Mi Los Angeles: Leah Gallegos of People’s Yoga shares her 5 favorite Latino-owned businesses in L.A.

Leah Gallegos, co-founder of People’s Yoga, will always be grateful for how her neighborhood was as a kid.

“If you’ve been to the recent Highland Park, that’s not the Highland Park I grew up,” she said, adding that her childhood was filled with memories of seeing the same street vendors and running into her neighbors at the park. Reflecting on her early experiences in the northeast neighborhood, she says she realizes it’s where she first felt the importance of community.

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“I took my first Chicano studies class at [East Los Angeles College]. We read ‘The House on Mango Street’ and I felt seen,” Gallegos, 39, said. “Later I joined a group that would become Las Cafeteras and we became very inspired by the Las Zapatistas movement about building autonomy and collective community-centered spaces.”

She took what she learned as a member of the band and focused her efforts on bridging the gap between her community and a practice that helped her: yoga.

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Located in East L.A., People’s Yoga serves a community that didn’t have access to the meditative practice previously. The studio, celebrating its 10-year anniversary this month, is paying homage to its beginnings as a pop-up. Throughout June and July, People’s Yoga is going on tour and holding classes at various studios around the city.

As a part of our “Mi Los Angeles” series, we asked Gallegos to share some of her favorite Latino-owned businesses.

“Many of us were inspired by the neighborhoods that raised us. Whether it be with food, plants, yoga, apparel. We can now give back to these neighborhoods and keep this momentum of innovation going,” said Gallegos.

Here are her picks.

Mi Los Angeles

In ‘Mi Los Angeles’ we ask influential L.A. Latinos to share their favorite Latino-owned businesses. Find ideas and inspiration on where to go and what to eat all while supporting local businesses and organizations.

Read the full series here.