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Anne Mahlum says she spent about $123,000 of her own money to help former Y7 employees recover eight weeks of unpaid wages after the yoga chain closed its studios. More than 90% of roughly 150 workers created GoFundMe pages to claim what they were owed, according to Mahlum’s account to Athletech News.
Anne Mahlum, founder of fitness company Solidcore, says she has spent about $123,000 of her own money to help former Y7 employees receive eight weeks of unpaid wages after the yoga chain closed its studios. Mahlum told Athletech News that more than 90% of around 150 workers set up GoFundMe pages to seek the money they were owed.
Mahlum said she advised the former employees to create fundraising pages to claim their unpaid wages, then paid each participating worker an amount equal to eight weeks of wages. The report does not specify how many individual workers received payments or provide a breakdown of the amounts. The roughly $123,000 total and the description of the payments come from Mahlum’s account to Athletech News.
Y7’s studios have all closed, according to the report. The chain had 15 studios at its peak before the pandemic. Former co-founder Sarah Larson Levey said Mahlum contacted her shortly after the closures to coordinate how the assistance would work. Levey described the help as “a kindness that goes above and beyond.”
Mahlum said she acted after hearing that some workers had fallen behind on rent, and framed the payments as both immediate assistance and a response to wider concerns about how fitness companies compensate instructors and studio staff. Her comments about the company’s former operator, Fitlab, are criticisms; the material supplied does not include a response from Fitlab or an independent account of the wage claims.
Wage Help After Y7’s Closure
The payments offer direct financial support to workers who say they were left without several weeks of wages when Y7 shut down. For employees facing rent or other immediate bills, assistance covering eight weeks of pay could help address an urgent shortfall. The article does not establish whether Mahlum’s payments fully cover each worker’s legal or contractual wage claim.
The episode also highlights a vulnerability in the boutique fitness business: instructors and studio staff can depend on a company’s finances and operating decisions for their income, while having little control over those decisions. Mahlum said she wants fitness brands to give employees a larger financial stake. Her intervention is a private payment, however, not a formal settlement or a change in Y7’s ownership or employment practices.
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Y7’s Closure and Ownership Dispute
Y7 grew to 15 studios at its peak before the pandemic, then ultimately closed all locations. The source describes Fitlab as the chain’s embattled owner and says Mahlum alleged that it stopped paying employees. The available material does not detail when the missed wages began or explain the company’s financial position.
Larson Levey, who co-founded Y7, said Fitlab took operational control after acquiring a majority stake. In a September Substack post, she accused Fitlab and operator VM Fitness of running the company “into the ground” through poor management decisions. Those are Larson Levey’s allegations; the source material does not include responses from Fitlab or VM Fitness.
Mahlum previously sold Solidcore in 2023 for a reported $98.4 million and paid employees $5 million as part of that deal, according to Athletech News. That earlier action informs her stated interest in sharing financial rewards with workers, but it is separate from the payments she says she made to former Y7 staff.
““This industry means a lot to me.””
— Anne Mahlum, speaking to Athletech News
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Unanswered Questions About Wage Claims
The report does not identify the precise number of employees who received money, how the payments were calculated for each person, or whether every worker’s wage claim was addressed. It says more than 90% of around 150 workers created GoFundMe pages and that Mahlum paid each of them eight weeks’ worth of unpaid wages, but it does not clarify whether “each” refers to all page creators or another group.
It is also unclear how much Y7 owed in total, whether employees have filed formal claims, or whether any wages remain unpaid. The source attributes the stoppage in pay to Fitlab through Mahlum’s account, but provides no statement from Fitlab, VM Fitness, or a relevant labor authority. The status of the companies and any process for resolving outstanding claims is not specified.
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Workers’ Claims and Company Response
The immediate next steps for former employees are not described in the report. Workers may still need to pursue any unpaid amounts not covered by Mahlum’s payments, but the source gives no details about a formal claims process, legal action, or a timetable for further payments.
Further information from Fitlab and VM Fitness could clarify the disputed circumstances around the missed wages and Y7’s closure. Until those companies or relevant authorities provide more detail, the total amount owed and the resolution of workers’ claims remain uncertain.
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Key Questions
How much did Anne Mahlum say she paid former Y7 workers?
Mahlum told Athletech News that she spent about $123,000 of her own money on payments for former employees.
How many weeks of wages did the payments cover?
Mahlum said she paid each participating worker an amount equal to eight weeks of unpaid wages. The report does not give individual payment amounts.
How many Y7 employees sought help?
Mahlum said Y7 had around 150 employees and that more than 90% created GoFundMe pages to claim wages. The report does not state the exact number who received payments.
Why did Y7 close?
The source says Y7 closed all its studios but does not establish a definitive reason. Former co-founder Sarah Larson Levey blamed Fitlab and operator VM Fitness for poor management; those accusations are attributed to her, and the source does not include their response.
Are all former Y7 workers’ wage claims settled?
That is not clear. The report does not say whether the payments covered every amount owed or whether workers have additional claims outstanding.
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