Pure Barre
Largest, most established barre concept in the nation with over 300 studios across the country.
| Date | Investors | Amount | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
| investor | €0.0 | round | |
| N/A | €0.0 | round | |
N/A | Acquisition | ||
| Total Funding | 000k | ||
Pure Barre operates as a prominent boutique fitness franchise specializing in barre workouts, a fitness regimen inspired by ballet, yoga, and Pilates. The company was established in 2001 by Carrie Rezabek Dorr, a dancer and choreographer with a background in group fitness and law. She opened the first small studio in the Detroit, Michigan area, aiming to offer a more effective workout than traditional gyms provided at the time. Initially, Dorr had no intention of franchising but started licensing the concept after receiving numerous requests. The business began its formal franchising operations in 2009.
A significant milestone occurred in 2012 when the company, nearing 100 locations, partnered with private equity firm WJ Partners to build out its infrastructure. This was followed by an investment from L Catterton in 2015. In a key strategic move in October 2018, Pure Barre was acquired by Xponential Fitness, a curator of boutique fitness brands, making Xponential the largest provider in its category. This acquisition placed Pure Barre alongside other brands like Club Pilates and YogaSix, providing franchisees with extensive corporate support in areas like marketing, sales, and operations.
The business model is centered on a franchise system, with a recurring revenue stream from client memberships. Franchisees pay an initial fee of $60,000, a 7% royalty fee on gross sales, and a 2% marketing fee. The total initial investment to open a studio ranges from approximately $314,411 to $629,345. The company targets individuals passionate about the Pure Barre technique and provides comprehensive support, including site selection, construction guidance, and sales training for both new and existing studio owners.
Pure Barre's core service is its unique, low-impact, high-intensity workout technique. Classes, typically 50 minutes long, use a ballet barre and focus on small, isometric movements to fatigue muscles, followed by stretching to create a lean physique. The program is designed to improve strength, flexibility, and balance while being easy on the joints. The company offers several class formats to cater to different fitness levels and goals, including Pure Barre Classic™, the original format; Pure Barre Empower™, which incorporates high-intensity interval training; Pure Barre Align™, focused on flexibility and balance; and Pure Barre Define™, which adds weight-based strength training. This variety, along with regularly updated choreography, aims to keep the experience engaging for its over 100,000 active members across more than 650 studios in North America.
Keywords: barre fitness, boutique fitness franchise, low-impact workout, full-body workout, Carrie Dorr, Xponential Fitness, group fitness, Pilates, yoga, ballet barre, isometric movements, fitness franchising, recurring revenue model, fitness classes, strength training, flexibility, fitness lifestyle, franchise opportunity, member community, Pure Barre Classic, Pure Barre Empower