We were lucky to catch up with Gina Figliuolo recently and have shared our conversation below.
Gina, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?
One of our biggest challenges was naming our company when we rebranded in 2020. We were merging 3 locations under one umbrella brand, and man, was it challenging to come up with a name. Should we name it after the owner? Should we name it after a beloved musical act? We bandied about many options, but wanted to be sure that we were original. Anything obvious was out the window. Any name that was already taken by another music school — anywhere in the country! — was also taken out of consideration. We realized that to accomplish our goal, we …well, we’d have to make something up! And that’s how Pirisen Music Lessons was born. Our school’s mission is to “Inspire the Artist Within”, so we created an anagram of the word “Inspire.” We weren’t sure how this would go over with our current clients, but everyone has embraced our new brand and we are proudly Pirisen! Truly one-of-a-kind, just like us!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I relocated to Denver in 2016 from Los Angeles in search of well, …a more affordable life. I could buy a house here where I’d always be stuck in apartments if I’d stayed in exorbitantly-priced L.A. I didn’t have work lined up when we made the move, so I pored over job sites in search of employment. Nothing rang my bell until I saw a post for a music studio manager. As a singer and lover of music myself, this caught my eye and I made the call. I was thrilled to find out that the studio was actually a music school where I’d be surrounded by students of all ages pursuing their musical paths. I’ve also always wanted to work with kids, so this sounded like a perfect opportunity. I was hired after my first interview and I haven’t looked back. I’ve never enjoyed this kind of job satisfaction, and I don’t see my passion for this job abating any time soon. I count my blessings every day when I walk through that door. I’m about to celebrate my five year anniversary with Pirisen Music Lessons and am looking forward to many more as we are growing like wildfire!
Pirisen is a one-stop-studio for music lessons in piano, guitar, ukulele, drums, voice, violin, saxophone & more! Our mission is to build the foundation of a musical life, starting at any age, and to — most importantly — inspire the artist within. I love that our students’ ages range from 3 – 60+, proving that it’s never too early or too late to start on one’s musical journey. Our approach is to listen to our students and collaborate with them to build an instruction plan that maximizes enjoyment with their instrument, and then showcasing the fruits of their efforts in quarterly recitals. I’m also excited that we offer a really unique option which allows a student to book either 2 or 4 lessons, each in a different instrument of the student’s choice. This allows the student to explore their options and really hone in on what they’d like to pursue.
And I’m so proud that we employ local musicians as instructors. They’re the heartbeat of the Denver music scene. Who better than they to instill their love of music and pass along their knowledge to our students as we enrich the musical life of our Denver community?
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
When COVID hit, our heads spun, but we quickly shook off the shock of the shutdown and pivoted our entire lesson roster to an online platform. It was very challenging, and we lost a fair amount of students, but I’m happy to say that a greater number of students stuck with us as we ventured into what was uncharted territory for us. Some students opted to stay online after we reopened, which is great. Now that things have loosened up and we’ve returned to in-studio lessons, we still offer online lessons. We can also offer all in-studio students the option of switching to online for a lesson here and there if needed which has been great for us in cases of bad weather, illness, or busy schedules. As awful as it’s been, COVID actually helped open up another avenue for us in the form of online lessons.
How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?
I love our clientele, and I always do what I can to be communicative and helpful. I want our clients to feel heard. We want them to feel like family, so everyone knows my door is always open, or that I’ll respond to them in a timely manner. We maintain a warm, fun atmosphere in the studio, and that includes hiring instructors who keep it upbeat and fun which keeps students coming back week after week. Music is a gift, and I treasure our clients as they are a gift, as well.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.pirisenmusiclessons.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/pirisen_music_lessons
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pirisenmusiclessons
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC94FyooJWNQDA81fue1VlLg
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/pirisen-music-lessons-denver-denver
- Other: https://g.page/r/CWbb-9feB6X4EBA
Image Credits
Gina Figliuolo