Starting a Dance Studio/School

Dance has been a traditional element of many cultures for centuries. Many different styles of dance are taught and practiced around the world, and dance studios are a common type of business where people of all ages can take dance lessons. Starting up your own dance studio might seem daunting, but following this list of steps will help you ensure that you do it correctly.

Settle on a budget. 

Before you continue with any further planning, you need to be well aware of how much you are able to spend on the different elements of owning your own dance studio.

• Rent/mortgage on a space
• Utilities for the space
• Start-up expenses (e.g. renovations, mirrors, seating, storage, paint, equipment)
• Advertising and marketing
• Payroll for employees and dance instructors
• It is possible that you might need to take out a loan or obtain investors to start your business. Know what you are getting into before you officially sign any agreements.

 Decide on a geographic location for your business.
This is important, because your location determines the type of clientele you will attract to your business.

• Starting your dance studio in a very family-friendly neighborhood will likely bring you many kids, so if you are interested in marketing your dance studio to children, then keep this in mind.
• Think about what part of town you choose for the location. If you are looking to offer ethnic styles of dance, for example, then opening your studio in an area of town where people of that ethnicity live makes sense.
• Try to plan for your studio to open in an area where it will be highly visible to the community, such as on a busy road. It may be more expensive, but with traffic driving by constantly, your building is advertising itself to all of the passersby
•  Consider how much you can afford to spend on renting or buying your dance studio space. If you are in a large city, for example, then renting or buying a space in the downtown area is likely extremely expensive. Look in areas of your town or city where the rates are in your price range.

Research and decide upon what type of business entity you want to be. 

This will vary based on whether you plan to be the only dance instructor in a small studio, you plan to have a business partner, or you plan to hire additional dance instructors.

• Sole proprietor: an unincorporated business that is run by one individual with no separation between that individual and the business
• S-Corporation: a type of corporation that can avoid double taxation (e.g. once to the business and once to the shareholders)
• C-Corporation: a type of corporation that is owned by shareholders but is legally liable for actions and debts
• Limited Liability Company (LLC): a structure that offers the limited liability of corporations but has the flexibility of a partnership

Decide on a name for your business. 

This is the most important part of your brand and business, because this is what will be shared most often. Be sure that it represents you and your vision for the studio.

• Dance the Night Away
• The Tango Studio
• En Pointe Ballet Company
• Swing Dance Central
• Masters of the Dance
• Premier Dance Studio

Identify your market niche and ideal clientele. 

 There are a variety of niches that you could go into with dance studios, and each niche will bring certain clientele. You need to identify what yours will be.

• Couples dance lessons
• Singles dance lessons
• Children's dance lessons
• One or two particular dance styles only (e.g. ballet, salsa, tap)
• Ethnic dance styles (e.g. salsa, flamenco, jazz, folk, street)
• Common dance styles (e.g. swing, ballroom, jazz)

 Plan your company's vision and mission statements.
Having these statements identified helps to keep you on track as you start up your studio and define short-term and long-term goals.

• A vision statement outlines the primary goals of your business without giving definitive plans for achieving them. The vision statement helps you and your employees conceptualize the goals of the company.
• A mission statement is a short statement that helps convey your business's purpose. This statement may change over time, if your business goals become different, and it is intended to clarify what your business will do for both employees and clients.

 Define your brand for your dance studio.
Your brand will represent everything about your business, and it should be consistent across everything that clients and potential clients see^.

• Branding is the equivalent of your promise to your clients. It should come from who you are and what you want to give to you clientele. Your vision and mission statements tie into your brand.
• Having strong branding leads to having much business success. When people know what to expect from you, they are more likely to trust you.
• Know what your target niche is and what those dance clients needs, and then tailor your brand to them.

 Choose what services you are going to offer your dance clientele.

This will largely depend on your client niche, so consider this as you decide.

• Will you offer group dance classes? Private dance classes? Both?
• What about couples classes? Singles classes? Both?
• What styles of dance do you plan to teach?
• Will you have a dance team that will compete?

 Build a website for your business.
 Just as you came up with a marketing and advertising plan that included things like business cards and advertisements in the newspaper, you also need to have a business website.

• Find a hosting service and a domain name. You can get these together or separately. Your domain name should be the name of your business and, if possible, end in .com.
• Hire a professional to build a framework and theme for your site or search online to buy these things yourself. There are many pre-made themes available for varying prices. If you choose to buy pre-made themes, be sure to also buy a framework. Genesis Framework is the most recommended, and you can buy it separately from your theme or find a theme that comes with it.