Author: Lisé Kuecker

I believe one of the best traits a studio owner can have is the ability to pivot.

To take what they thought was the “perfect picture” and be okay with turning it down. Or taking a what could be viewed as a crappy hand and turning it into a winning round.

And that’s exactly what my guest on today’s episode of Ready. Aim. Empire., Melissa Martin, did when she went from receiving a cease and desist letter for running her personal training business out of her home to finding what on paper was the ideal second studio space, but turning it down because her intuition knew it wasn’t the best fit.

Melissa, along with her husband, David, is the owner of S.W.E.A.T. Revolution, an athletic training and yoga studio in upstate New York that is seeing tremendous growth, largely due to Melissa’s money mindset.

That’s right, not market conditions, pricing or marketing (although, those items play a pivotal role as well), as Melissa explains, the massive shifts she has experienced in her business, particularly in the last six months, have primarily been influenced by her mental relationship with wellness and wealth.

In this episode, Melissa’s shares the start of her journey from competing in fitness competitions in 2012 and being financially broke to being at her heaviest, yet bringing in six figures, and how that journey unlocked a new way of thinking that has allowed her to pivot from being stuck in a scarcity and lack mindset to one of abundance and receiving.

As a result, S.W.E.A.T. Revolution has grown to new heights, and now she’s sharing her story to help you do the same with your studio.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Melissa’s take on why you have the right and responsibility to abundance in your life
• How wellness isn’t about weight, but how you honor and love yourself and view your self-worth
• Tips for unlearning old truths and adopting new truths in shifting your money mindset
• How to combat the fraud-y feelings and fear that arises when considering raising the rates of your studio
• Why it’s critical to build in multiple revenue streams into your business to allow you to pivot with fewer road bumps
• The various factors to consider first when making a big decision or shift in your business

With Grit & Gratitude,

Lisé

 

Melissa Martin is a transformational wealth & wellness coach, speaker & author specializing in teaching women how to birth a new money mindset & discover their self worth. She works with a large number of fitness entrepreneurs, teaching them how to build in multiple income streams to their businesses.

She also the co-owner of S.W.E.A.T. Revolution along with her husband David where they specialize in athletic strength & conditioning for student athletes.

Instagram: @melissa_m_martin

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/melissa.folster

Website: www.HustleAndWooWoo.com

Ready, set… retreat!

So, you’re ready to host your first retreat and make it a blowout success.

Well, not so fast! I know you’re eager to get your event planner hat on, but before you dive into sharing with your community about this amazing retreat you want them to join in on, you’ve got to do the groundwork to ensure your retreat brings you revenue and not financial regret.

The first crucial step is finding a venue and crunching all your numbers so you can create a profitable retreat roadmap.

If you haven’t done that already, you know what I’m going to tell you…

Click here to listen to Episode #209 for Part 1 of my Retreats With Real Revenue series.

In that episode I clue you into all the key considerations you’ll want to have in mind when choosing the right venue to rent including lodging, accessibility, amenities, legalities, and more, plus the two most important numbers you need to know in the planning stage to be profitable when it’s all said and done.

And now in Part 2, I’m getting into the nitty-gritty on marketing your retreat so it sells out along with plenty of other tips and insights, of course!

One of the most crucial elements of this whole process that I want you to keep in mind is the difference between an event and retreat.

It’s a thin line that’s easy to cross, so as you’re listening to Part 1 and Part 2, be acutely aware of what kind of event you’re envisioning so you can create the perfect profit plan.

You never know, it may just spur a new arm of your empire.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Deciding factors on whether you’re looking to host a retreat or event and the marketing lead time you’ll need for both
• How to build out an affiliate network and leverage the marketing power of your teachers and retreat guides
• What you need on a promotional calendar for your affiliates and for you to successfully sell out spots
• Key elements of your sales page, copy, and multimedia, such as video, that you need to have ready before you put out your first piece of promotional content

References and recommendations:

• Infusionsoft
• SamCart
• LeadPages

With Grit & Gratitude,

Lisé

Anytime someone asks where the world of wellness and studio ownership is headed, she’s the one I reference.

Whenever I’m showing a client what their website should look like to draw in and captivate potential client, she’s the one I pull up.

And anytime I talk to a doubtful or hesitant studio owner on the power of reshaping their offerings to go deeper and to ask for more; her story is the one I tell…

I’m talking about my Client Cure alum, Alyssa Pfennig who’s the founder of Embarque Yoga. Wellness. Spa. whose vision for a studio that offers a full-scale holistic healing environment is changing the face of Indianapolis yoga.

Through the process of what Alyssa calls a “slow unraveling,” she tells her story of how she discovered the healing power of yoga therapy, became certified, and grew her business first as a side-hustle alongside possibly one of the most intriguing and non-traditional corporate jobs one could have, and eventually opened her original Embarque studio space, which she has recently left behind for the next stage of her business’ expansion.

In addition to growing her business intentionally and with many of the mindful listening techniques she uses in her yoga practice, Alyssa has also been incredibly strategic and savvy in following her vision for more, which has resulted in a business based not only on a recurring revenue model but one with multiple revenue streams.

I’ve been fascinated watching Alyssa’s journey to where she is today, how she’s navigated the four stages of studio growth, and the cyclical nature of that process that she’s currently experiencing.

If you’re a studio owner with their eyes set on an empire, Alyssa’s insights are ones you won’t want to gloss over.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Alyssa’s journey from corporate job to founding a non-profit to pivoting her full focus on her studio and how that impacted its growth
• How she brought prominence to yoga therapy in Indianapolis and the definition and distinctions of yoga therapy
• The balance between providing services in a hospital setting vs. a private practice and how yoga therapy integrates with traditional medicine
• The impetus and process of expanding Embarque beyond yoga and into a multi-revenue business model
• The beautiful benefits of a vertical services pattern versus a horizontal one
• How Alyssa is working toward the Freedom Stage of her vision and the steps needed to get there

Additional Recommended Resources:

• Embarque Yoga, Wellness, and Spa
• Business Brilliant: Surprising Lessons from the Greatest Self-Made Business Icons by Lewis Schiff

With Grit & Gratitude,

Lisé

So, you think you want to host a retreat…

First let me say congrats because once your mind starts wandering over to the idea of cultivating your community in a shared and intimate experience, I think that means you’ve got something brewing within that you know will create a significant impact on a deep level.

That said, once you get the idea of a retreat in your head, I know how easy it is to let the excitement and inspiration swirl, but once you get into the logistics…

Let’s just say all those ideas get a little less dreamy.

You’re up to your eyeballs in fine print. The answer to every question brings up three new questions. And the food! How are you going to feed these people?!

You catch my drift.

Hosting a retreat can be rewarding, but it can also be a doozy of an undertaking, which is why I’m breaking down all my personal retreat-planning insights in my latest series of Ready. Aim. Empire. episodes, Retreats With Real Revenue.

Whether you’ve built a virtual community that you’d like to bring together in person or connect with your community outside the walls of your brick-and-mortar studio, planning a retreat may be the next natural step in the evolution of your business offerings.

In this first episode within the series, I’m diving into the first big piece of the planning puzzle, which is your venue plus alllll the things you need to consider when planning and decision-making to set your pricing to be profitable.

Then, once you’ve got those areas covered, we’ll talk about advertising and how to fill up the spots in your retreat!

But let’s not get in over our heads and take this one smart and strategic step at a time…

In this episode you’ll learn:

• The difference between hosting a retreat versus an event
• Key considerations when choosing the right venue to rent including lodging, accessibility, amenities, legalities, and more
• The two most important numbers you need to know in the planning stage to be profitable when it’s all said and done
• How to determine what role you’ll play within the leadership of the retreat and how you’ll coordinate the logistics of fellow teachers you’re bringing onboard
• The realistic timeline you need to have in order to set your retreat up for success

With Grit & Gratitude,

Lisé