We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Stacy Quinkert a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Stacy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

I believe success is an inside job. It doesn’t always come from the numbers on the books. I had many challenging years during Covid where I truly wasn’t sure if the business was going to make it. I really had to make that perspective shift for myself in order to keep going. Success, to me, is serving your community. Success is making others feel seen and heard. Success is providing a safe space for your team and clients where they feel empowered and able to be their best selves. Success is loving what you do. That’s what gets me out of bed in the morning. All that being said, success is also combating burnout and creating a work-life balance. I think that’s the toughest part of small business ownership. If you get to a point where you can create that balance and still feel excited to go to work, you’ve succeeded.

Stacy, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Stacy Quinkert and I own Pure Barre Woodland Hills! We are a boutique barre fitness studio that offers group fitness classes, cute athleisure-wear, and a home away from home. I’ve been in the fitness world for almost ten years now, but it wasn’t until I found Pure Barre that I knew I had found my home. After years of pursuing acting and teaching barre as a “side-hustle,” I realized I had a deep passion for teaching and for helping others. That’s when my husband and I started looking into franchising opportunities. I started working at Pure Barre Woodland Hills and everything just clicked. I experienced flow for the first time in a long time. The previous owners (who are still dear friends and my heroes) asked me if I’d be interested in buying the studio. We did our due diligence and decided the risk was worth it. Pure Barre has changed my life exponentially. The workout is the most efficient, fun, challenging, and rewarding in the game and to be able to share it with my community is the best thing I’ve ever done. We help our beloved and valued members feel like their strongest selves. Not only is Pure Barre an incredible workout, it is a powerful community of humans building each other up. We offer five different barre class formats, each unique and beneficial. What sets PBWH apart is the community factor. Our members become friends, go on trips together, support one another and it’s truly special to see and to help facilitate. Owning a small business is the hardest thing you can do, but if you have inspiring and supportive people around you it is truly the most rewarding venture.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A really important lesson I had to unlearn is the notion that in order for your small business to succeed you have to be there 16 hours a day and forgo a life outside of it. This absolutely can be true in the beginning and certainly was for me. In order to bring the business into the black and (years-later) into the green, I had to work it 24/7. This type of commitment and schedule does pay off ultimately, but it also causes burnout and at its worst resentment. I had to learn (the very hard way) that you really do have to work smarter not harder. There are so many things I did the hardest way when I first started out and after trying and failing, learned to work a bit smarter and also delegate. One of the hardest things for me is delegating and relinquishing control. I am a white-knuckler when it comes to me my small business baby. However, when you’re doing everything and burning out you have to throw your hands up at a certain point. The last few years rebuilding my business after Covid have taught me the power and necessity for a strong, reliable team. Surrounding myself with capable, passionate, professional humans has changed the whole game. I feel so grateful for my team and their support. They are the heart of my studio and business, and I feel very lucky to work with them.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

Managing a team and maintaining high morale is of the utmost importance to me. It can be challenging, but it truly is crucial to experiencing any sort of growth within your business. I lost almost my entire team during Covid and reopened my studio with one employee. I have spent the last 2.5 years rebuilding that team and nurturing the very special relationship with the one employee I reopened with. She is invaluable and I try and make sure she feels that way. A strong, capable, supportive team is integral to small business growth and success. Managing a team can be tough with scheduling, but overall I find managing a team of incredible humans fun! I try to surround myself and the business with humans I genuinely respect, care for and enjoy spending time with. It makes work feel less like work. I look for humans who are passionate about Pure Barre. That, in and of itself, makes my job so much easier. They have experienced on some level or another, the power of the workout and/or brand. From there, it’s about trying to empower. If I’m ever giving constructive criticism, I always deliver it in a compliment sandwich. Management 101 I know, but it really is important. Letting your team know how much you value them and pointing out their strengths not only makes them feel good, but makes them want to do even better for the brand. I’m not a tough love kind of guy, and it’s paid off for me personally. I want my team to feel seen and heard and to WANT to be at work. I’ve made mistakes along the way of course, but I’m so proud of my current team of rockstars and hope they know how much I appreciate them. The studio wouldn’t be what it is without them.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.purebarre.com/ca-woodlandhills
• Instagram: @purebarrewoodlandhills
• Facebook: Pure Barre (Woodland Hills)
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/pure-barre-woodland-hills-3
• Tiktok: @purebarrewoodlandhills_

Image Credits
Stephanie Girard