I find the question “Who is the typical client at your studio?” rather impossible to answer. Sure I have written a business plan and talked about our “Target Market” but all of this talk about demographics and how to reach which demographic best belittles the fact that there is no “typical” at The Pilates Studio, and trying to create a typical client really puts all of the amazing and creative personalities that we encounter in these tiny little boxes. This to me seems antithetical to our mission, which is to personalize a Pilates practice for every individual. SO I will say this. The “typical” client at the Pilates Studio has a body…that’s the truth, no floating heads at our studio…At least not yet.
Where did this crazy demographic hungry typical idea come from? Well, let’s consider where we hear about Pilates most…Oh yeah the celebrity media. For instance, we always hear about the “celebrity mom of the month” that lost all of her baby weight in two weeks because she did Pilates, or the professional athlete that is having the season of his career due to his off-season Pilates practice. Let’s not forget Pippa Middleton does Pilates and clearly it’s the only reason that she looked so stunning at the Royal Wedding. Well don’t you worry at all because none of these clients are typical at The Pilates Studio.
Don’t get me wrong, we do have moms at the studio that are getting back into shape after childbirth, but these moms have their babies with them at the BYOBaby class or in small group sessions. These moms aren’t really talking to us about their figure, they are talking about how heavy their beautiful child is getting, or how hard it is to lug the bucket seat into the grocery store. We laugh at the body multitasking predicaments that a mom might find herself in. For instance, have you ever tried to shut and lock the car door with your foot, making sure that your toddler is holding onto your leg, while carrying an infant and a bag of groceries, which contains a gallon of milk? Usually the mom tells us a story like this and follows it with, “I am so glad that you made me do the step ups on the chair. Otherwise I would have fallen on my…” This may not be the glamorous “celebrity mom of the month” vision of pilates, but what can I say this is our “typical” mom client.
We also have athletic clients. We improve games and prevent over use injuries. I’ve often talked to people about the golf swing, and I have improved the rotation and flexibility in person’s body so that the power with which he could launch the ball is so much greater, but all of that seems so serious. I remember in this particular session we ended up throwing around the soft balls to implement the increased rotation and then after that of course we had to start aiming the balls (you know to test the accuracy of the increased rotation) and well the rest is history. Don’t worry nothing was broken and everyone left the session intact. But let’s be clear, we don’t just improve games outside of the studio we make games of our own within the studio. Have you ever tried to play catch while sitting on a stability ball without letting your feet touch? It’s a proprioceptive challenge that I would love to extend to anyone who’s interested. Really if you’re interested this is one of my favorite games and I will be happy to play it with you. I don’t keep score though.
Well here it is my essay about the “typical” client. Ok so there isn’t any such thing as a typical client at The Pilates Studio and the fact that I come in contact with such varied and creative souls everyday is something I relish and enjoy. SO there! Take that marketing professionals!
Katrina Hawley, C.M.A. R.S.M.E.
www.thePilatesStudioinHadley.com
If you are interested in Pippa, celebrity moms, or athletes check out the links below
Katrina Hawley, C.M.A. R.S.M.E.
www.thePilatesStudioinHadley.com
If you are interested in Pippa, celebrity moms, or athletes check out the links below
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