Transform My Dance Studio – The Podcast For Dance Studio Owners

Is your dance studio merchandise making you money, or is it just another task on your never-ending to-do list?  In this episode of the Transform My Dance Studio Podcast, host Cara Poppitt welcomes Carrie Bintz, CEO and founder of Plie Promotions, to share how studio owners can turn merchandise into a profitable revenue stream without adding more work to their plates. From choosing products families actually want to pricing for profit, planning seasonal launches, and creating excitement around your studio brand, Carrie reveals how to make merchandise a strategic part of your business. You'll walk away with practical ideas to increase sales, simplify operations, and build a studio store that supports your bottom line.  What You'll Learn  How to turn your studio merchandise into an intentional, profitable revenue stream.  Why planning merchandise around your studio calendar can increase sales and reduce last-minute stress.  How to choose products that dancers and families actually want to buy.  Why offering too many merchandise options could be hurting your sales.  How to price your merchandise strategically to protect your profit margins.  Why creating urgency and exclusivity can encourage families to purchase.  How to promote merchandise without feeling pushy or adding pressure to families.  How to simplify ordering, payments, and inventory management so your studio store doesn't become another full-time job.  Why delegating your merchandise strategy could create more opportunities for growth in your studio.  Carrie Bintz is the CEO and founder of Plie Promotions, a company specializing in custom merchandise, apparel, and online stores for dance studios. A former dance teacher and choreographer known for creating high-scoring competition routines, Carrie built her business from the ground up, transforming a small home-based venture into a successful company serving thousands of dance studios. Her passion for dance, entrepreneurship, and helping studio owners succeed drives her mission to make branded merchandise easier, more exciting, and more profitable for the dance industry.  Ready to Elevate Your Studio Merch?  Visit Plie Promotions to request a studio account and book a quick call with their team to explore merchandise options for your studio!  Exclusive Listener Offer: Use code DSOA for 10% OFF your first order when you sign up and place an order within one week of the episode! Visit plie-promotions.com to get started.

Is there a missing piece in your dance studio business that's holding everything else back? Maybe it's the right team member, clearer financial information, better systems, or simply the courage to make a difficult decision. In this special episode of the Transform My Dance Studio Podcast, we're revisiting one of our favourite talks from Craig Burns, Inner Circle Mastery Executive Coach, who brings over a decade of coaching experience, including five years working specifically with dance studio owners and hundreds of hours of one-on-one coaching conversations. Through a powerful personal story and an interactive puzzle exercise, Craig explores how the pieces of our businesses and lives fit together, and why some pieces simply don't belong. His message is a reminder that building a successful studio requires clarity, the right information, and the willingness to stop forcing solutions that aren't working. What You'll Learn: How to identify the missing information, conversations, data, or processes that could be holding your studio back. Why making business decisions without all the facts can lead to costly mistakes. How searching for the perfect team member might be distracting you from the bigger picture. Why copying another studio's strategies doesn't necessarily mean they'll work for yours. How to recognize when a person, process, or strategy isn't the right fit. Why understanding your own business vision is essential to making the right decisions. How to approach business challenges piece by piece instead of trying to solve everything at once. Why letting go of the wrong pieces can help your studio move forward. We hope this episode will encourage you to take a closer look at the pieces of your business and recognize which ones you still need to find. Join our growing community of people just like you inside our free Facebook group. Click here to join!  Follow The Dance Studio Owners Association:  Instagram: @dancestudioownersassociation | TikTok: @dsoaofficial | Facebook: @dancestudioownersassociation  

Your recreational dancers may only spend 45 minutes a week inside your studio, but are you creating an experience that makes them feel like they truly belong there? In this episode of the Transform My Dance Studio Podcast, we're re-sharing a jam-packed talk from DSOA CEO of the Year and Studio Growth Coach Sharon Uyar. Sharon breaks down how she's built a thriving recreational program by focusing on five key areas: studio culture, customer service, marketing, engagement, and convenience. From making families feel seen to rethinking schedules, communication, community events, and even the traditional recital, Sharon shares practical ways to create a stress-free experience that drives retention, revenue, and long-term loyalty. If you want your recreational families to see your studio as more than just another activity on their calendar, this episode is packed with ideas you can put into action. What You'll Learn: How to make your studio stand out in a crowded extracurricular market Why recreational dancers need to feel just as connected as competitive dancers How to bring your studio's core values to life for families and staff Simple ways to involve parents, siblings, and the entire family in your studio community How consistent customer service training can strengthen retention How to make your marketing feel welcoming and accessible to recreational families Why community events can drive both engagement and new enrollments How to build schedules around the realities of busy family life Simple ways to make studio communication easier for parents to act on How shorter, more convenient recitals can improve the family experience and increase revenue How Sharon's studio sold more than 6,700 recital tickets and generated over $154,000 in ticket revenue Why making families feel valued, seen, and heard can turn them into studio families for life Sharon Uyar is the Executive Artistic Director of Fusion Dance Centre, where she is celebrating her 23rd season, and has more than 30 years of dance teaching experience. A member of the Dance Studio Owners Association, Sharon was named DSOA CEO of the Year in 2024. She now serves as a Studio Growth Coach for DSOA's Inner Circle, supporting dance studio owners around the world. Join our growing community of people just like you inside our free Facebook group. Click here to join!  Follow The Dance Studio Owners Association:  Instagram: @dancestudioownersassociation | TikTok: @dsoaofficial | Facebook: @dancestudioownersassociation  

Could your curriculum be one of the most valuable assets in your dance studio? In this episode of the Transform My Dance Studio Podcast, we're re-sharing a powerful talk from the Dance Teacher Web Conference & Expo in Las Vegas in August 2024, where Studio Growth Coach Alisa Finney shares her "13 Steps to Financial Freedom" and reveals why curriculum is so much more than a teaching tool. Alisa explores how a clear, progressive curriculum can create consistency across your team, strengthen student progression, protect your studio from teacher turnover, unlock additional revenue streams, and differentiate your business from the competition. Most importantly, she explains how delivering an exceptional, consistent product can build your confidence in your studio's value, helping you move away from discounts and compete on quality rather than price. What You'll Learn Why curriculum should be treated as a foundational investment in your studio How standardized curriculum creates greater consistency across your teaching team How to keep classes progressing when teachers are absent, replaced or leave your studio Why a curriculum can reduce your business's dependence on individual teacher personalities How progressive levels create clear achievement pathways for students How exams, assessments, uniforms, awards and level progression can create additional revenue opportunities Why curriculum can strengthen teacher and student-teacher training How Alisa developed her own 13-level ballet and jazz syllabi How a strong curriculum can differentiate your studio from local competitors Why confidence in your product can transform your mindset around pricing and discounting Alisa Finney is a Studio Growth Coach, dance educator and studio owner with more than 33 years of studio ownership and 40 years of teaching experience. She has developed 13-level Ballet and Jazz syllabi, presented internationally at Dance Teacher Web, and served as Artistic Director of the Melbourne Ballet Company for 17 years. Combining deep technical dance expertise with extensive business experience, Alisa now helps studio owners strengthen their teaching, leadership and businesses. Join our growing community of people just like you inside our free Facebook group. Click here to join!  Follow The Dance Studio Owners Association:  Instagram: @dancestudioownersassociation | TikTok: @dsoaofficial | Facebook: @dancestudioownersassociation  

You can run a successful dance studio for years and still feel completely insecure when it comes to your numbers. In this episode of the Transform My Dance Studio Podcast, we're resharing a powerful talk from two years ago with Robyn Tedesco, CEO of Move With Grace Dance Studio, co-owner of Inspire Dance Challenge and Amplify Dance Lab, and a certified Board Director with the Performing Arts Educators of Canada. Robyn shares how changing her mindset, learning her KPIs, creating consistent financial routines, and holding herself accountable helped her step into her CEO power—paying off more than $100,000 in debt in 18 months while still achieving a 22% profit. If getting on top of your finances keeps showing up on your 90-day plan, this episode is a reminder that you don't have to be a "math person" to understand your numbers and take control of your studio's financial future. What You'll Learn: Why you don't need to be a "math person" to understand your studio finances The mindset shift that helped Robyn stop avoiding her numbers The essential KPIs Robyn started tracking in her studio Why payroll percentage can be an important financial warning light How Money Mondays and Financial Fridays created consistency and accountability How Robyn changed the way she managed and communicated with her bookkeeper The weekly enrollment and conversion metrics she monitors How separate savings helped her prepare for summer expenses How understanding her financials strengthened her confidence as a CEO How she paid off more than $100,000 in debt in 18 months and still achieved 22% profit Why the thing that keeps appearing on your 90-day plan may be the thing you need to tackle next Robyn is the CEO of Move With Grace Dance Studio, co-owner of Inspire Dance Challenge and Amplify Dance Lab, and a certified Board Director with the Performing Arts Educators of Canada. With more than 30 years of experience in dance and leadership, she brings unmatched expertise and passion for helping studio owners grow, connect, and thrive. Parts of this episode were generated with A Join our growing community of people just like you inside our free Facebook group. Click here to join!  Follow The Dance Studio Owners Association:  Instagram: @dancestudioownersassociation | TikTok: @dsoaofficial | Facebook: @dancestudioownersassociation