"Buyer beware" - even before handing over $100 for a trial month! I'm updating my review after having taken a couple more classes and giving them another star. You need to be armed with the facts to make your own decision. I personally will not sign up for a full membership, despite the fact that the technique is excellent. First, know that you will love the look and feel of the place. Do not be blinded. This of course is part of a well-honed marketing strategy, but the marketing has overlooked (or ignored) a couple of critical elements of what makes for an injury-free and good studio:
1) The floor is a concrete slab with thin carpet on top. That's obvious. While the Pure Barre method is no impact, your knees will know you're on concrete when you're on them. Any serious studio will have a raised floor or at least thick cushioning. You're not on your pool-side patio - this should be professional-grade exercise mat, especially for the price.
2) There are mirrors only on one side of the room. If you are on the opposite bar, you can gaze at cool art and a pretty pickled grey wooden wall - but you won't be able to see the instructor to know what to do. You'll have to rely on your neighbor to know what's going on, and then he or she may not be doing the exercises correctly, and precision is key. Since instructors don't always think to call out instructions, you can't rely on that. Or you can be a freak and be the only one to turn around with your back toward the barre and holding on in an awkward position, so that you can face the other side of the room to see the instructor. Mirrors on both sides are more important than hip art and popular color scheme and decor.
3) The music and microphones are loud - part of the marketing ethos at least in Crofton. Not loud like driving in your car happy "loud," but LOUD like the mosh pit of a concert, except that concert speakers are rarely overdriven like they are at Pure Barre. This is painful and stupid -- I'm supposed to be motivated, not deafened. The problem varies from instructor to instructor. The only class that was reasonable was Kate's and she's an owner. Too bad she teaches so few classes a week.
4) If you try to give feedback about the volume to at least one instructor - the one who teaches ALL the morning classes, Betsy - she will summarily dismiss you and tell you to take another class. Trust me, I tried to have a conversation but she was so arrogant that I gave up and left. No clue what what the term "customer care" means. She may not agree, but she should at least listen and not be a smiling, self-inflated bobblehead. As if it makes her feel more important to treat people like she's the queen and you, peon, may take a hike! I am not a rude person. I could not believe the exchange.
5) If you try to contact the owners to talk about a problem like Betsy, don't expect to get a call back. I know this because I wrote to the corporate offices and asked them to have the owner contact me to resolve an issue. I told them that I preferred not to explain the nature of my complaint to them because I wanted to work it out with the local owner. They emailed me and told me that they had passed the message along and that I would hear back soon. It never happened. I'm sure that was because the owners had my name and a record of the class, and they already knew that I had complained to the instructor about the volume. So now corporate is going to get this entire review.
If you don't mind paying $200 a month to put up with all this, then yes, the workout is excellent. I was going to buy earplugs and kneepads because I liked the workout so much, but then I realized how ridiculous that was. Not to mention the attitude. I'm going to look for a pilates class where being a hipster isn't Goal One. read more