I grew up in a small northern suburb of Cincinnati. We didn’t go to the big city often and I spent my time in Loveland, Ohio surrounded by people I knew, reading the Loveland Herald, and seeing myself and people I knew in the paper for sports, volunteer work, and so on. Like most kids growing up, I could not wait to go somewhere else which is why I went to college in Kentucky. Moving away often makes you appreciate what you had!

I attended Centre College in Danville, KY - a safe small college town that I could go running at night and not worry about safety. Once again, I was in a local town where I got to know a lot of people. I was glad to be in a community and not lost in a big city.

What I have learned through the years and these experiences is the value of local and small town. The way a community supports its residents and local businesses. The pace of life can be a bit slower and the stress level is a bit less. There is pride in the local businesses and respect for your hard working neighbors.

It’s for all of those reasons and more that I choose to live, work and own a business in a neighborhood, in Surprise, and to be a locally owned, independent business.

At one point in my studio owning career I looked into the ‘franchise’ and realized very quickly it wasn’t for me. I want to be able to run a business the way that best serves my students not a corporation or sponsor. I want to be able to flex and change as it seems appropriate for my students and my locale. Too often what I see in franchise situations is an owner or investor that does not know Pilates and is interested in an investment. I’m sure we’ve all experienced a restaurant we loved getting bought out and changing - smaller portions, lower quality ingredients, specials disappear and so on. It’s about cost savings not the customer.

I never went into owning a Pilates Studio with the mindset of making a fortune - I had a passion and I really felt more people needed to know and benefit from Pilates. I’m best able to do that when I can be an independent local business and be a part of my community. That’s imprortant to me. In my previous studios I’ve been able to add classes or change class times or change the rules when needed because I am there and present and feeling the pulse of the business, knowing the clients and seeing what is needed. No board or far away investor could know that.

I share this with you because being a local independent business isn’t the easiest path to take. No one but me is funding the studio and no one cares more than me how it does and how your experience is. I hope you will consider that when you decide who to do business with - whether that’s a local restaurant, shop, or studio. Supporting local is supporting someone’s dream and someone’s investment in you neighborhood!