Daughter of political icon pursues profitable niche in yoga.

I could manage the warrior and the downward dog. And I definitely excelled at the corpse. But that's about the extent of my yoga knowledge. It's an activity that never held my attention, the pace too leisurely for my liking.

Yoga has helped Parichart Silpa-archa stay trim and youthful-looking at 44.

But chatting with Parichart Silpa-archa makes me think I should perhaps give it another try, considering that the radiance of her skin and tone of her muscles are those of a woman much younger than her 44 years.

"What I like most about yoga is that it has an inner beauty about it," she said.

We are at her new, half-completed, 10-million-baht yoga studio at Paradise Park. Ms Parichart, the managing director of Enlighten Yoga, hopes to begin classes in yoga, hot yoga and Pilates in July.

Yoga is definitely a step away from her family business. The second daughter of former prime minister Banharn Silpa-archa, Ms Parichart began studying yoga in earnest in 2003, learning under Adrian Cox and later becoming a teacher at his well-respected Yoga Elements studio and receiving certification from the Yoga Alliance of America.

Ms Parichart plays down any negative thoughts that her interest might strike some as a letdown considering her family's prominence in politics.

"Some people may think that being the daughter [of Mr Banharn] is a double-edged sword, but for me, it's a win-win situation," she says calmly.

"On one hand, [family connections] certainly help me in business in terms of contacts. On the other hand, you do get the impression of people viewing you as being somewhat underachieving. But that only inspires me to try my best."

Ms Parichart said she chose Paradise Park for her first studio due to its upscale image and the relative lack of competition in the area around Srinakarin Road.

"Most of the schools here are small. But there are quite a number of high- and middle-class housing estates here. I think it's a promising market," she said.

Yoga is a growing business in Thailand, with estimated revenues of up to 500 million baht per year. Nearly half of the market is dominated by large fitness chains such as Absolute Yoga, California WOW and Fitness First, with the rest led by smaller yoga studios.

Ms Parichart said the potential for the market was quite high, considering that only 1-2% of the population are estimated to exercise three or four times per week, a proportion well below the 6% in Singapore and as much as 15% in the United States.

"But the yoga business hasn't grown very well in Thailand. Most of the operators are small and don't last long. But I'm hopeful that we can grow, with a focus on premium services with reasonable prices," said Ms Parichart, who holds finance and business management degrees from Thammasat University and Bangkok University.

Enlighten will focus its marketing on the company's certified instructors and launch a series of promotional campaigns to help draw clients, including road shows at nearby shopping malls, hospitals and even companies operating in the area.

"I want to build life security on my own. This is a first step for me," Ms Parichart said.