Turning Challenges into Growth: Building a Thriving Studio with The Movement Perspective

Cheryl:
Well we are here with Chloe and Vickie from the Movement Perspective. Welcome, ladies, to the Family Business podcast.

Vickie & Chloe:
Hi, thanks for having us!

Cheryl:
Where are you guys located?

Chloe:
Perth, Western Australia.

Cheryl:
Lovely—and it’s a lovely warm day there today, which is amazing. Just to start with, let’s talk about how the two of you met and how the two of you came into being friends to begin with.

Chloe:
Oh, should we tell that story? We met actually doing our Pilates certification, so a few years back.

Vickie:
Yeah, a decade ago.

Chloe:
Really! Yep, a little bit over 10 years ago now. We met doing our training.

Vickie:
Do we share the story of when we knew we were going to be friends?

Chloe:
We had a little catch-up for some of the girls that were on the course together, and it was meant to be a study catch-up.

Cheryl:
With wine, or just actually studying?

Chloe:
Well, that’s how it happened. There were some bubbles involved—and some snacks.

Vickie:
And there were two parties in particular that enjoyed the bubbles.

Cheryl:
And just the two of you?

Chloe:
Yeah. I feel like there was this moment where everyone had one glass of champagne, and Vickie went to pour a second glass and everyone else said no. And she sort of looked at me and I went “yes.”

Vickie:
And the friendship was born.

Cheryl:
So from that reunion, how did you then go into being in business—owning Pilates studios was first, correct?

Chloe:
Yeah, that was a bit of a journey down the road. We obviously did our training, and then stayed in touch as friends. Vickie came on to manage another location we had for 'Breathe'.

Vickie:
I was just doing the odd class here and there to start with.

Chloe:
Yeah, she was working with massage and the sports teams, and I said, "I’m opening up a second location, I want a manager." And I said, "I need someone to run it and help grow this with me," so that was kind of that, really.

Cheryl:
And then from there, how did The Movement Perspective come about?

Chloe:
Well, we adore helping as many people as possible. We were doing a lot of in-house teacher training. It kind of started almost more teaching and educating instructors.

Vickie:
And then we sort of organically found ourselves getting a lot of DMs, answering questions, chatting with other studio owners.

Chloe:
We’re such open books. If someone had a question, we would always be more than happy to help.

Vickie:
And it kind of organically came about.

Chloe:
Actually, The Movement Perspective was meant to be courses for instructors, and then…

Vickie:
Yeah, we just found ourselves more drawn to helping studio owners.

Chloe:
I think with the change in the landscape—studios popping up left, right and centre—it became much more noisy in that area.

Vickie:
And so many studios looking burnt out, not enjoying themselves, really struggling.

Chloe:
Resenting themselves.

Vickie:
And we’re like, "We can really help these people."

Chloe:
We don’t want to see another studio go down without fighting the good fight.

Vickie:
And there’s so much that can be done.

Chloe:
It’s not all lost and found on Instagram—there’s so much more to it.

Vickie:
Yeah, it was kind of almost like a calling. Like, we must help these people.

Cheryl:
So how do you go about helping these burnt-out instructors that are business owners get back their energies to be able to put it back into their business and continue to grow and move forward?

Chloe:
You said something there that’s kind of part of it—everybody’s going to have their own path and what’s important to them.

Vickie:
Sometimes in that delivery of being the instructor and the studio owner—it can be so tricky when you’re the one teaching all the hours, doing all the admin, the social media, the cleaning…

Chloe:
The babysitter for your team—all those hats.

Vickie:
It’s a heavy toll to handle.

Chloe:
When we come in, we really love to get to know a studio and what their version of success is—

Vickie:
And what their goals are, because it’s going to be different.

Chloe:
Some people want to have a heavier teaching load—

Vickie:
So we work out how to make that happen and offset other things.

Chloe:
It’s a bespoke approach.

Vickie:
We’ve got a signature framework that we apply for everybody: profitability, standout presence, and procedures. Our signature program is called Studio Mastery. It’s a six-month mastermind. Part group coaching for shared energy and inspiration—

Chloe:
And part bespoke one-to-one for personal, tailored advice.

Vickie:
It’s the best of both worlds.

Chloe:
And unique, because we’re still in the trenches. We still run an active studio.

Vickie:
So we really get it—on a deep, deep level.

Kirsten: 
So what do you think are some of the common mindset blocks that hold back Pilates studio owners?

Vickie:
I think comparison is a really big one. Like getting stuck in that game of looking at what everyone else is doing and comparing yourself to the next person and the next person—then having this identity crisis and not actually knowing what your brand is and what you stand for, who your client is.

Chloe:
Yeah, I would say that’s a huge mindset block. Just getting consumed by the noise in the industry. Like “the studio down the road's doing this, they've copied me, how dare they do that.” Or “I'll never be as good as this person.”

Vickie:
Social media envy too. “They’ve got 30,000 followers on Instagram and I’ve only got 1,000.” Who cares? That’s vanity metrics.

Chloe:
Someone could have 30,000 followers and be barely breaking even. Followers are just that—followers. They don’t contribute to profitability.

Vickie: Another big one is imposter syndrome and self-doubt. “I’m just a Pilates instructor, I don’t know anything about business.”

Kirsten:
So what are some quick little hints or tips you usually advise people to get past that mindset?

Chloe:
One that I always come back to—it’s not so much about you. If we get clear on why we’re in this game, it’s to help others. If we don’t show up, we’re actually doing a disservice to the very people we want to help.

Vickie:
Exactly. If we’re not telling them how to come and enjoy movement, then we’re letting them down.

Chloe:
Sometimes we get in our own way. “I can’t go on camera,” or “I can’t say that,” or “I can’t talk about my offer.” But it gets to be that simple: come into my studio, I’ll look after you, and we’ll move together.

Vickie:
It’s okay to be you. It’s okay if you’re not like the studio down the road. There are plenty of people in the world, and not all of them are your people.

Chloe:
A really good exercise is going through our client avatar model. Get beyond crystal clear on who you're serving. Not just “women aged 30–55.” Give them a name, an occupation, a whole backstory.

Vickie:
When you connect with who you're serving, you take rejection a lot less personally. “They’re not my client, and that’s okay.”

Chloe:
And practically, say your studio can serve 300 members. If there are 200,000 people within a 10-minute drive, you only need 300 of them.

Cheryl:
When you become clear on your avatar, you’re narrowing your field down to people who actually want what you offer. Then you're speaking directly to them.

Vickie:
Exactly. People get nervous about narrowing down, but if you’re speaking to someone and they’re nodding along thinking “That’s me,” then that’s how you find your tribe.

Chloe: 
Just because you market to Susie—who's 46, has two kids, a dog, and works part-time—doesn’t mean Rebecca, a 22-year-old uni student, won’t come. It just makes your messaging stronger.

Cheryl:
Is there a lesson you've learned the hard way about business that you now reflect on and teach others?

Vickie:
Too many to count!

Chloe:
There’s always a lesson in everything. One big one: pricing and profitability. Pricing without data, just pulling figures out of thin air. Not knowing expenses or margins.

Vickie:
And running too many sales without a strategy. Clients started to expect them.

Chloe:
Yeah, I remember someone recommending our studio and saying, “They do sales all the time—just wait for the next one.” That wasn’t what I wanted to be known for. We had full classes, tons of members, but weren’t making any money. The math wasn’t mathing. That’s when we dug deep into expenses vs. operating capacity. Now, no sale runs without a strategy—and a plan for after the sale.

Cheryl:
Your numbers are your business. And now that you know your numbers, you're in a better position to make informed decisions.

Vickie:
We're still learning all the time. Be reflective, curious. If a sale didn’t work, maybe the offer was wrong. Keep refining.

Cheryl:
We found a stat from Harvard Business Review: 70% of business partnerships eventually fall due to misaligned values, communication breakdowns, or lack of structure. What’s your secret?

Chloe:
Communication. We know each other well enough to sense when something’s off.

Vickie:
It’s taken practice. Two passionate people—there can be power dynamics. But now we trust each other completely.

Chloe:
We were friends first. Our work ethic is very similar.

Vickie:
Almost too similar. We often have to tell each other to pull back.

Chloe:
Communication and trust. Plus, we’ve done personal development work.

Vickie:
We’re always open to learning and reflecting. That helps.

Cheryl:
Do you each have defined roles?

Vickie:
In Breathe—the studio—yes, very defined roles.

Chloe:
In TMP, there's still some crossover. Especially in client delivery—we’re a yin and yang.

Vickie:
On coaching calls, clients benefit from both our perspectives.

Cheryl:
What’s one thing you’ve learned about yourself through this partnership?

Chloe:
That I’m more compassionate and understanding than I thought. I used to be more tough love, but this business has softened me in a good way.

Vickie:
I work too hard. I worry a lot. I could learn to let go more. Still a work in progress.

Cheryl:
You’re also running a studio, TMP, married with kids—how do you balance it?

Chloe:
Boundaries. And routines like walks after work to decompress and shift from work mode to mum mode.

Vickie:
We communicate better with each other than our own partners! But yes, boundaries—no work messages after hours, weekends off.

Chloe:
We also turn off notifications—Slack, email—all silenced.

Vickie:
It’s important to book in your own movement time too. To stay connected with your body and your community.

Chloe:
Clients love seeing you struggle, sweat, and be human. It builds trust.

Kirsten:
Rapid fire! Who from your family is your biggest supporter?

Vickie & Chloe:
Our husbands!

Kirsten:
Most important thing for a successful business?

Chloe:
Get out of your own way.

Kirsten:
If you could offer people one takeaway that you have learned about being in business what would that be?

Chloe:
Know your numbers. What does it cost to open your doors? Many don’t know their break-even or even pay themselves. 

Vickie:
But no shame—just go look at your numbers.

Chloe:
Exactly. You’ll feel better once you do.

Vickie:
A lot of things don’t matter as much as you think. Enjoy it—be you. And don’t try to be perfect. Done is better than perfect. Hands up! Still a work in progress for all of us.

Chloe:
And that’s why we have bubbles at the end of every day!

Cheryl:
If listeners want to get in touch?

Vickie:
DM us on Instagram—@the.movement.perspective  Or message Cheryl, she’ll redirect you.

Cheryl:
Or come to the expo—waitlist is open. Don’t suffer in silence. Reach out.

Vickie:
There’s never a lost cause.

Cheryl: Thank you, ladies! We look forward to meeting everyone again on It’s Family Business.

All: Bye girls, thanks!