Seven areas of wellness under one roof

Yoga instructor and former TV3 news presenter Claire Robbie is on a mission to deliver New Zealand a 'Wake Up' call.

Robbie is preparing to open a one-stop store - called Wake Up - combining seven areas of wellness in one place, including a natural food bar, organic food store, a wellness product store, workshops, holistic therapies, online services and wellness activities under one roof.

"People can have a coffee, do some yoga, buy some gifts, have a massage," Robbie said.

It would be a meeting place for people interested in health and taking care of themselves. The 35-year-old yogi and founder of Jack and Olive health retreats became involved with Wake Up after she was approached by the project's mastermind, former Walmart South America chief executive Alejandro Fava. They plan to open a flagship store in Parnell next April.

Argentinian Fava approached Robbie after attending one of her yoga classes and she jumped at the opportunity.

Robbie, who returned to New Zealand in July after an eight-month stint travelling with her 20-month-old son Jack, learned the art of yoga after a career in journalism.

"There are a lot of things with journalism that have been really useful in communication, confidence in public speaking, assertiveness. All my jobs have led me to the place I am now," she said. But Robbie does miss the "storytelling" and the "fast-paced" elements of journalism.

Robbie began practising yoga 15 years ago after suffering a major knee injury but became more involved during her divorce from reality TV host Dominic Bowden three years ago.

"It wasn't until I went through a divorce that yoga truly became my soul's co-pilot. I realised how crucial it was to finding peace and grounding within myself instead of relying on the external to take care of it for me," she said.

Now Robbie is brimming with confidence over her new project.

"This is the perfect job for me. It combines absolutely everything that I feel are my strengths and we are going to be sharing our knowledge and this Wake Up journey with a lot of people."