A career in Pilates has taken Roz Norman to places she never dreamed of. In 2018, she and her husband Dave left their boutique Pilates studio business in Australia in the hands of a capable manager to work for Virgin Active in Southeast Asia. There they headed up the fitness and Pilates programs in Singapore and Thailand, with their three children in tow.
After two years establishing and growing the Pilates Reformer programs at Virgin Active, the couple decided to return to the Gold Coast, Australia, to focus on building and scaling their own boutique Pilates studio business, Pilates & Co.
“Dave and my personality, we’re risk takers. We never sit still. We are constantly go, go, go because this is our passion. We’re from the gym industry, we’ve owned studios and run franchises, sold gym equipment. I started teaching aerobics at 16; Dave is a surfer and ex-surf lifesaving competitor. I studied business and he took physical education, so our skillsets complement each other,” Roz says.
Now celebrating her 30th year in the fitness industry, Roz explains how she and Dave built two bustling Pilates studio businesses in their home country of Australia.
Building and scaling two Pilates studio businesses in Australia
When structuring their business plan for Pilates & Co., Roz and Dave had to “find that sweet spot.”
“How many Reformers can you fit in a group space to make the business work financially while still maintaining an intimate atmosphere for your clients? We decided on 14 Merrithew® SPX® Max Reformers at both studios,” Roz says.
“After outfitting four Virgin Active studios in Singapore with 16 to 20 SPX Max Reformers each, and unpacking those studios myself, it gave me an even bigger appreciation and love for Merrithew equipment. The quality and smoothness of Merrithew Pilates machines and the minimal amount of maintenance are huge bonuses for a busy studio owner like myself.”
While 14-person group classes are foundational to the financial success of Pilates & Co., Roz also wanted to offer private and small group classes, something most big-box gyms don't generally do.
“Some people aren’t ready for the fast-paced flow of group Pilates Reformer classes, so a lot of people start with 1:1 and then move up from there to group Reformer classes. We also offer small group classes with up to three people, which have been really popular.”
By making memberships the most cost-effective option for clients, Pilates & Co. has also incentivized clients to commit to at least one group class a week for three months.
“We believe people have to attend at least two classes to experience the benefits of Pilates and mindful movement. We’ve made the memberships more affordable than the class packs to encourage clients to come in two to four times per week. The membership option has grown significantly over the last few months. People aren’t traveling as much these days, so they’re more willing to commit to a membership,” Roz says.
For $149 AUD ($109 USD), new clients can try three 1:1 private sessions.
“Eight out of 10 of these new clients sign up for more private sessions or small group classes, so it’s proving to have a really high conversion rate. I think that’s because these intro offers attract people who want to understand the Pilates practice and how the studio works. They also want to feel encouraged and supported as they learn. Pilates can be a little intimidating and they may have first-time jitters, so private Pilates sessions help them get accustomed to the studio and our workout style.”
Tips on attracting and engaging new Pilates studio clients
Roz and Dave are constantly coming up with new ideas and strategies to attract diverse clients and cultivate a sense of community at Pilates & Co.
Here are some of the incentives they’ve offered:
- A free men’s class led by Dave once a month and sponsored by a brewery
- A $5 outdoor mat Pilates class at a local park, exposing new participants to the Pilates & Co. workouts in a fun and accessible way
- Mums and Bubs classes for new mothers and their babies
- Free online workout access for members
- Four six-week fitness challenges a year
“Our fitness challenges have excellent uptake and generate great conversions from first-timers to members.
“We do an initial health assessment using Ph360, a program that helps us determine our clients’ ‘health type’ so we can create customized programs for them. This helps us recommend the best time of day for them to work out and the best type of class for them to take.
“We train our teachers to understand these different ‘health types’ so they can personalize their teaching to each client. For example, some people enjoy being corrected and repositioned, others want to feel warm and safe and don’t want to be called out in public, so we try to accommodate their preferences.”
What’s been key to your success as Pilates studio owners?
1. Invest in your instructors and their continuing education and professional development
“We look after our instructors. We deliver two-hour training to our instructors every two weeks and offer 1:1 training every month. We encourage them to attend small and large group classes whenever they can to learn from their peers.
“I’m also a big believer in having a variety of instructors who’ve trained in different modalities. We look for instructors who are great communicators, open-minded and embrace evidence-based practices instead of getting stuck in the old ways of teaching Pilates,” she says.
2. Teach creative, inventive and evidence-based Pilates programming
“Dave and I, and all of our instructors, have such diverse fitness backgrounds in yoga, Pilates, personal training and functional fitness and we bring that experience to our classes. We use a lot of props, like dumbbells, sand bells, Toning Balls™, Fitness Circles®, resistance bands and Mini Stability Balls™, to create fun and engaging programming for clients. We offer 80 classes across both studios, including a Reformer HIIT class, strength and mobility small group, pre-natal Pilates, and Mums and Bubs. Our creative programming helps differentiate our classes from the competition.”
3. Strive to constantly innovate to stay ahead of the competition
On a recent short holiday to Byron Bay, Australia, a health and wellness hub, Roz and Dave spent most of their time taking Pilates and yoga classes.
“We love going to other instructors’ classes and checking out other studios. We are forward-thinkers and we know that we need to stay inspired, curious and abreast of what our clients want.
“We are considering opening a third location, whether that’s a licensee situation with a physiotherapist or some sort of combination of fitness and holistic/immersive wellness practices. Right now, infrared saunas, hot/cold hydrotherapy, and floatation therapy are very popular on the Gold Coast.
Applying their learnings from Virgin Active and Southeast Asia
“Our experience in Singapore was that clients there were a bit ahead of the curve compared to Australia. They were willing to spend more on their fitness and saw value in boutique studio offerings. Between 2005 and 2009, all of the big-box clubs there, like Virgin Active, started outfitting their facilities with spin and mind-body studios to cater to that demand, building amazing all-in-one gyms. Australia is going down that road now with boutique fitness. Clients are seeing the value in investing in fitness for their mental health and wellbeing, especially now.”