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Lindsay Parks’ Journey To Ownership Is A Story Of Passion, Pivoting, And Ultimately, Success
Lindsay Parks fell in love with barre3 from her first class, and she spent the next few years immersing herself in the community and the company—not just as a client, but also as an instructor and a member of the transition teams during two studio sales. She considered opening her own studio, but then her beloved barre3 OKC—where she had taken that very first class—went up for sale. A few months later, she was a proud new studio owner—and just two weeks later, COVID hit.
Read on to learn how she pivoted to bring barre3 classes to her community during the pandemic, why she knew they needed those classes more than ever before, and her advice for anyone considering buying an existing barre3 studio.
B3 MAGAZINE: Let’s start in the beginning: How did you first learn about barre3?
LINDSAY: I took my first class in the studio I own now (barre3 OKC) in 2010 on its opening day. I remember seeing the sign in the window as the studio was being built and being curious about the workout. I went home and read a blog Sadie had written about her approach to fitness. I was a yogi with a dance background, and I was looking to become a yoga instructor at the time, but everything about the barre3 approach spoke to me. I randomly wrote the barre3 home office about being on the team, and they connected me with the owner. I became an instructor three months later. Later I became a mentor for all three Oklahoma studios, and I helped open barre3 Edmond, barre3 Midtown, and barre3 Tulsa.
B3 MAGAZINE: Wow! You were all in from the start.
LINDSAY: I was! Barre3 became my full-time gig. I loved it. In 2017, my husband’s job moved us to Tulsa, and I had to say goodbye to the OKC community. I immediately hopped on the barre3 Tulsa team. I became an instructor and mentor there. I was on the transition team when that studio sold. I had toyed with the idea of owning a studio before, but when I helped with the transition during the sale, that’s when I realized I could do this.
Soon after, my husband’s job moved us back to Oklahoma City, and I called the owners and said “I’m coming back!” One of them mentioned that the barre3 OKC studio might be up for sale soon and that I should consider buying it.
B3 MAGAZINE: Wow! At that point were you thinking about opening a studio?
LINDSAY: I knew I wanted to grow, to push myself personally, to feed a community. I’d seen studios open, and I’d seen them transition to new owners, so I had experience on both ends of it. I explored the idea of opening my own studio in other parts of the city, but the barre3 OKC studio and community was extremely special to me. It was where my career and passion for our company began, so when it went up for sale, it just made sense for me to purchase.
B3 MAGAZINE: It sounds like the timing of your move back to Oklahoma City was just right.
LINDSAY: Yes…BUT I bought my studio on February 29th, 2020. We closed the studio on March 16th.
B3 MAGAZINE: Oh no. So…not great timing.
LINDSAY: Honestly, I think back, and I’m so grateful for the path. It’s been hard. But I’m grateful for all the barre3 owners before me who fed into me to make me strong enough to weather the pandemic as an owner. This year has been a hit at the knees, but we’re all so much stronger, and my team and I have grown from within. I feel closer to my team, closer to our clients. I wouldn’t change it.
B3 MAGAZINE: With your studio closed, how did you stay connected with your community?
LINDSAY: We pivoted really quickly. As soon as we shut down, I knew I couldn’t sit in my house and not teach barre3. And people needed to move—especially our class and the way it feeds the body and mind. They needed barre3 more than ever. We also fight lonely, and I wanted to provide community during a very isolating time.
I had never done Zoom one time in my life, but I am a figure-it-out person. My dad is an engineer, and I get a kick out of problems. So we started doing classes on Zoom, and outdoor classes when we could. Now we’re back open, but with limited capacity.
B3 MAGAZINE: Is there anything that you feel helped you through this past year, both as a new owner, and as a business owner during the pandemic?
LINDSAY: It helped that the studio was 10 years old when I bought it. I was lucky to have a really good core crew—I call them the family—and we had a loyal member group stick with us throughout the pandemic, and we even extended our reach. We grew our studio community through Livestream. The owner network and the support from barre3 Home Office was everything. Lisa, Stephanie, Kelsey, and Renée from the barre3 Home Office Studio Team checked on me constantly. They were emotionally supportive, but they also shared so much knowledge.
Of course, there are steps you have to take on your own in the resale process. But what was key was that everyone wanted to come to the same goal: me, the previous owners, and the home office. We all wanted the studio to thrive and the sale to be successful. If we had stumbling blocks, we just figured it out together.
B3 MAGAZINE: You looked at both opening your own studio and buying an existing one. What do you feel are the advantages of buying an existing studio?
LINDSAY: It’s so great to have a community you can fit yourself into. It’s pretty beautiful to come into something that’s already there, both people-wise and structure-wise. My studio was already built, my booking system was already built, and I didn’t have to negotiate a lease—all big pluses!
I also had the advantage of learning from the previous owners I had worked for in the past. I had several transition meetings with one of them, and she was always very open. Having that support was so important.
And, for me at least, the process didn’t take long at all: The bank said yes on December 28, 2019, and the sale went through February 29th, 2020. When you open a new studio, the timeline is longer.
B3 MAGAZINE: Any words of advice for people who are considering buying an existing studio?
LINDSAY: If they’re able to, it helps to be a part of the community already. I wasn’t a stranger walking in, and I already felt comfortable with the studio and the community. I’d also say don’t be afraid to ask questions to the home-office team—any and all questions. They’re there to support you. Like I said, if you’re all trying to get to the same end goal, you’ll find an answer.
Thank you Lindsay! Sign up for class at barre3 OKC and if you’re inspired by Lindsay’s story, you can visit our Franchise website to learn more about becoming a barre3 studio owner.
Lindsay Parks fell in love with barre3 from her first class, and she spent the next few years immersing herself in the community and the company—not just as a client, but also as an instructor and a member of the transition teams during two studio sales. She considered opening her own studio, but then her beloved barre3 OKC—where she had taken that very first class—went up for sale. A few months later, she was a proud new studio owner—and just two weeks later, COVID hit.
Read on to learn how she pivoted to bring barre3 classes to her community during the pandemic, why she knew they needed those classes more than ever before, and her advice for anyone considering buying an existing barre3 studio.
B3 MAGAZINE: Let’s start in the beginning: How did you first learn about barre3?
LINDSAY: I took my first class in the studio I own now (barre3 OKC) in 2010 on its opening day. I remember seeing the sign in the window as the studio was being built and being curious about the workout. I went home and read a blog Sadie had written about her approach to fitness. I was a yogi with a dance background, and I was looking to become a yoga instructor at the time, but everything about the barre3 approach spoke to me. I randomly wrote the barre3 home office about being on the team, and they connected me with the owner. I became an instructor three months later. Later I became a mentor for all three Oklahoma studios, and I helped open barre3 Edmond, barre3 Midtown, and barre3 Tulsa.
B3 MAGAZINE: Wow! You were all in from the start.
LINDSAY: I was! Barre3 became my full-time gig. I loved it. In 2017, my husband’s job moved us to Tulsa, and I had to say goodbye to the OKC community. I immediately hopped on the barre3 Tulsa team. I became an instructor and mentor there. I was on the transition team when that studio sold. I had toyed with the idea of owning a studio before, but when I helped with the transition during the sale, that’s when I realized I could do this.
Soon after, my husband’s job moved us back to Oklahoma City, and I called the owners and said “I’m coming back!” One of them mentioned that the barre3 OKC studio might be up for sale soon and that I should consider buying it.
B3 MAGAZINE: Wow! At that point were you thinking about opening a studio?
LINDSAY: I knew I wanted to grow, to push myself personally, to feed a community. I’d seen studios open, and I’d seen them transition to new owners, so I had experience on both ends of it. I explored the idea of opening my own studio in other parts of the city, but the barre3 OKC studio and community was extremely special to me. It was where my career and passion for our company began, so when it went up for sale, it just made sense for me to purchase.
B3 MAGAZINE: It sounds like the timing of your move back to Oklahoma City was just right.
LINDSAY: Yes…BUT I bought my studio on February 29th, 2020. We closed the studio on March 16th.
B3 MAGAZINE: Oh no. So…not great timing.
LINDSAY: Honestly, I think back, and I’m so grateful for the path. It’s been hard. But I’m grateful for all the barre3 owners before me who fed into me to make me strong enough to weather the pandemic as an owner. This year has been a hit at the knees, but we’re all so much stronger, and my team and I have grown from within. I feel closer to my team, closer to our clients. I wouldn’t change it.
B3 MAGAZINE: With your studio closed, how did you stay connected with your community?
LINDSAY: We pivoted really quickly. As soon as we shut down, I knew I couldn’t sit in my house and not teach barre3. And people needed to move—especially our class and the way it feeds the body and mind. They needed barre3 more than ever. We also fight lonely, and I wanted to provide community during a very isolating time.
I had never done Zoom one time in my life, but I am a figure-it-out person. My dad is an engineer, and I get a kick out of problems. So we started doing classes on Zoom, and outdoor classes when we could. Now we’re back open, but with limited capacity.
B3 MAGAZINE: Is there anything that you feel helped you through this past year, both as a new owner, and as a business owner during the pandemic?
LINDSAY: It helped that the studio was 10 years old when I bought it. I was lucky to have a really good core crew—I call them the family—and we had a loyal member group stick with us throughout the pandemic, and we even extended our reach. We grew our studio community through Livestream. The owner network and the support from barre3 Home Office was everything. Lisa, Stephanie, Kelsey, and Renée from the barre3 Home Office Studio Team checked on me constantly. They were emotionally supportive, but they also shared so much knowledge.
Of course, there are steps you have to take on your own in the resale process. But what was key was that everyone wanted to come to the same goal: me, the previous owners, and the home office. We all wanted the studio to thrive and the sale to be successful. If we had stumbling blocks, we just figured it out together.
B3 MAGAZINE: You looked at both opening your own studio and buying an existing one. What do you feel are the advantages of buying an existing studio?
LINDSAY: It’s so great to have a community you can fit yourself into. It’s pretty beautiful to come into something that’s already there, both people-wise and structure-wise. My studio was already built, my booking system was already built, and I didn’t have to negotiate a lease—all big pluses!
I also had the advantage of learning from the previous owners I had worked for in the past. I had several transition meetings with one of them, and she was always very open. Having that support was so important.
And, for me at least, the process didn’t take long at all: The bank said yes on December 28, 2019, and the sale went through February 29th, 2020. When you open a new studio, the timeline is longer.
B3 MAGAZINE: Any words of advice for people who are considering buying an existing studio?
LINDSAY: If they’re able to, it helps to be a part of the community already. I wasn’t a stranger walking in, and I already felt comfortable with the studio and the community. I’d also say don’t be afraid to ask questions to the home-office team—any and all questions. They’re there to support you. Like I said, if you’re all trying to get to the same end goal, you’ll find an answer.
Thank you Lindsay! Sign up for class at barre3 OKC and if you’re inspired by Lindsay’s story, you can visit our Franchise website to learn more about becoming a barre3 studio owner.
