In March 2020, Abigail McLachlan had just invested £180,000 in East of Eden, the yoga and pilates business she runs in Walthamstow, east London. She was expanding with two shiny new studios, therapy rooms, showers and a cafe.
Then came the first national lockdown in the wake of the Covid pandemic. “When nobody came, nine days after opening, I pivoted my business overnight to a virtual one. I had my full timetable of 80 classes a week from 42 teachers online, teachers teaching from their homes via Zoom,” she says.
