Nuku ā-roto • an inner shift
Community yoga in Ngāmotu.
A wonderfully imperfect space, where you're welcome exactly as you are.
Upstairs at 13 Brougham St and casual classes at Fitzroy SLSC.
Ko Sam tōku ingoa, those who are used to my writing will not be surprised to find a small essay here.
Nuku began with me, alone, teaching by the ocean at Fitzroy Surf Life Saving Club. I'm sure many of you can relate to the way it started, from the heart of someone whose home compass had recently shifted and was wanting to feel a sense of belonging in a new place. I wanted to share the practice I love, and hoped in doing so, to find my people.
I have continuously been blown away and immensely grateful for what has grown in return. Nuku began as something I was creating, but it quickly became a shared creation. All of you who showed up, class after class, shaped Nuku alongside me.
And I suppose that's what makes Nuku unique, it grew not from someone hoping to open a yoga studio, but from someone hoping to form connection, community and belonging. Nuku was not built by me alone. It was built by the community that believed in it first.
ō tātou kōrero • our story
ō tātou ingoa • our name
Nuku was named in the early stages of my reo Māori learning journey. I understood this kupu through a physical lens, to move, to shift, to extend.
What I have since learned is that nuku speaks to a shifting from one state to another, from one place to another. Serendipitously, this feels even more aligned.
Through yoga, we move our tinana as the vehicle. The real nuku is interior.
Nuku ā-roto · an inner shift. As with most things in life, the depth of what I had named revealed itself slowly, with time, with practice, with learning.
ko wai māua • Sam & Glenn
As Nuku grew, so did the dream of a studio, and that dream became possible alongside Glenn McBeth, local architectural designer and Iyengar yoga teacher. Glenn's architecture practice, Tui Architecture, shares the building at 13 Brougham Street.
Glenn and I have been crossing paths since I arrived in Ngāmotu. I have been a student in his Iyengar class and he in my surf club classes. Neither of us had anticipated a studio but here we are, sharing a space and a belief that yoga should be accessible to everyone.
Glenn previously ran Iyengar New Plymouth, his own yoga school, before Nuku brought us together under one roof.
My hope for this space is that it grows the same way Nuku always has, shaped by many voices, not one vision. A studio that feels alive with different personalities, different ways of practising and different ways of teaching.
te reo me te ao Māori
Nuku's story has sat alongside my own haerenga of reconnecting with my Māori whakapapa, the two have grown interwoven.
It feels important to acknowledge that Glenn and I come to this space from different backgrounds, and while we hold the studio together, we each bring our own whakapapa and tikanga to how we teach within it.
Te reo Māori and te ao Māori are woven through my practice, shaped by continuous and imperfect learning. Offered with humility, always growing, always still learning.
Other teachers at Nuku bring their own voices and lineages. What is consistent across all of it is a space that honours and uplifts te ao Māori as part of what Nuku is, held together not by one voice, but by our shared kaupapa.
te wāhi • the studio
A wonderfully imperfect space, where you are welcome exactly as you are.
Nuku was born from the joy of practising yoga alongside others, and that spirit is at the heart of everything we do.
This is not a curated space and it is not a perfect one. It is a place where movement is explored with curiosity, where laughter is welcome, and where showing up as you are is genuinely enough.
Wobbles happen here. Learning happens here.
The studio has a collective feel to it, built by and for a community.
our KAUPAPA
What we are creating at 13 Brougham Street is safe, non-judgemental and genuinely supportive of wherever you are in your practice, a place where movement facilitates presence, not performance.
Whether you're brand new to yoga, returning after time away, or simply looking for a community to move with, you'll find something that feels like yours.
Nuku is home to teachers with diverse voices and interpretations of movement.
The timetable is a living thing. Our surf club classes continue. Nuku began by the ocean and a part of it will always live there.
I started Nuku hoping to find my people in a new place. What I had not anticipated was the joy of watching you all find community within this space.
To everyone who has practised, shared, offered and encouraged, and to those who are yet to arrive, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.
This studio is as much yours, as it is ours.
FAQ’s • The Studio
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13 Brougham Street, New Plymouth. Opposite the library in town, upstairs above Nami Sushi.
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Street parking is available on Brougham Street and in nearby council car parks. Council-managed parking is free before 8am, after 5pm, and all day on Sundays and public holidays.
Paid parking applies for weekday morning classes between 8am and 5pm.Free parking for Gold Card holders before 11am, just display your GC on your dashboard.
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Yes 🤎 mats, blocks, straps, blankets and bolsters are all available at the studio. You're welcome to bring your own mat if you prefer.
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Our Mahana Vinyasa class is warmed by heaters, and the class itself is designed to build warmth from the moment you start moving.
Other classes are held at room temperature or gently heated, depending on what's needed.
Infrared panel heating remains a longer-term dream for our little studio.
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Yes 🤎 please reach out to nukuyogaspace@gmail.com to purchase a gift voucher.
FAQ’s • General
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Yes. Nuku classes are for beginners, returners, regular practitioners, people who haven't moved in a while, people who move every day, and everyone in between. If you're brand new, our Beginners Vinyasa or Glenn's Iyengar Beginners Course are lovely places to start, and beyond that, some classes are more dynamic than others, check the class descriptions or get in touch if you're unsure where to start.
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Please let your teacher know before class, even a quick word at the door helps us support you properly. You're always welcome to slow down, rest or skip any movement that doesn't feel right. If you have a medical condition, are returning after surgery or have been advised to avoid certain types of movement, please check with your healthcare provider before attending.
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Yes, please get in touch before booking so we can make sure you're in the right class with the right support. We ask that a doctor or health professional has approved your participation before attending.
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A few things that help the space feel good for everyone.
Try to arrive with enough time to get settled before we start, this time is for you, a chance to arrive fully before the practice begins. Shoes off at the door, phones away during class.
One of the most beautiful things our community told us before we opened was that they wanted a space where they could arrive as they are, not to be seen, not to perform, not to curate. We hold that with care, and ask that you do the same for the people practising alongside you.
Please wipe down your mat after class and return any props to where you found them. Be kind to the people around you, and have fun.
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Our website is the best place to find the most up to date live timetable. You can also follow us on Instagram @nukuyoga or Facebook for timetable updates, studio news and everything in between, and sign up to our email list through the website so you don't miss anything important.
Nuku is a space that acknowledges the dynamics of life, for students and teachers alike. We encourage you to check the timetable ahead of class to confirm it's running.
We will always aim to give at least 24 hours notice if a class needs to be cancelled, via Instagram, Facebook and email. Nuku's teachers are human, and we appreciate the grace and understanding of a community that honours that.
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You're welcome to reach out anytime at nukuyogaspace@gmail.com or 020 4032 6189. I'll get back to you as soon as I can, Sam 🤎
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Nuku began by the ocean, and a part of it will always live there. Classes continue weekly at Fitzroy Surf Life Saving Club, Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings with Sam.
Mats and props are provided, and the space runs a little differently to the studio, see our Nuku @ Fitzroy SLSC page for more info.