The studio owner

Try to find out where the studio owner is from and where his or her foundation is based. Did they just graduate college? Do they have their major in dance? Did they travel with a troupe? Were they part of a company?

Getting a good understanding of a studio owner’s background lets you know where they’re coming from and how much experience they have. Many parents choose someone who was with a well-known company. They feel that gives them the experience of being both a student and a performer.

The teachers

Look for a variety of teachers. When a dance school is diverse, I see it as more opportunity for a student to branch out and learn new styles and techniques. For example, a great studio may have a teacher who’s incredible at ballet, another who’s into hip hop, and yet another who’s a phenomenal modern dancer.

Diversity in the staff leads to diversity in the dancer.

Presence in the community

The best experience you can give a dance student is performance experience. That’s why I recommend looking for a dance school that’s active in the local community and performing locally.

A few recitals a year isn’t enough to build up that performance experience. But if a dance school is running performances at local events, it’s a great opportunity for students to really find their stage legs.

Inspiration factor

This one is all about personal preference, but look for a dance studio that’s going to inspire your children. If you go in and the ceiling’s leaking and half the flickering fluorescent lights are broken, they may not be inspired as an artist (and you won’t be inspired as a parent). So, always take a tour of the studio before you enroll your kids. Make sure it’s a welcoming environment that brings out the dancer in your child.

Photo: Bisgovuk

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Attendance was down this year, possibly because of the economy, but our booth was busier than ever. Why? Personally, I think it was because of our newly designed ClassWear line.

You see, last year, we did an intensive evaluation of that product line in the third and fourth quarter and totally revamped it.

We took our ClassWear product line and we matched it up against every other single company that has a comparable value program.

We analyzed fabrics, we compared stretch and durability, we evaluated stitching and in the end, we tore those pieces apart to find out who had the best washability, pattern & fabric quality. I mean we really critiqued every aspect of our product specs.

And then, we beat them! Without changing our price, we made serious improvements.

The end product is a line of leotards that fit better, are more resilient, hold their shape better and are still made from top quality fabric.

We launched those changes at the show and I think it had a huge impact on the audience response to our booth. People seemed genuinely excited about what we were up to. We’re not the cheapest dancewear line in the market, but we’re competitively priced and we have a superior product. Dance retailers recognize that.

Now the challenge is to come up with something even better for the Dance Retailer News Expo 2010!

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This change was brought about after excellent feedback from our customers and our sales force.

Keep the comments coming!

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