Meet London’s Answer To Tracey Anderson Shaking Up The City’s Fitness Scene

I started playing soccer at a very young age and my enduring memories of childhood revolve around soccer, be it early morning practices or post-game celebrations. I gave up playing soccer once I went to college and became a gym bunny instead, at which stage I sought out variety and attended different classes at the gym. In doing so I began to notice the way different types of exercise shaped my frame and started to gain a better awareness of the affect exercise had on both my body and my mind. I discovered yoga while at college, and enjoyed the transformation I experienced in my physique as well as my mental and emotional state.  As a result I quickly started to delve into the Southern California yoga community.  Bryan Kest and Shiva Rae were the two that inspired me the most.  Bryan is strong, uplifting and expands your mind during his classes.  Shiva has a spiritual and incredibly beautiful and connected flow in her teaching style, so much so, you feel that a connection with everyone in the room.

I have always been active since I was a young child so movement has always been an innate part of my identity. At the same time I dealt with some wellness issues in my adolescent and teenage years that opened my eyes to natural wellness and a holistic approach to healing the body and mind. Inspired by the changes I saw in my own body and mind, I became a Holistic Health Practitioner in my early twenties, working as a body worker, energy healer and consultant on wellness products out of detox resorts, spas and in clients’ homes. This was all around the same time I started teaching yoga so they integrated well. I have always enjoyed helping, and being of service to the people around me and so converting my own personal passion for wellness, into a full-time career was a very natural step.

Creating Barrecore just sort of happened.  Before moving to London, I worked with Tracy Anderson Method, did personal training, and tested every fitness style that piqued my interest, which is how I discovered barre fitness classes. But something was missing – barre classes I tried lacked the dynamism and energy of the classes I personally enjoyed teaching and often felt quite impersonal, whereas my own practice was all about cultivating strong relationships with my clients. What I wanted was to create something that was dynamic yet personal even in a large class format. Moving to London gave me the opportunity to do just that and the result was Barrecore – tried and tested barre fitness principles fused with a dynamic and energetic approach to teaching classes with a personal touch. The best part of it all is that it works! Barrecore classes are not only highly effective at training the body but also the mind.  Through Barrecore, you learn to truly connect to your body and use your mind in each position creating more body awareness.

I am not sure if I was naive or dumb, but I thought it was going to be somewhat easy. I never thought it would take sweat, blood, tears and a lot of belly laughing – which it did.  There were just three of us on the team running the business and teaching all the classes when we first opened so we spent a lot of time together.  Being new to the UK, I had no idea what any of the laws or rules were in opening a business in this country so the learning curve was steep.  I quickly learned things I never thought I would ever (nor did I want to) learn!  It took waking up at 5am and going to bed at 10 or 11 everyday and working 7 days per week, focusing on things like budgets and targets, making sure I remembered clients name for their next visit, working the front desk and marketing the best we could. I would dream Barrecore, waking myself up singing ‘Moves Like Jagger’ the first 3 months of being open! Along with all of the focus and energy, there was a lot of fun too.  It was such an amazing experience to watch my little classes of 7 out of a mews house grow to up to 20 in a class in just a few short months.  The clients were incredibly supportive and wanted Barrecore to succeed so a lot of that success in the beginning is due to clients caring and wanting us to do well and still is.

Working for Tracy [Anderson] was a huge catalyst for the direction I took my career. Her biggest impact on Barrecore is the amount of time and energy we spend keeping classes fresh and exciting. At Barrecore we truly believe that constant change and innovation is the key to keeping the brain involved. As a result you will never take the same class twice.

Setting up on my own has been highly stressful but it’s also incredibly gratifying.  My mornings are especially important in dealing with the pressures.  I wake up and sit in meditation everyday (especially the busiest days) and then express gratitude for what I have.  This immediately puts me in a positive state of mind.  Setting daily, weekly and quarterly goals is a huge help in breaking large and daunting challenges into in bite sized pieces. I couldn’t deal with those stressful moments without my team too. I would never be where I am today without them and there support is everything to me.

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Before opening the first Barrecore studio, I began teaching Barrecore classes out of a mews house a private client of mine owned in Chelsea. At the time, this client wanted me to run a class for her friends.  One class a week quickly turned into 10. Even today, most of our clients come to us by referral. Two years in after setting up, everything is going amazingly. I am incredibly honoured to have 3 locations with a couple more in the pipeline.  The first two years were all about finding our stride and I truly feel like we found a fun skip in our step.  In a business like Barrecore, which is about people, my number one goal is to keep everyone positive and moving forward.  I know that if I don’t have happy, motivated and connected instructors and front desk staff, then I have no business at all.

We have many different aspects to Barrecore besides our classes – private training, our nutritional and lifestyle consulting barreNOURISH, online classes and retail. In my day I wear ‘many different hats’.  After my morning meditation, I get onto the computer and answer as many emails as I can then I usually rush to one of the studios to teach a class followed by a private session or barreNOURISH consultation. Midday is often reserved for meetings on operations, creating new class formats, marketing and retail, expansion planning, building partnerships with local business or just checking in with staff and instructors.  My evenings are filled with more emails and then time with my husband, Konan, and dog, Bruno.  I am lucky to have a strong management team that truly cares about the client experience as well as keeping up the morale behind the scenes.  My number one goal is that this ethos is always in place.

We are a very energetic bunch and expansion is the only way we can keep touching more people.  At times and in some ways our growth seems slow but then there are moments when the growth moves a little faster than we are ready for!  I keep coming back to the people that make Barrecore.  It is never just one person and without a strong team that I am so fortunate to have this simply would not have been possible. We aim to deal with the challenges of staffing, scheduling (the Rubik’s cube of any fitness biz!) and changing operational systems one-step at a time.  Each time we add something new there is always a new challenge, but with each of these challenges there is always a new success, which we celebrate along the way.  Nothing stays the same, nor should it.  I can only hope that Barrecore continues to evolve while keeping the integrity, quality and positivity it has today.

The secret is to stay positive and be prepared for the most amazing ride. Quality sleep, clean foods and positive thoughts go a long way in achieving this.  There will be ups and downs, but remembering that you have full control over how you respond to unexpected or less than ideal situations will help keep your  sanity. There’s always a silver lining full of opportunities and you will always be rewarded if you focus on them rather than the clouds.

Things do get crazy from time to time and I am far (far!) from perfect. I work about 74 hours a week, roughly about 13-14 hours Monday to Friday and then 6 to 10 hours on the weekend. I am trying to leave Sundays as a true rest day when I can but often, even rest time is spent thinking about or discussing Barrecore. Besides making time each morning for myself, truly depending on others in my life and trying not to control everything  makes all the difference.  I know I will never be successful and won’t have any fun if I try to micromanage and worry about every aspect of the business. One of the best parts of growing a company is watching my team exceed in their roles.  We all make mistakes and the important thing is to learn from them.  I try to remind myself and others that all we can do is what is in front of us while keeping our goals in focus.  

Not only do relationships with other female business owners help spread the word to their circles and give crucial advice but just being around them lift you up and motivate you to do better.  All women entrepreneurs want to do well and I am big believer in ‘water seeking its own level’, so who you associate yourself with is the level at which you will be.  Not only do we pull each other up, we tend to push each other higher, raising the bar across whatever type of business we are running.  Just a few of the inspirational and motivational woman business owners I turn to and am grateful for are Calgary Avinsino with her wellness site and amazing Vogue contributions, author Jenna Zoe, Kara Rosen with Plenish and Anjhe Mules of Lucas Hugh.  

My husband Konan is great at reminding me that it’s not all about work and to ensure that I make time for myself. Taking Bruno out on a walk in Battersea Park is a perfect excuse to getting fresh air and a bit of perspective.  I also try to book myself into yoga classes and make time to see my girlfriends.  When I don’t make my personal life and relationships a priority my positive attitude and productivity suffer greatly. I am true believer that personal relationships are the number one thing that helps us all achieve our goals.  I am not always the most successful at this, but I will definitely keep trying.

Nike said it best – ‘just do it’. That’s the one thing I would say told my younger self. I have always been an ideas-girl, but in my twenties I was and too afraid to run with them. I would tell my 20 year old self to jump at every opportunity that truly makes your heart sing and let those that don’t pass by without doubt or regret. It’s easy to say you can’t do something because you do not have all the skills involved but the beautiful thing is that the right people with right the skillsets present themselves, like magic, when you really want something.  I was just as scared when I started Barrecore as I was when I was in my 20’s.  I now know (but am still guilty of forgetting from time to time) that when you trust your instincts and heart you will never be led astray and will surprise yourself with what you can create.

The best advice I was ever given was from my mom and every other wise woman, and it was just that…’Follow your heart as it will always lead you to happiness.’  When you do, you will never feel guilty in your decisions because your heart will always find the positive and act in your best interest and of those close to you.

If I could give advice to someone starting out it would first be to think about what your ultimate goal with starting a business is and why? Getting clear will help focus your mind and keep you from getting scattered and stressed.  It will also give you perspective to see how it will fit into the world you want for yourself. Secondly, decide what your work/life balance will be and stick to it. There will definitely be times when things seem out of your control and will throw this off but putting yourself and your family first is highly, highly recommended. And finally, stay positive and be prepared for the most amazing ride. Stay healthy in body, mind and spirit.  Quality sleep, clean foods and positive thoughts go a long way in achieving this.  There will be ups and downs, but remembering that you have full control over how you respond to unexpected or less than ideal situations will help you manage your sanity. Stay focused on positive change every step of the way. There’s always a silver lining full of opportunities and you will always be rewarded if you focus on them rather than the clouds.

Images by Dvora for The Lifestyle Edit