Summer Moving, Happened So Fast!

Summer moving, havin' a bla-a-ast!

Summer?  In October?  Ok, its been a crazy last few months - but I finally have had some time to write about my summer adventures!  Hope you are all having a wonderful start to your school years - I've missed blogging and am happy to get back to it.

A little background - I have two studio locations, with the smaller location having one dance room. We are in a strip of businesses and we are currently the second-to-last unit from the end. The last unit on our end used to be rented by a Curves (workout for women), but the owner decided to move on and the space went up for lease last January.  It sat vacant for a few months and I looked at the space, did some calculations, negotiated the price and by June, we were in contract!

It may sound like I jumped in quickly, but in reality, I tried to make sure it was a smart decision, talked it over with just about everyone I could think of who could give me some perspective and triple-checked my break-even calculations.

So here is a super short tour of what we started with, and I apologize for the poor quality cellphone pictures:

That is standing in the front of the building, looking towards the back. The doorways back there lead to a utility closet (furnace / AC units) and bathroom.

 And here is standing in the back by the bathroom and looking at the front.  Our existing space is to the right ("through" the purple wall). Windows look out onto the sidewalk and parking lot and there is an exterior door to the left.  Also strangely located air conditioner to the left and yellow ladder, which did not come with the space, much to my husband's disappointment.

Here is a floorplan to help visualize. The new space is in purple:

So as you can see, the purple Curves space is a loooong room, but with a lot of potential!  And a lot of PURPLE.  Purple walls, purple trim, purple rug. What's hard to see in the photos is that the ceilings are actually 10' tall - which is awesome!

After brainstorming, our potential game-plan into turning this into a functional dance studio was this:

1) Divide the space and create a waiting area - one of the biggest struggles of our existing space was the waiting room was very narrow and small.  It was impossible for anyone with a stroller to enter and would be crazy when one class was leaving and another arriving.  I wanted to make the new waiting room a little bit deeper to help fix this problem.

2) Adding connecting doorways - we needed to connect the two spaces together, by joining the waiting rooms and in another spot.  In the waiting room, I wanted an open doorway to make the rooms feel very open and encourage overflow from the narrow waiting room into the larger one.  

I also wanted to a door connecting the two studios, but <> apparently the wall between the two studios was filled with bricks?!  My contractor found this to be annoying and confusing (as did I).   The only other place that had just sheetrock separating the two spaces was all the way in the back through the furnace closet.  Not ideal, but as Tim Gunn says, we made it work.

I know you are anxious for beautiful before and after photos, which I PROMISE will happen, but in another post!

Happy New Year 2013!

Happy 2013!   I hope everyone had a great break!

Over Christmas break, my husband and I moved into our new house.. and have been living without internet (or cable or phone) for the past two weeks... #darkages

While it was nice to have some time to focus on other things without the distraction of screens, our internet-less world was starting to drive us nuts!  I felt like I was back in school, going to the library to use the wifi...

Anyway - the start of the New Year is always a great time to look back at last year, look forward to the new year and set some goals.  Last year, I shared my favorite way to set goals for my business and blog.  The biggest problem is that we don't always keep those resolutions or even think about them after we make them in January.

Did you set goals for 2013?  

It turns out writing them down might be the first step to achieving them!  Check out this infographic from onlineeducation.net about setting goals (click to make bigger) and keeping them:

 

Did you have a nice break?  Did you get the plague like all of my students (and I) did?

Do you make New Year's Resolutions?  How do you keep them?  Tell me in the comments!

SOBuzz: Employee or Independent Contractor?

If you're a Studio Owner (SO) or a teacher, there comes a time when you must decide: are you an employee or an independent contractor?

In most cases of studio owners I've encountered, your teachers are considered employees, not independent contractors.

However, the business of dance studios is a very diverse group when it comes to schedules and employee structures.  One studio could be run like a fitness club with changing instructors and schedules, another could run year-round.  Between these extremes exist a multitude of other possibilities.

And the consequence of choosing incorrectly can be costly.  If you pay your employee as an independent contractor when they should be an employee, you and your teacher could owe back taxes and employment taxes, complete with interest and penalties!

Quick aside:  The rules I will be discussing will apply to the United States.  If you're outside the U.S., consult with an accountant or lawyer for the laws governing your business.

Employee or Independent Contractor?

It all comes down to how much control the SO has over the employee.

SOBuzz: Family & Friends Discount Dilemma

Just watched a great video from Marie Forleo discussing the "friends and family discount" that could easily apply to any dance studio owner.

When you own your own business, your friends and family often want to support you, but sometimes they are looking for a discount in return.  The message of the video below is whatever you choose, be clear and upfront about your policy.

If you can't afford to give discounts because you're just starting up or because you simply value your time, say so (in a polite way of course) and give them the opportunity to choose another dance studio.

Marie offers a script (around 2:14 in the video) to say to your family and friends when you don't have a discount and I've adapted it so it works for dance teachers and studio owners.

"I'm so excited Susie wants to take dance.  Know that I'd never expect you to choose my dance studio because of our relationship.  Before she registers, make sure that our studio is the right fit for you because I don't offer a friends and family discount.  If you want to move ahead, here are the tuition rates and available classes."

This gives them an 'out' if they were only looking for a handout and let's you be clear in advance without all the uncomfortableness that would come if you let them know this AFTER she signed up for classes.

What's your policy for friends and family?  Share in the comments!

SOBuzz: A Competitor Who Stole My Ideas

Fantastic article by Therese Tucker (as told to Kathryn Hawkins) over at BNET:  "How I Beat a Competitor Who Stole My Ideas".

As dance studio owners, we have all been there.  You just put out a new ad (website, sign, brochure, etc) and two months--or maybe even two days--later you see a competitor using the same wording for their own business (class names, discounts, etc).  I've personally had a competitor copy and paste all of the wording from my website (which took me days to write) and pass it off as her own idea on her website.  How irritating!

What can we take away from this article for dance studio owners?

Studio Owner Buzz: Accounting is Awesome... or is Cash Still King?

This article by NYTimes writer Jay Goltz, is a must-read for small business owners which also means... studio owners.

Many times studio owners open their businesses because they love dance, teaching dance or didn't like the way their previous studio ran things. And many studio owners fail because they don't have any understanding of how a small business operates. To start any business, including a dance business, you need to have a basic understanding of accounting or at the very least, some business understanding.

One trap that many studio owners fall into is not understanding profit, which is discussed in the NY Times article. Business owners will see a steady flow of cash coming in but at the end of the year are shocked when their accountant says they made only a few thousand, if any profit at all!

BEFORE YOU OPEN YOUR DOORS
There are many books out there that are geared towards small business owners who don't want to sift through accounting jargon. Borrow one and read it! Many times, your town or city will have a small business organization who can help you understand. Use these resources before you begin your studio.

WHEN SETTING YOUR TUITION PRICES
First figure out what you need each month to break even. Then look at studios in the area and adjoining areas to get an idea of the range. Then push quality over value. Being the cheapest in the area will only make you look like your instruction is cheap. When it comes to their kids, people want quality instruction. John Morgan of Brand Breakout said it best in his recent tweet: "Don't be the cheapest price in your industry. You'll never win. Sell value, not discounts."

SHOULD I OFFER DISCOUNTS?
Should you offer multiple class discounts, family discounts or other rewards to your most loyal clients? A word of advice: Make your highest discount the REAL price that you want for classes. If you need to bring in $50 per student, per class, per month, then make sure your lowest discount reflects that. The non-discounted tuition is more money in your pocket.

Even if you have had your studio for a while, but are not seeing the profit you think you should, you can use these resources to make changes to your current tuition system or business plan. If math is not your forte and the word accounting makes you tune out everything else in the sentence... hire an accountant who will review your business and make suggestions. For a few hundred dollars investment, some small changes could result in thousands of more profit for you.

See other articles in Business
*********************************************
If you enjoyed this post, take a moment to VOTE FOR US for Top Dance Blog of 2010 by commenting on the post (click this link). Thank you!

Dance News - Gender & Dance Edition

While females make up about 85% of the dancing population (amateur or otherwise), there are only four female directors of large ballet companies in the United States (large meaning their budget is over $2.5 million). Here are a few articles that touch on this subject that we think are worth a read:

Where Are the Women Ballet Leaders? | Dance USA

Finally, Women Choreographers | Dance Magazine

Where Are the Female Choreographers? | Dancer Universe

Gender In Dance | Bourgeon

For more dance news - search our archives.

Studio Owner Buzz: Negotiating a Lease

Studio Owner Buzz is a series of posts on useful tips for Studio Owners. Costume catalog reviews, business tips, and more. Click here for past SOBuzz articles
---------------------
Most studio owners got into the dance business from their love of teaching and of dance, not their love of contracts, business management and administrative details. However, being a studio owner also means being a businessperson and often that means negotiating with business people who have been in business much longer than you and will not be afraid to throw some punches.

My first year of owning my own studio, I was 22 and had no official "business" experience. Walking into a meeting to "negotiate" a lease with my future landlord, I might as well have been a lamb being brought to slaughter. I had no idea what I was talking about, and probably came off nervous and lacking experience... which I certainly was. Sure I had done my research, but that's not the same thing as actually negotiating. I ended up signing the lease for 2 years more than I had wanted to, but got more square footage out of the deal so I felt somewhat accomplished.

But you! You're smart! And are doing even more research so you can learn from my mistakes and be ready to negotiate with the big dogs.

First, let's learn about commercial leases.
Read more after the jump