École Française de Yoga

What École Française de Yoga does

École Française de Yoga (EFY) is a French non-profit association founded in 1976 and headquartered at 3 rue Aubriot in the Marais district of Paris. It operates the country's most established yoga teacher training school, delivering a four-year, 900-hour program that culminates in the Certificat Professionnel (CP FFP) 'Enseigner le Yoga' — the only professional yoga teaching certification registered in France Compétences' Répertoire Spécifique. The core curriculum is built around four distinct yoga lineages (Yoga de Madras/Desikachar, Yoga de Nil Hahoutoff/Chandra Gosh, Yoga de l'Énergie/Roger Clerc, and Le Geste Méditatif) taught by 28 specialized yoga trainers, complemented by 14 theoretical course trainers covering anatomy, physiology, psychology, Sanskrit, and Indian philosophy.

EFY serves primarily aspiring yoga teachers — predominantly women aged 45–65 with at least two years of prior practice — alongside experienced practitioners seeking deepening without full certification, alumni returning for continuing education, and the general public attending colloquia and conference cycles. The school's revenue model is tuition-driven: 3,520€/year for the standard four-year program (or 4,255€/year for the Approfondissement option with 1,150 hours), supplemented by a 750€ probatory seminar, an 850€/year auditeur libre track, residential alumni seminars, and public events. Enrollment is gated by an entry interview and a mandatory one-week probatory seminar, with intakes opening each March for an October/November start.

The organization operates as an independent association loi 1901 with no parent company, no external investors, and ~23 permanent staff supported by an extensive freelance faculty. It holds Qualiopi certification for training actions and ISQ-OPQF quality labeling, is a member of the Fédération de la Formation Professionnelle (Les Acteurs de la Compétence), serves as the seat of the Fédération Nationale des Enseignants de Yoga (FNEY), and maintains academic partnerships with the Institut Catholique de Paris (for the DU 'Cultures et spiritualités d'Asie') and the CNRS (for the Labo du corps research program).

Name

École Française de Yoga

Legal name

École Française de Yoga

Website

https://ecolefrancaisedeyoga.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

École Française de Yoga is a Paris-based non-profit founded in 1976 that delivers France's only officially recognized four-year professional yoga teacher certification, training ~131 active students annually across four pedagogical lineages and serving alumni, experienced practitioners, and the cultural public.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Yoga Teacher Training

NAICS

Sports and Recreation Instruction (61162), Educational Services (61)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYHSADACAL

Yoga Teacher Training (YTT) & Pilates Instructor Training

Home & Personal Services/Fitness, Wellness & Personal Training/Yoga & Pilates Instruction

SECONDARYEDAAAHAC

Yoga, Pilates & Mind-Body Movement Education

Education/Adult & Continuing Education/Health, Wellness & Lifestyle Education (Nutrition, Fitness, Mindfulness)

SECONDARYHSADACAA

General Yoga Instruction (Hatha/Vinyasa/Flow)

Home & Personal Services/Fitness, Wellness & Personal Training/Yoga & Pilates Instruction

Keywords

• Yoga teacher training
• Professional yoga certification
• Yoga continuing education
• Yoga seminars
• Yoga pedagogy

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Teacher training tuition fees: Annual tuition for the 4-year yoga teacher training program. Three cursus options with identical content but different scheduling: Semaine classique, Week-end classique, and Jour classique, all at 3,520€/year for 900 hours over 4 years. Approfondissement option at 4,255€/year for 1,150 hours.
2. Seminars (probatory, annual, post-formation): Week-long intensive seminars for probatory candidates (750€), annual seminars for current students (pricing varies by seminar), and post-formation/senior seminars for certified graduates and 4th-year students.
3. Free listener (auditeur libre) courses: Annual program of weekly yoga courses open to practitioners with 2+ years of experience who wish to explore the school's four lineages without committing to full teacher training. Priced at 850€.
4. Public events and colloquiums: Colloquia and public conferences open to all. The 2024 colloquium 'Quel genre de Yoga?' was priced at 95€ for general public and 80€ for members. Additional master classes open to all skill levels.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

École Française de Yoga is a Paris-based professional training school founded in 1976 that delivers a 4-year, 900-hour yoga teacher training program across three scheduling formats (Semaine, Week-end, Jour) and an Approfondissement option (1,150 hours). The curriculum draws on four distinct yoga lineages and integrates practice, pedagogy, anatomy, physiology, psychology, Indian philosophy, and Sanskrit; successful completion confers the CP FFP 'Enseigner le Yoga' certification registered in France Compétences' Répertoire Spécifique. Complementary offerings include residential seminars, Sanskrit courses, public colloquia, and a university diploma developed with Institut Catholique de Paris.

Product overview

École Française de Yoga operates as an educational institution offering a unified portfolio centered on a 4-year professional yoga teacher training program (Formation d'enseignant de yoga) that confers 900 hours of instruction and leads to the Certificat Professionnel 'Enseigner le Yoga' (CP FFP) — currently the only certification in this field registered with France Compétences. The training program is delivered through multiple formats (semaine classique, week-end classique, jour classique, and an option approfondissement) and incorporates four pedagogical lineages of yoga. Supporting the core program, the school offers seminars (Séminaires) at multiple levels (probatoire, annual, and complementary fourth-year modules on specific populations), conference cycles (Conférences) on Hindu history and yoga texts, Sanskrit language courses (Cours de sanskrit), and a catalog of open courses for auditeurs libres and alumni. The institution also partners with the Institut Catholique de Paris for the Diplôme Universitaire 'Cultures et spiritualités d'Asie' and with the CNRS for the Labo du corps research program. Public-facing offerings include colloquia, yoga events open to all (Événements ouverts à tous), and contributions to the Revue Française de Yoga journal published by the FNEY.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Formation d'enseignant de yoga (Yoga Teacher Training) A 4-year professional yoga teacher training program delivering 900 hours of instruction across practice, pedagogy, anatomy, physiology, psychology, and Indian cultural studies, culminating in the CP FFP 'Enseigner le Yoga' certification. Delivered in three formats (Semaine, Week-end, Jour) at 3,520€/year, plus an Approfondissement option at 4,255€/year (1,150 hours over 4 years). For aspiring yoga teachers and serious practitioner-students with 2+ years of practice.
• Séminaires (Residential seminars) Week-long intensive residential seminars held at venues across France (Domaine de la Chapelle in Forcalquier, La Chrysalide in Brittany, Centre Assise in Saint Gervais, Château de Magny en Morvan, Château de Moglais). Includes the probatory seminar required before admission (750€), annual seminars for current students, and post-formation seminars for alumni and 4th-year students (750€ Paris-based, up to 1,190€ residential). For prospective students, current trainees, and certified graduates.
• Conférences (Conference cycles) Conference cycles covering Hindu history, Bhagavad Gītā, Yoga-Sūtras, Upanishads, Hatha Yoga Pradīpikā, and broader themes such as 'Religions et sagesses du monde indien' and 'L'Inde et nous'. Open to all and form part of the training curriculum. Delivered by historians, indianists, philosophers, and sanskrit scholars.
• Cours de sanskrit (Sanskrit language courses) Sanskrit language courses offered as part of the training program and open to auditeurs libres, alumni, and external participants. Designed to support reading of original yoga texts and Indian philosophical sources.
• Diplôme Universitaire 'Cultures et spiritualités d'Asie' University diploma program exploring Asian cultures and spiritualities, developed jointly with Institut Catholique de Paris. Open to current and former EFY students as well as external auditors, deepening theoretical grounding in Indian and Asian civilizations.
• Programme Auditeur libre (Free listener program) Annual program of weekly yoga courses priced at 850€/year for experienced practitioners (2+ years) who wish to explore EFY's four lineages and pedagogical approach without committing to the full 4-year teacher training. Includes pedagogical reflection alongside practice and runs from November onward each year. Delivered on-site at the Paris headquarters.
• Événements ouverts à tous (Public events and colloquia) Public events including colloquia, conference cycles, yoga sessions, and seminars accessible to the general public regardless of training enrollment. The 2024 colloquium 'Quel genre de Yoga?' was priced at 95€ for the general public and 80€ for members. Includes open master classes for all skill levels.

Quantifiable outcome

• 85.8% of certified graduates actively teach yoga
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Fédération Nationale des Enseignants de Yoga (FNEY)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEFY is the seat of FNEY, the leading French national federation for yoga teachers. FNEY represents the profession, promotes ethical standards, and provides a professional network. EFY trainers and alumni are actively involved in FNEY governance, with EFY trainers holding co-chair positions.
• Institut Catholique de Paris (ICP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the Diplôme Universitaire 'Cultures et spiritualités d'Asie'. EFY's director Ysé Tardan Masquelier created the certificate and DU at ICP in 2014, and teaches there. ICP students can access yoga philosophy and Sanskrit through this joint program.
• CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEFY partners with CNRS through the 'Labo du corps — Rythmes corporels et cognition' research group. Trainers such as Silvia d'Intino (CNRS researcher) contribute to EFY's theoretical teaching, bringing academic research into yoga teacher training.
• Fédération Nationale des Enseignants de Yoga (FNEY) — joint eventscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEFY and FNEY co-organize the annual EFY colloquium (e.g., 'Quel genre de Yoga?' November 2024) and other public events. FNEY also hosts its annual events at EFY's premises.
• France CompétencescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrance Compétences (under the Ministry of Labour and Employment) maintains the Répertoire Spécifique in which the CP FFP 'Enseigner le Yoga' is registered. This official registry provides government recognition of the certification's professional validity.
• École Française de Yoga Provence / EFYSE (Aix-en-Provence)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEFY regional schools founded by Boris Tatzky — EFYSE (Aix-en-Provence) and EFYARA (Lyon). They share the same pedagogical approach and are part of the EFY network within the FNEY federation.
• École Française de Yoga Lyon / EFYARAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional EFY school in Lyon founded by Boris Tatzky. Shares the same multi-lineage approach and FNEY federation affiliation.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• EFYARA – École Française de Yoga Lyon: EFY-branded regional school in Lyon founded by Boris Tatzky using the same multi-lineage approach and FNEY-aligned curriculum; competes directly for trainees in the Rhône-Alpes region.
• Satyananda Yoga Sangh France: France-based yoga school in the Satyananda/Bihar lineage offering multi-year teacher training; competes for experienced practitioners seeking lineage-based certification in the same niche.
• Académie de Yoga de l'Énergie: Paris-based yoga school rooted in Roger Clerc's lineage — one of the four lineages EFY teaches — and an FNEY member; a comparable long-standing teacher training provider in the same French market.
• École Française de Yoga Provence (EFYSE): EFY's sister school in Aix-en-Provence, sharing the same four-lineage pedagogy, CP FFP certification, and FNEY federation membership; offers equivalent 4-year teacher training in southern France.
• Institut Français de Yoga (IFY): Paris yoga institute offering multi-year teacher training with comparable academic and pedagogical depth; competes directly with EFY for the experienced practitioner segment in France.
• Centre de Yoga Viniyoga de Paris: Paris institution teaching the Viniyoga/T.K.S. Desikachar lineage; comparable multi-year teacher training provider targeting the same experienced practitioner and trainee teacher segment.

Broad incumbents

• Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre (Europe): International yoga organization with European centers delivering multi-month residential teacher training (TTC) in a structured global lineage; sets a competing premium-priced certification alternative for French students seeking established brands.
• Yoga Alliance (Yoga Alliance France): International yoga registry whose 200/300/500-hour RYT credentials are widely adopted globally; not directly certified in France but competes for students who consider the EFY pathway too long or too costly.
• Fédération Européenne de Yoga (FEY): European-level federation coordinating multiple national yoga training institutions (including French members); comparable because it sets cross-border curricula and accredits competing YTT programs.
• Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram: Chennai-based institute founded by T.K.V. Desikachar, the source lineage for EFY's 'Yoga de Madras' tradition; a globally recognized authority whose teacher training output and pedagogy partly overlap EFY's Madras curriculum.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/ecole-francaise-de-yoga

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about École Française de Yoga