Conversations with the Inspiring Brianna & Callie Frey

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brianna & Callie Frey.

Brianna & Callie, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Callie-
I always credit my sister, Bri, with the reason I fell in love with dance. My mom put her in dance, because my mother loved dance as a child, but never had the opportunity to take class. As the younger sister, I wanted to do everything my older sister did, so of course, I had to take ballet too. I have vivid memories of us putting on lengthy dance shows in our basement during the summer months. Fast forward to today, we are still creating dances together, but on a much larger scale. Studio Ownership.

My sister and I didn’t grow up dreaming about owning a dance studio together, and quite frankly for many years, it wasn’t really even on my radar, but I came to a place in my dance teaching career where I started to really ask myself where do I want to take this? How can I make this a lasting career? Besides my pure love for teaching dancing, I believe these questions are what sparked my drive for studio ownership. The more I taught, the more I wanted to have a place where I would be free to run things exactly the way I wanted. I had no doubt in my mind I would need my sister by my side to achieve this dream. She has been my dance partner from day one.

Bri-
While I grew up dancing and pursued dance for a short period of time in college, I eventually went in a different direction. When I found yoga, it offered me the chance to dance again- flowing from one pose to the next. Even when I wasn’t dancing, I was still in love with this beautiful art form. Plus, it helped that Callie (yes, we actually are best friends) was immersed in dance.

In 2016, Callie told me she had something important to talk to me about. Of course, my mind went in a thousand different directions. I had no idea what she was going to say. Then, she mentioned she wanted to open her own dance studio. Yes, yes, yes!!! I kept thinking Callie would be great at running her own studio. Just wait until you see her teach- you are in for a treat! She is an impressive teacher and the connection she makes with the kids is unbelievable. So overall, I was fully supportive of her decision. But then, she asked me something else. What did I think of opening a dance studio with her? Ummm… obviously I agreed. I knew we would make a great team and couldn’t wait to get started.

Fast forward three years and Fearless Motion Dance Center’s second season has begun. We now have over 100 students and a variety of ages from 18 months to 18 years old.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We quickly learned that business ownership is like a roller coaster full of really high highs, and really low lows. We are planners and spent a good amount of time putting together a business plan/vision. When doing research, we had a very difficult time locating resources for studio owners starting completely from scratch. Most of the time we met/read about studio owners who purchased an established studio, already taught in the community/surrounding area, or was a previous student at that studio. But we chose a community that did not know us at all. We navigated our way through the process and learned quite a bit along the way.

It is not cheap opening a business. Rent is astronomical and there are so many expenses when first starting out. Plus, the banks did not want to support a new business. They wanted us to show them that we were a making profit for the past few years… which is impossible because we hadn’t opened yet. We moved back in with our parents, took significant pay cuts, and committed ourselves to the hard work. While we did hire a contractor for part of our build-out (yes, still very expensive), we did as much of the labor ourselves for the studio buildout. To this day, we still do most of the labor.

Finally, year 2 is showing a profit and we are seeing the benefits of our hard work. We are confident that our business will continue to grow and do well. There were moments of doubt (still are) and panic, but we have always stuck to our core values and this has guided us in the right direction. Sacrifices have to be made and you have to put in the work when starting a business.

What should we know about Fearless Motion Dance Center? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Fearless Motion Dance Center provides a dance education program that allows every individual student to be fearless, bold, and creative within the art form of dance or in their practice of yoga while fostering an encouraging and accepting environment. FMDC offers a variety of dance styles for ages 18 months-18 years old and offers kid and adult yoga. For the youngest movers out there, Mini & Me 8-week sessions (class taken with a caregiver) are offered. For all the other age groups, check out the following offerings.

Preschool/Kindergarten: ballet/tap combo, hip hop, creative movement, and yoga
Elementary-Highschool: ballet, tap, jazz, musical theatre, hip hop, contemporary, and yoga
Adults: vinyasa and restorative yoga

Most of FMDC’s ballet/tap combo classes get to participate in the *Twirl program. *Twirl offers a little sparkle and merriment to FMDC’s current ballet/tap combo curriculum. Each dancer receives a fun + colorful activity book, a fancy twirl ribbon, monthly crafts, and a twirl graduation certificate, upon completion of the season. The students truly look forward to *Twirl week, as do Ms. Bri and Ms. Callie. Who doesn’t like a dance party?!

Once you walk into FMDC’s studio, you will quickly discover Bri and Callie love all things bright and cheery and never shy away from a touch of sparkle. With a festive photo wall (changing monthly), their dancers can snap a pic to show their friends their favorite dance/yoga poses. When FMDC students have successfully gotten their splits, they celebrate with a banana split party, as the students’ hard work doesn’t go unnoticed. You may even catch a student flashing their WOW! Card in the lobby. What are WOW! Cards you ask? These are cards given out when a student works hard, completes a random act of kindness, remembers choreography, or excels at a new skill. The WOW! Cards are valued, as they aren’t given out often.

It would be great to hear about any apps, books, podcasts or other resources that you’ve used and would recommend to others.
We love podcasts! Some of our favorites are Transform My Dance Studio, Share Your Shine, and Craft a Life You Love. We belong to an organization called Dance Studio Owners Association. Joining this group was the best decision we’ve made, as it is all dance studio owners who are in the same position as us. We can ask questions, get feedback, participate in trainings, conventions, the list goes on and on. The founder of this organization, Clint Salter also has a book “Dance Studio Secrets- 65 Ways to Build A Thriving Studio’, that we’ve both read and valued. Another valuable resource is Confetti on the Dance Floor, created by Becca Moore and Dani Rosenberg! It sounds fun and it is all about making dance fun.

Contact Info:

• Address: 1691B Coalton Road
  Superior, CO 80027
• Website: https://www.fearlessmotiondance.com/
• Phone: 720-768-2485
• Email: info@fearlessmotiondance.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fearlessmotiondance/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fearlessmotiondance/

Image Credit:
Fearless Motion Dance Center

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