Staff recruitment and staff retention problems in Pilates Apparatus studios : Apprentice style training may be one solution
In the twenty years that I have owned and operated Pilates apparatus studios in the UK, staff recruitment and retention has always been a key issue.
Whilst there are many thousands of Pilates Matwork Certified Instructors in the UK, the numbers of Apparatus trained instructors is far lower, and the investment that these apparatus trained instructors have made in their training means that they expect a much higher hourly rate, or salary, to be employed.
Before the year 2000 and the worldwide emergence and increasing dominance of the big brand Pilates training companies (BASI, Polestar, Stott Pilates, Balanced Body, Body, Michael King Pilates) almost all comprehensive Pilates education was conducted via an apprenticeship, and mentorship with a studio owner in their studios. Students gave their time for free to shadow their mentor and as they learned to practice teaching, the studio charged lower fees to clients who took sessions with the apprentice, compared to the certified instructors or studio owner.
Training could take several years and during this time the studio owner was blessed with the support of their students in busy times, and in quiet times, the students would take sessions with their mentor to work on their own Pilates and teaching techniques.
In the UK, the big brand training companies focussed on equipment-specific training, it was easier to fill a 10-day reformer course costing £1,000 than to fill a 50-day, £5,000, complete apparatus training course. At the same time, the UK was grappling with training standards via the Register of Exercise Professionals (REPS) and National Qualifications, so UK fitness instructor insurance companies shied away from covering instructors trained outside of bone fide training academies, where there was no certainty of the quality of training that an apprentice was getting.
The result is the current situation, where Instructors have invested fully in their own training BEFORE they seek employment, and they have often very little loyalty to their employer IF that employer is not offering the very best hourly rates. This has resulted in low staff retention as more studios open and there are too few instructors to cover the potential of all of them, and so Instructors move to the studios that pay the highest hourly rates. Often these hourly rates are unaffordable for studios in locations where the demographics dictate lower session fees than can be achieved in more affluent areas.
The advent of online apparatus training now allows studios to once more consider a hybrid version of the original apprentice training. Apparatus studios can harness the proliferation of trained Pilates Matwork teachers and offer these teachers an extended period of apprentice-style learning in the studio. In this instance, the student covers the online learning of repertoire and associated assessments while the studio offers a scaled hourly rate for teaching hours, depending on the stage of learning of the student. In addition, the studio owner/lead instructor links with the training company to satisfy its need to become one of the academy mentors, so that they can sign off on the student’s requirements to prove their learning, and work with the students in quiet times to help improve their teaching style and understanding of the repertoire, in terms of personal performance and teaching.
An example of this is Pilates Northwest where the owner of two studios, one in Manchester, and the other in St Helens has linked with Mbodies Training Academy to provide a two-year apprentice style learning. The scheme is now in its third year and company owner Nisha Srivastava has been able to recruit and retain staff who can earn while they learn, so it is a win-win for the studio and for the student. The studio is guaranteed a minimum of two years where the student is working within the studio and paying for their training on a two-year payment plan; where the monthly payments are more than covered by the income derived from teaching in the studio. The studio owner/mentor is paid a monthly sum by Mbodies to contribute towards time dedicated to the apprentice/student to improve their quality and sign off their learning.
The online training is split into 7 parts :
Studio Health and Safety - A two-hour online lecture prior to start of the practical training.
Pilates Reformer Induction – A minimum of 25 hours of learning (in own time) of a limited repertoire of the 34 root exercises across all parts of the Reformer and body positions. The student is examined in this to satisfy the criteria to become insured, which allows the instructor to teach the 34 root exercises, their progressions, and regressions, to start teaching basic classes and client inductions on the apparatus.
Pilates Cadillac/Tower induction – minimum 25 hours of learning (in own time) of a limited repertoire of 40 exercises using all components of the tower and body positions. The student is examined in this to satisfy the criteria to become insured, which allows the instructor to teach the 40 root exercises and their progressions and regressions to start teaching basic classes and client inductions on the kit.
Pilates Reformer full Classical and Contemporary Repertoire – Minimum 75 hours of learning (in own time) covering over 300 Exercises including Jump-board and all standard Reformer accessories.
Pilates Tower full Classical and Contemporary Repertoire – Minimum 75 hours of learning (in own time) covering over 300 Exercises including emulation of seated spring-work found in the Baby Armchair Repertoire.
Pilates Wunda Chair :- Minimum 30 hours of learning (in own time) to cover Chair repertoire including Split Pedal and Chair arm accessories.
Pilates Barrels :- Minimum 30 hours of learning (in own time) to cover baby Arc Barrel, Step Barrel/Spine Corrector, and Ladder Barrel – approximately 90 exercises across the three barrel types.
If you found this blog useful or interesting look out for companion blogs in the next weeks, the next is titled:
Running a successful Pilates Studio business with a sale value at the end, as opposed to a lifestyle business with little value other than perhaps some goodwill
Chris Onslow - Pilates and Fitness Business Consultant
Chris Onslow, has run Pilates focussed businesses since 1998. He and his team specialise in supporting Pilates entrepreneurs and business owners. With a rich history of owning and running successful Pilates studios in the UK, and supporting others in Europe and the Middle East, Chris has broad expertise in maximising profitability and optimising operational efficiency. His agency provides top-tier advice on selecting new, pre-owned, and hireable Pilates equipment from renowned brands such as Align-Pilates, Balanced Body or Stott-Pilates/Merrithew. As the founder of Mbodies Training Academy, Chris continues to revolutionise Pilates education, offering premier online and hybrid CPD and qualification courses for Pilates apparatus instruction and special population CPD. Discover more about how Chris can support your Pilates Business or home exercise choices at www.pilates-consultant.co.uk