We recently connected with Katie Rothweiler and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Katie, thanks for joining us today. Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

I think that my version of success may be a bit different than other people’s. I always say that I’m a terrible capitalist. I see people as people, not numbers, and that does put us a disadvantage (in some ways) in a capitalist system. For me, success is creating a safe space that people feel completely comfortable being themselves, dropping the mask, creating art, succeeding and failing. Seeing our studio full of people working hard to do things they may have never thought possible, that is success to me.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Katie Rothweiler, and I am Co-Owner of Bloom Movement Artistry. My business partner (and best friend) Sarah Hahn and I opened our circus studio in September of 2020. We have both been movement artists for decades, and started aerial around the same time, the beginning of 2012. Her and I had both started out as belly dancers (prior to our meeting), and then also found fire arts.

From the time I moved to Charlotte in 2011, Sarah and I had similar paths, working at the same studio. I decided to leave that space in August of 2019. It wasn’t a good fit for me anymore, and I left to manage marketing for a new jazz club in Charlotte, taking a break from the aerial world. In May of 2020, Sarah left that studio as well.

Together we decided that we wanted to see something a little different in Charlotte. We wanted to create a space on our own in which we could really incorporate our personal and professional values. Creativity, diversity and inclusivity are three of those core values that we promote and encourage in our space. We truly do believe that every BODY is a circus body, and bring on coaches that believe the same. We also believe that each person is unique, creative and has something to contribute to this community, city and world. Our goal is to foster those things, and help people find their passion.

We teach aerial at Bloom, but also dance classes, fire arts workshops, and other creative disciplines. In addition to that, we put on 5 annual shows in our space, inviting artists to take the stage, whether they are just starting out their performance paths, or are seasoned pros.

We also have a performance troupe, Satarah Productions. This troupe has grown from just Sarah and I, to a group of over 25 professional and insured performers. We perform at everything from private parties to weddings to corporate events!

Any advice for managing a team?

Honestly, listen. I feel like so many business owners are very rigid as far as what they want their business to be like. Sometimes so much so that when their own employees and contracted workers are telling them what needs to change, they won’t listen because they know best. I think that is the biggest killer of a team. Listen to your people, make sure they actually feel heard, and treat them with respect. They are often the ones with the boots on the ground information and feedback from clients.

I think this may actually be a benefit of not having much background in business. I didn’t go to school for it. I haven’t studied it other than religiously reading books and listening to podcasts about healthy corporate culture. My ego doesn’t drive my business, and I think that is a big reason that our coaches are so happy!

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

The most difficult things that we’ve experienced in owning and running a business have actually ended up being moral dilemmas. For instance, we opened during COVID. When we started, we could only have 3 people per class. Everyone was in masks and we didn’t have air conditioning, so you can imagine, when climbing 15’+ in the air, it got HOT. We had teachers and students that were immunocompromised, so we kept the mask mandate well after it was released by the state. Then we started having people reach out who had exercise induced asthma, and couldn’t do it anymore. We lost a lot of students at that time, and of course also dealt with the more politicized aspect of things in the form of emails and messages.

So we had to take a step back and look at the fact that we were making people uncomfortable no matter what we chose. We were keeping people from practicing because they also had debilitating health issues, even though we thought we were doing the right thing by continuing to require masks. There have been a few of these issues that have come up throughout our time in business. Times where we really have to turn the magnifying glass back on ourselves and reevaluate our actions, even though we hadn’t even questioned our stance previously.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bloommovementartistry.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bloom_movement_artistry
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@satarahproductions
• Other: https://www.satarahpresents.com

Image Credits

Lunahzon
Nadia Images
Shaun Hollingsworth
Studio Jaki