Product Update

Is Yoga Bellies Still in Business? (2026 Update)

Is Yoga Bellies from Dragons’ Den still around in 2026? The deal it made, the dragons who invested, and where to buy Yoga Bellies today.

Dragons' Den IndexUpdated 28 April 20266 min read

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Yoga Bellies is one of the better known Dragons' Den franchise stories in the UK, and it is also a case where turning a Dragon down turned out to be the right call. Founder Cheryl MacDonald pitched a yoga franchise for pregnant women, new mothers and children in series 11, and built something bigger than the offer she declined.

The Short Answer

Yes, YogaBellies is still in business. The franchise, now usually written as one word, has grown well beyond its Dragons' Den appearance and continues to sell franchise packages and run classes across the UK, with a network reported at more than 100 franchises in recent years.

The Pitch

Cheryl MacDonald brought her Sports & Outdoors pitch to series 11, episode 4, offering a franchise model built around yoga classes tailored to pregnancy, motherhood and babies, later expanding into classes for older children too. She asked for £50,000 in exchange for 35 percent of the business, valuing the company at roughly £143,000.

It is a pitch that plays to a very specific, very underserved niche: yoga classes designed around the physical realities of pregnancy and early motherhood rather than a generic studio format.

The Deal, and Why It Fell Through

Duncan Bannatyne offered the £50,000 investment on the show. MacDonald turned it down after filming. Her explanation at the time was that she did not think Bannatyne was the right fit for the business, and she has said she would have preferred a female investor for a brand built specifically around women's health and motherhood.

That is a founder betting on her own read of the business over a guaranteed cheque, which is a real risk. It also turned out to be the right call.

What Happened After Filming

Without the Dragon's money, MacDonald grew YogaBellies through franchising, selling the model to instructors who wanted to run their own local classes under the brand. That approach scaled well. By the early 2020s the network had grown past 100 franchises across the UK, and franchise directories were still actively listing YogaBellies opportunities as recently as late 2025.

The business now runs two main strands, YogaBellies for women at any stage of life including pregnancy, and YogaBelliesKidz for children, which broadens the franchise's appeal well beyond the original pregnancy focused pitch.

Where Things Stand Now

In short: Yoga Bellies asked for £50,000 for 35 percent in series 11, was offered that exact deal by Duncan Bannatyne, and turned it down after filming. Cheryl MacDonald built the franchise independently instead.

Today the answer to the headline question is a clear yes. YogaBellies is still operating, still franchising, and still selling the same core idea it pitched in the Den, even if the money behind its growth never came from a Dragon.

Why the Franchise Model Worked Here

Fitness franchises live or die on how easy they are for a new instructor to pick up and run in their own local area, and that is where a tightly defined niche like pregnancy and mother-and-baby yoga has an advantage over a generic studio format. Instructors know exactly who they are marketing to, and parents searching for a class built specifically around their stage of life are easier to convert than someone browsing a general yoga timetable.

MacDonald's decision to expand into YogaBelliesKidz alongside the original women's offering also widened the franchise's addressable market without diluting the brand's core identity, giving instructors two related products to sell under one recognisable name.

Common Questions

Did Yoga Bellies get a deal on Dragons' Den? Duncan Bannatyne offered the full £50,000 ask for 35 percent, but Cheryl MacDonald turned the investment down after filming.

Is YogaBellies still operating in 2026? Yes, the franchise has grown to more than 100 locations and franchise opportunities were still being actively listed as of late 2025.

Why did the founder reject the Dragon's offer? She said she did not think Bannatyne was the right investor for a brand built around women's health, and would have preferred a female backer.

What kinds of classes does YogaBellies run? Yoga tailored to pregnancy and motherhood under the original brand, plus a separate YogaBelliesKidz programme for children, both delivered through local franchisees across the UK.

Where to buy Yoga Bellies

Still selling as of 28 April 2026. Check today's price and availability.

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See the full Yoga Bellies deal breakdown and term sheet →