We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kristin Weissman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kristin below.

Hi Kristin, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

More than a decade ago, I was working professionally in my corporate career in Entertainment PR and in working 100-hour work weeks and having no work-life balance, I was unhealthy, overweight, and definitely not happy. A doctor asked me why I wasn’t going to the gym and asked what I loved to do and I said I loved to dance! I hated going to the gym – it was intimidating, I didn’t find it fun, and before my career, I had studied dance for many years. He encouraged me to find a dance class and to try to find my passion again.

I set out to find a class and at the time in my area, there was only one children’s studio that had a few adult classes. I walked into that class ready to go and the owner snickered and said I was too overweight and inexperienced to take his class. Horrified, I refused to let him see that upset me, so I took the class anyway, and was fully judged, belittled, and made to feel just awful. I walked out of that studio, sat in my car, and thought that was the most humiliating experience I have ever had and I wondered how many other people had been left to feel that way. That was the day I decided there had to be more people out there like me who wanted a place to work out, to have fun, to be healthy, to maybe make some new friends as an adult, and to just find a positive environment to leave stress and work at the door and find themselves again. That was the day Studio K was born.

After a year of planning, I left my stable full-time job and invested everything that I had into Studio K. Our tag line is “The Floor is Yours!”, and we offer the largest variety of styles and custom classes in the nation to adults of all levels of ability, and even if you have a disability. Our tag line means that no matter your age, your size, your level of ability, the floor is yours in that moment to be your very best and to carry that back out into the world. We are so unique because our studio may have a gastric bypass patient dancing right alongside a professional Broadway dancer, and both are having the best time, and they are supported, challenged, and most of all, so confident to know that they are in a place where they matter most of all.

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?

I have been in Public Relations, predominantly in the Entertainment Industry for more than 20 years of my career. I have had the honor to represent corporate clients and projects including: The Miss America Organization, NASCAR, the GRAMMY Awards, and a variety of celebrity clients. However, my biggest accomplishment in my life that I am by far the most proud of, is creating my business, Studio K (www.studiokorlando.com).

Studio K offers the largest variety of dance and fitness classes to adults of all levels of ability in the nation. Founded in 2010, we were the very first to bring this wide range of offerings to adults who are looking for a new fun, fitness option, who are looking to enhance their dance training, or who just want a place to connect and to make friends in a positive and supportive environment.

I think that is one of the things that makes us stand out most of all is that I never realized until I owned this business, just how much adults are simply in need of positive connection and for someone to be genuinely excited to see them, to listen to how their day was, and to cheer them on when they learn a new dance move! To the PR person in me, I love the human connection of this business, and every single person who has walked through these doors over the years has become such a special part of our history and a part of my family.

Our studio is also known in the media as the place “where pop culture meets dance and fitness,” and our amazing Instructor Team creates a variety of custom classes. Studio K is also well-known for our unique dance Workshops that get everyone moving to everything from recreating a scene in “Footloose,” to finding their inner Beyonce, to everything in between! The Studio K Team is exceptional because they can also uniquely bring that amazing personal experience to such a wide range of adult ability, all within the same one hour class time. We are copied often, but I think there is an extra special magic that only we can provide and that comes solely from the true heart of the business first and foremost.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

The biggest lesson in my life as an entrepreneur that I have learned is that you are going to work harder than you ever imagined, take risks that scare you to death, and if you get trampled, you have to peel yourself off the floor and just keep going!

After the first two years of my business being open, leaving my full-time career, and investing all that I had to build the studio, I received a devastating and very unexpected blow when my landlord sold the land to a popular retail outlet and I literally lost everything in 30 days.

I refused to give up, to file for bankruptcy, or to do any of the things I was being advised to do to save myself. What I had built was working – we were doing something never done before, and the business was affecting people deeply. It wasn’t just a dance studio – it was building a brand that mattered. I believed in it so much that I went back to work and worked three full-time jobs for three years to recoup all of the money that I had lost and to finally have enough to try again.

During that time, I pivoted by keeping the Studio K presence alive online through our blog where I was transparent and communicative to keep our connection strong. I created an online magazine, began a cosmetics line which was an extension of our brand, and just kept going in pop-up classes or whatever I could do in our city.

I was finally ready to try again and I opened that first new year in a very small version of what we had before to prove that we could still make an impact after three years closed – nearly every member returned, and we gained many more who heard our story, The following year, I invested again and went big – this time with eyes much more open and we proved that we still mattered.

The studio reached its highest level of success in its history a month before COVID so unexpectedly shut it all down. For those two years, we tumbled backwards again not only losing members due to financial reasons, but the majority of our membership base are theme park employees in Orlando, who also all lost their positions during that time. I invested even more and went back to work again full-time to keep us going strong, and today, we have fully rebounded and are growing more each and every day.

As an entrepreneur, you never know what you will face, you never know how difficult some days may be, but if you believe in your vision more than anything else, than you must keep going because only you can deliver that vision to the world. It is uniquely yours and you have the power to not only change your life, but to change the lives of people in ways you may never thought possible.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I think the only way to not only build your brand, but to build loyalty with your brand is consistent transparent communication, honest connection, and genuine, 110% interest in your business and in the people who bring it to life each day.

I have strived since the very first day to do all of those things, to be there as much as possible, to say thank you often, and to lead with kindness always.

Anyone can build a dance studio, or any other business out there – but no one else can be you and bring to the table all of the unique qualities that make your business like none other. I think people get so focused on the money, or the stress, or trying to “make it” as a success, that they forget why they began in the first place and what excites them about their brand. Step back and make that connection each day for yourself, and you will quickly find that everything else will easily fall into place.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.studiokorlando.com and www.kristinweissman.com
• Instagram: @studiokorlando and @kristinnoelleweissman
• Facebook: facebook.com/studiokorlando
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinweissman/
• Youtube: youtube.com/studiokorlando
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/studio-k-orlando-2

Image Credits
Photos of Studio K: Jessica Friend
Photos of  Kristin: Kona Kamai
Photo: Courtesy of Yelp Corporate