Thread: Negotiating with studio owners

Here is the situation: I am used to renting space from a studio and handling my own enrollment, advertising etc. I will continue to do that in the fall but I have also been contacted by a Zumba studio to teach a 6 week introductory session at their studio where they would pay me and handle advertising and enrollment. I am much more comfortable with my usual system but I am willing to try this out for the short trial period. My class sizes are usually 6-12 people and after paying studio rent I take home a little over $50 per class. Bearing these things in mind I went to meet the Zumba studio owner and she said she wanted to pay me $35 per hour. I said that was too low and I really won't work for less then $50. But then she told me that her minimum class size is 15 people and she often gets as many as 40 people per class and occasionally gets as many as 55! So that really blew all of my calculations out of the water and changed everything. I do a lot of individualized instruction in my classes and walk around checking each students technique several times during the duration of the class. So in the circumstance where my class sizes would potentially be double or triple the number of people I am used to teaching I would certainly want more money. She would be making an outrageous amount off of my classes if enrollment really went that high. So we agreed to each go try to figure out a way to make this work and she emailed me back saying that she would pay the $50/hour and that it would work out to 40% of what she would take in for enrollment. I don't want to go less then 60% since that is what I know other local BDers who have a split rate of pay make and I am now no longer comfortable doing a flat rate since I have no idea what enrollment might turn out to be. If she really ends up signing up something like 25 people and I am making a flat $50 I would be pretty upset. I had no idea how popular Zumba studios are!
Oh, and for additional info she charges $6-8/student/1 hr class and I charge $12-15/student/1 hr class. I don't want this to effect my enrollment at my normal studio so I wouldn't be listing her classes on my website.

ETA: I declined to work at the studio since the owner did not want to go above $50/hour or 35% of registrations regardless of student size. If anyone wants to share experiences of negotiating with studio owners I would be interested to hear them. Thanks!

Nevermind, she already emailed back and was fairly affronted that I suggested a 60/40 split.

60/40 is the norm at the BD/Zumba studio I frequent. Sorry it didn't work out for you but maybe that has averted some headaches for you, if the owner refuses fair value for instructors.

I wouldn't do it for less than 60% either, and I pay the teachers at my studio (yoga and bellydance) 60%.

The only exception is when they're teaching my material and choreographies, just stepping in to teach a class they don't have to prepare for. Then I pay a flat rate, and it's lower.

At any rate, I wouldn't teach 50 people in one class. That may work for an exercise class, but it won't work for learning complicated material like a dance form in depth. I would have insisted ALSO on limiting my class size to 25. She wouldn't have hired me either! ..l;,..l;,

The only place I ever took less than 40/60 split was the YMCA. And I would have to be begged to go back to the Y. (File under: "Things you learned as a new teacher.")

All college/cont. education departments, gyms, and studios that I've worked for have all done 40/60. It was up to me to advertise, but since I had the network... it was not a problem.

Sorry this did not work out. However, I have walked away from studios and fittness centers because of this. They don't want to pay what you are making in your already established class. Does not make sense.

Thank you for the support everyone! The studio owner was definitely not happy when I said the norm was 60(instructor)/40(studio) and she actually complained that I would be stealing her profits! I get the feeling she has just never hired an outside instructor to teach a style other then Zumba before.

At any rate, I wouldn't teach 50 people in one class. That may work for an exercise class, but it won't work for learning complicated material like a dance form in depth.

I completely agree. I explained to her that class sizes as large as she wanted would be unfair to the students and that since bellydance is a technical dance form and not a fitness class there is far more emphasis on ensuring each student has the proper technique. The sad thing is there are a few local instructors that will most likely jump at the opportunity to teach there.

She also asked me what it would take for her to teach bellydance! I hope my extensive description of the subtleties of Middle Eastern dance, culture, and music and an explanation of the rigorous training and one-on-one mentoring with other professionals got through to her and knocked that idea out of her head! The thought of a Zumba instructor teaching a BD class without so much as ever taking a single bellydance class gives me nightmares.

Originally Posted by Mintaka

She also asked me what it would take for her to teach bellydance!

hooo boy. That's probably what she'll do.

I hate the idea too. But the truth is that a well-trained fitness instructor (not all zumba instructors are well-trained, IMO, you can get your zumba cert without doing any rigorous training as a GFI) can probably introduce a 'bellyrobics' class with very little training.

The would need to spend few hours with a Nena and Veena video, picking up 8-10 simple movements, and they'd need a NOW Arabia Cd or two.

It wouldn't be a bellydance class, but most zumba students asking for bellydance probably don't care about that. They want to add an interesting 'flavor' to their workout.

It's an unpleasant truth, but it is truth. I don't see that as any real competition with what we do, it's separate from what we do. It *may* even increase interest in what we do, in many cases, or at least generate interest among people who weren't exposed before. *crosses fingers*