Battling through the stigma

Zara started up Zara’s Pole Fitness after her passion, which she was first introduced to in college, turned into a business: “I was in college studying dance and I saw an advert for a fitness instructor. At the time there was a stigma around pole fitness, and the job advert couldn’t advertise that they wanted a pole fitness instructor, so the advert only said ‘fitness instructor’. I did the interview and I learnt that it was actually a pole fitness job. It was worth £10 an hour, which was a lot of money for a college student and when I got it, I was really happy. The company took me on and I really fell in love with it, and now I’ve been doing it for 13 years since.

“Zara’s Pole Fitness now teaches pole fitness, aerial hoops and aerial silks. Throughout the last five years it’s got a lot more popular as the stigma surrounding pole fitness has disappeared – now there’s even talk about it being in the Olympics! There’s a lot of competitors in the Southend area, but none of them teach my three disciplines, or if they do, it’s as a class at the gym rather than by a dedicated business.”

Moving into Laurence Industrial Estate

Zara moved her business into the Laurence Industrial Estate in January 2019: “My workshop is fully kitted out for pole fitness, aerial hoops and aerial silks. I was in a shop beforehand but I outgrew that space and I needed somewhere else to go. Industrial units are perfect for me because I need a lot of height for the aerial hoops and silks. Laurence Industrial Estate was perfect because it’s secure; it has 24-hour CCTV. It’s also just two-minutes from where I already was so I didn’t lose any of my clients when I moved.”

A milestone achievement

Zara explains that moving into our business centre in Southend-on-Sea was a goal she’s proud to have accomplished: “At the moment, my business is as big as it can get. I’m aiming to stay where I am and keep a solid stream of business ticking over. It’s difficult for me to expand anymore because the business is just me and my clients get used to what I do. Even if I expanded, I would need new instructors. Where I am now is really my dream and to have this sized business and location was my goal when starting up.”

“I’d say the secret to the success of Zara’s Pole Fitness has been putting in the extra hours and, through the years of doing it, I’ve constantly had to better myself by attending competitions and doing well in them, judging them and generally getting my name out there and creating a reputation. This work is extremely strenuous but it’s so rewarding seeing the ladies I work with achieve their goals.”

Zara’s strong will, determination and drive to build up a reputation and grow her business to reach her goal is an inspiration to other growing businesses, and a true success story.

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