not my brand and I’m just here to bring the brand's vision to life. I think taking the ego out of the work is huge. It’s something that's been super challenging for me because I happen to be very passionate about yoga and mindfulness, so drawing the line between personal and Alo has been huge for me in understanding personal and professional boundaries.
Jo: I feel like you bring up a good point with marketing teams in general, not having those metrics to measure your success can be so challenging. I know you and I are both so similar in wanting to have those KPIs to measure our performance and success, so many people need a tangible number to use as a benchmark, so how do you overcome this?
Toss: Well, there is always a way! A lot of community work and brand building might not draw an immediate conversion but it’s always there long term. For me, being a brand marketer I know that this is because they get what we (Alo) are out to do, they feel it and want to be a part of the movement.
Jo: You have done such a great job paving your own path at Alo which is so admirable, but a lot of it really comes down to hard work and doing it with a smile on your face. People want to work with you because you’re passionate and optimistic, but also think BIG! Any advice for people who are trying to get into the industry or just find a job in general, especially for recent college graduates?
Toss: People reach out to me about this all the time and there are two things I always say. Like I said earlier, first thing is to get your foot in the door. For a brand like Alo, and I can only speak for Alo but I would assume it’s similar for a lot of other brands, there is truth to be told in working your way up and proving yourself. In fact, everyone on my team right now started in one of our stores. They would reach out and offer to help when I would come in to host events. They would be that “stand out person” to the point where sometimes I’d reach out to the store manager to make sure certain people were scheduled simply to have their support in helping me bring things to life. At a company like Alo that is growing so fast the role or job you have in mind might not even exist yet. Community programs, events and activations, brand partnerships weren’t a thing. My entire department didn’t even exist. As the company evolves and grows, if you are staying authentic to yourself and really just grinding, getting your foot in the door is the best thing to do. It might not be your dream role but be yourself and work really hard. Hard work speaks for itself.
Secondly, speaking your truth. Let people know what you want and communicate that you are down to put in the work. Also, asking for feedback. I think is all really comes down to being honest and vocalizing what you want. I don't know why there is this trend to be silent in the corporate workplace but I honestly think that's what made me stand out and grow this entire department that didn't exist. I have crazy ideas and I'm not embarrassed to share them which i think has actually inspired other people in the company to share their ideas as well. We (Alo) pride ourselves on being so cutting edge and innovative but that doesn't come without people internally sharing their ideas. It’s empowering for people like me who are super creative and think outside the box to feel the liberty of putting my ideas into motion. If it doesn't work never do it again-but at least you learned from it.
Jo: I feel like we have an all-encompassing view on what your day to day looks like and your career path up until this point, so now tell us what your 3 and 5 year plan is. Loaded question but super interested to hear about what you’re working towards!
Toss: One of the things I'm super excited about at work is the entire concept of “Alo for every activity.” Find what moves you. The whole theme of branching out of being such a yoga centric brand. When I started working at Alo we only worked with yogis and yoga minded people. That's super cool but also extremely intimidating when you want to be a brand that encourages people to get on the mat but all your posting is someone on a mat with their foot behind their head or in some crazy handstand. We have evolved immensely, especially in the influencer category, and are working with such a diverse array of individuals who are inspiring their own individual communities to move mindfully and live more consciously in their own unique ways. People might not think they “do yoga” but the fundamental roots of yoga really are living more mindfully, being present, tuning out the chaos - how do we give people the tools to do that and partner with people who are doing that in a different way? I want to find creative ways to work with people in different arenas.
Jo: What about any other personal goals outside of Alo? What's big picture look like for you?
Toss: I’ve been trying to get my real estate license for two years now! That's a huge goal of mine. I am so lucky to work at Alo and it's an amazing career path, but I always want more and for me learning is so FUN. I always want to be learning something new or adding to my repertoire of knowledge so studying real estate has been crazy because I feel like I've been studying a foreign language! I didn’t even know what a deed or title to a house was LOL but it has been fun. Something else that I think your followers might find interesting is a conversation that I've been having with a few of my sisters friends who are just graduating college and trying to figure out what they want to do. It has to do with the fact that you don't have to do just one thing. I think that's why whenever we hang out I have so many questions for you Jo! It's so easy for people to think they have to bucket themselves into a category like “I work at Alo and am on the marketing team.” It's so fun and liberating to know that you don't have to categorize yourself yourself. When I realized that it made work way more fun because I realized i am not Alo. I am Natasia, I work at Alo but am also getting my real estate license, I have a youtube channel, all these different things! You can have a boring job that pays the bills, but that doesn't have to be your identity. I recently posted something about doing castings at home during the lockdown and someone reached out and asked if I was modeling now and I was like “Oh, i've had an agent since i was 15! I do castings when I can and it’s been so easy with Covid because everything is submitted from home!” She was literally like “Woah- that's so cool I didn't realize you could do more than one thing!” I remember being scared when I graduated college and thinking “What do i want to do?!” It's so liberating to understand you CAN do it all as long as you can find a way to balance it. I’ve definitely re-established a work life balance during Covid that i did not have before.
Jo: Tell us all about your morning routine!
Toss: I am an early bird! Even without an alarm, I'm up at 6 AM. I love mornings. I feel like the world is sacred before everyone is up. As far as a more traditional “morning routine” mine is so simple. One of my rituals is actually exactly something that Jo does and it’s one of my favorite rituals - I LOVE opening up all the blinds in my house. I literally make sure to shut all my blinds at night so that I have that routine in the morning. I almost feel like I’m waking up my house.
One of my intentions for the last few years, which is hard but I keep working on it, is taking a minute to get space in my head. Whether it's meditating or literally taking two deep breaths, or finding peace and stillness during my first few moments after my alarm goes off. As for caffeine, I don't NEED coffee but I absolutely love the ritual of making it. The smell of coffee in the morning is like “Let's go! Let’s do this thing!”
Jo: What do you do for your workouts?
Toss: I try to workout in the mornings- whether that’s a class or a long walk I just love moving when I wake up. My work meetings are so crazy that I need to do something before the work day or else I'm too tapped out by the time I shut my computer.
Ok I’m going to plug some of my people! My friends Lexi and Missy are the best. I've never had arm muscle in my life until now. I’ve done so many different workouts and jumped on so many workout trends. I used to be an F45 JUNKIE, I would go every day at 6am but I've found that my body really thrives on low impact movement. Don’t get me wrong! If I had the opportunity to take a jammed packed class at Barry’s I would be there in a heartbeat! BUT I’ve found that Pilates and yoga are my thing- @lexfish and @missblissyoga have really kept me on my mat through all of this!
Jo: Okay, one last thing to leave the audience!
Toss: I’ve talked about this a lot but speaking your truth is so powerful. I feel like in college I had a huge awakening where I woke up and was like “Wow. Being a people pleaser is exhausting.” You can still be a really loyal friend and a really great person while also having boundaries and speaking your truth. It's really empowering and I think that's where things really shifted for me personally and in every aspect of my life. Energy is so powerful and speaking your truth helps things stay clear. If you aren't lying you don't have to keep track of anything in your life! At the end of the day all you’ve got is your dignity and your character- be true to yourself and authentic to what you stand for. You’ll sleep better at night- i promise.
