Lexington, KY - When Edie Green and Amanda Arnold took over ownership of Pure Barre on East High Street nearly five years ago, they aimed to get 100 people per week into their small but ambitious studio.
Now the Chevy Chase institution draws 100 or more people every day to lift, tone and burn, and is expanding its line with cardio and rowing workouts.
"It was very small and there were a lot of classes where people didn't even show up or there were only three or four people in the classes," Green said about the beginning of their venture. "We were nervous about it but we were really excited. I remember our first goal was to try to hit 100 people a week. And now we're really excited to say that almost five years into it, we're at 100 people a day. ... It's just beyond our wildest dreams."
Green and Arnold said at first they hoped the ballet barre, isometric movement method would catch on -- Lexington's Pure Barre was the first freestanding Pure Barre gym in the nation -- and now the technique has grown so quickly that there are more than 70 studios nationwide and spin-offs are popping up everywhere.
"When we first started, this was a completely different concept," Green said. "That's why we have the first class free because it's so different. It's a good way to get somebody in, but the thing is people are looking for something different than what they've been doing. It's fun, it's music-based. The instructors are highly trained and you get a lot of one-on-one attention. It's a very friendly environment, everyone comes in with a smile on their face. And I think the number one thing is people are really seeing results."
Green and Arnold said men are a rare sighting at Pure Barre, even though the original owner of the Lexington studio was male; however, the business partners hope that the studio's new Crew classes could draw in their missing demographic. The classes take place in the all-new Sweat Fitness Studio, which opened in early January directly above Pure Barre and will also host BarreCardio classes.
"We have some (male) instructors up there," Green said. "Think rowing --
the guys will absolutely love it because it's competitive, and instead of an instructor up there, it's coaching."
Crew will utilize 13 state-of-the-art Indo-Row machines and BarreCardio will allow up to 25 people to workout at a time. Downstairs, Pure Barre will be the studio devoted solely to the original barre method.
Arnold and Green discovered Indo-Row machines while on the West coast and are excited to bring the team-oriented method to Lexington. The compact rowing machines provide a full-body workout and use water for resistance to better emulate the act of actually rowing.
"We knew in the back of our mind that we were expanding, so we were researching and taking classes," Green said of discovering Indo-Row in California. "There were other expansion options, but we thought this was the best fit."
Just like Pure Barre classes, clients will be able to sign up for cardio and rowing classes online. Arnold said the classes and packages are cheaper than a personal trainer, but just as personable.
"It is still less than a personal trainer," she said. "And you get that same type of atmosphere. We're all over you as far as form, questions before and after, modifications, pregnancies, everything. And we know everyone's names."
The owners hope people will also find the same value in the all-new rowing classes and start approaching the 100-clients-per-day mark in Sweat just like downstairs in Pure Barre.
But Arnold and Green do not hope to outgrow their Chevy Chase location and agree that there is plenty of room in Lexington for the ever-growing boutique gyms on the market.
"I think one thing that I find most is that people are looking for something different," Green said.
Arnold thinks that it's also the camaraderie that keeps people coming to gyms like theirs.
"It's very community oriented and people make a lot of new, really good friends," she said about Pure Barre.
With their five-year anniversary on the horizon in April, Edie and Arnold anticipate even more growth thanks to more variety at their studios and hope to continue giving back to the community --
they focus heavily on charity work, whether it is through instructors organizing team-based charity activities, holding donation-only classes, or working with Girls on the Run or Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in downtown Lexington.
For more information, or to see a class schedule, visit www.sweatlex.com or www.purebarre.com/lexington.