Meet Sabrina Bennett Tobi Guillian | Yoga Instructor/ Studio owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sabrina Bennett Tobi Guillian and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sabrina Bennett, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Hello! We are Sabrina Bennett and Tobi Guillian. We are the creators and owners of Cedar & Sage Wellness Studio in Yucca Valley, Ca. Also happen to be sister in laws!

This studio was birthed in the summer of 2016 from a dream to create a space for holding health and wellness classes for our beloved community of Yucca Valley. We opened our studio doors in November of 2017, and we continue to live out our dream every day, since we opened. Tobi and I were both raised in a small town in our local nearby mountains so living here in Yucca Valley felt very familiar. We have lived here in the high desert for over 20 years. We have raised our families here and love living, thriving and contributing to the ever growing community.

Cedar & Sage Wellness Studio is more than just a business. It’s a sacred space for community to gather and receive classes based on many healing modalities, including yoga, breathwork, meditation and soundbath and so much more. We felt called to open the studio in Yucca Valley because there was nothing like it here before. We both wanted to open the doors to health and wellness in the town we love and have lived in for many years.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
We see Cedar & Sage Wellness Studio as a creative space for people from all backgrounds and walks of life to join together and practice various modalities of health and wellness. What we are most excited and passionate about is bringing community together to be connected fully in mind and body, to learn about the ancient wisdom of yoga and it’s many benefits towards a more fulfilling and fruitful life. Our studio is so much more than a business, it’s a place of community. The desert can be an isolating place and we saw a great need to bring a wellness studio to Yucca Valley as there was nothing like it there before. The studio was birthed in the summer of 2016 and we opened our doors to the community in November of 2017. We have created a space where many have gathered over the years and long lasting friendships have been formed. We have faced some challenges along the way but we put our trust in something greater than ourselves and know that we are here for a reason. To continue to do this work and service to the community we so dearly love is our greatest goal.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
An ideal day in the high desert for us would start with an amazing class at Cedar & Sage to get into mind and body to set the tone for the day. Then perhaps a hike in the National Park or surrounding areas. Stopping by The Yucca Tree Eatery (this is Tobi and her husband Randy’s cafe) for a healthy organic breakfast or lunch, juice or smoothie. There are many small businesses that we have loved to support over the years and new ones that keep popping up.

Live music at our local venues, Spaghetti Western, Copper Room, Pappy & Harriets, Red Dog Saloon

Some of our favorite shops are Hoof & Horn, Desierto Alto Bodega, Brewja Elixir, Grateful Desert, Coyote Corner, Sue’s Health Foods, ArtFX, All Roads Studio, Rainbow Stew, Nomad Ventures, Cactus Mart and The End. As for favorite restaurants we love, The Yucca Tree Eatery, Tiny Pony, Aki Sushi, Las Palmas, La Copine, Joshua Tree Coffee Co and Mas o Menos, and of course the famous P&H’s. Just to name a few!

Supporting local shops and artists is of course, the heart of this town and we do our best to always stay true to that!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
We would not be here today if it wasn’t for our incredible instructors and students. Our Instructors dedicate their time and precious energy to serving this community day in and day out. They guide their classes with immense passion, kindness and love. They are all a true inspiration and they go above and beyond to live their practice both on and off the mat. Each one of them has enriched the lives of many, not only through their teachings at Cedar & Sage, but through their work outside the studio. From musicians, artists, actors, film makers and therapists, to writers, dancers, accountants, brand strategists and more, they each give back to humanity in their own special way. We are INCREDIBLY proud of all of them!

It took blood, sweat, tears (of joy) and our full hearts to build the studio, but our students are the building blocks of the community. They are the ones doing the work everyday to create more fullfilling lives for themselves and the community. The space is a sanctuary. The word Satsang in Sanskrit means to come together in a sacred gathering to create healing and community connection. This is what we create here and you can feel it the moment you walk through the doors.

We want to give a huge Shout out to our teachers, for without them, we would not be where we are today.

Rebecca Sisson
Sunny Atema
Brock Tuller
Nicole Tarro
Katherin Hervey
Heike Binder
Shannon Dixon
Corey Clark
Alice Fulks
Lisa Mecham
Ashley Nunn
Elizabeth Trieu
Yuna Lee
Chakra Khan
Angela Gui
Forest Alethea

Thank you for being the best crew in the desert!! We love you all!

And lets not forget a gigantic shoutout to our husbands and greatest supporters, Steve Bennett and Randy Guillian. They have been by our side from the beginning and continue to be our rocks. So much love to you both.

Website: cedarandsagewellnessstudio.com

Instagram: @cedarandsagewellnessstudio

Yelp: Cedar & Sage Wellness Studio

Other: Our schedule can be found through the Mindbody app

Image Credits
Elena Ray for the picture of Sabrina & Tobi together with white background and the picture of Tobi alone with the bowls. The others were taken by Sabrina & Tobi from our Iphones