Thread: studio owners, do you rent on credentials?

This is a question for studio owners.
Do you decide who is allowed to rent based on talent?

Putting aside controversial classes (like pole dance!), if a teacher (maybe yoga, or Nia or something like that) approaches you to rent, do you check their credentials? Do you care if they are GOOD teachers, or just whether they pay the rent on time?

How about another bellydance teacher, teaching a differernt style from you, on on "off night" when you have no classes. Would you do it if you need the rent? Would you check to see if they are a quality dancer and/or teacher?

If so HOW would you check this? Resume/credentials? Video? Audition? Recommendation?

I don't rent my studio, and probably wouldn't rent to another bellydance teacher. The landlord/tenant relationship doesn't lend itself to quality control, and I wouldn't want a bad teacher out there associated with my name.

So, if I respected someone I'd contract with them rather than rent to them.

When I used to rent space from another (non-belly) dance studio, she cared nothing about my skill, but she didn't promote my class either. I was strictly a tenant.

Though we don't have our own studio, yet -

When we rented our very first space it was from a (non-belly) dance studio - it was more on networking. My daughter was a dancer there and I got to know her teacher. That teacher vouched for me to the studio owner. I met with the owner and we had a brief conversation - she wanted to know more about my character than my skill.

Our second place was even less involved. The fact that I rented from the first (that studio is very well respected) and had a good paying rent track record and my partner was an aquaintance of the second studio owner was how we entered that relationship. We gave our teaching history but I don't think she had ever seen us dance.

Pick me, pick me!..g.: But not on Thursdays.

I rent to whomever wants the space. But like Lauren, I probably wouldn't rent to another BD teacher for regular classes. I do rent to many different BD teachers for workshops though.

I don't care about credentials unless I'm actually contracting them myself, promoting them on my website, doing fliers, doing admin, etc. I look for good teaching qualifications and good reputation etc. when *hiring* and associating my studio and company name with them.

But as far as renting goes...you could teach a class in nose-picking for all I care. Its good to have the rental income!

(I can see it now, nosepicking 101, Thursdays at 1pm, LOL!)

Ok here's a little more information. After renting other people's studio space for 9 years, I got fed up and leased a space of my own. However, I also have a full time day job, and
only teach 2 to 3 nights at my studio, so I rely on rental income to make the payments. I rent to yoga, Nia, and African Dance teachers, for example. I also work with a few belly dance teachers that I know well and whose style is very different from mine. There is enough demand to support the classes. I maintain a website with class listings and "teacher pages" and help promote ALL classes at my studio.

I've been contacted by a new belly dance teacher and know nothing about her, as she's new to the area. I wonder if it's appropriate to ask her for an audition, videotape, or something to give me an idea of her skill, style, etc. Is that acceptable? All the yoga teachers who rent came prepared to show their teaching credentials, but we don't always have such a benchmark for belly dance.

thoughts?

Do you decide who is allowed to rent based on talent? Yes.

Do you care if they are GOOD teachers, or just whether they pay the rent on time? Both.

New teacher who is not familar to us? Invite her to a studio party and give her a performance slot. If that looks promising, hold a small workshop featuring her. If that still looks promising, schedule her for a month of classes.

I don't 'rent' a studio out to people, but I do promote workshops with master bellydance teachers. I would suggest that if your reputation is at stake, this is when quality needs to be assured. If you can rent out without your reputation being on the line, then fine, rent to anyone. Are you sure though, that there are any situations where your rep isn't on the line ???

With me, I always check out the teachers, and only have the best. I attend their classes to check them out before bringing them over. It's not just quality of teaching, it's if they can start and end on time, if they are good with people, if they are reliable, if they are discreet (all sorts of confidential things come up re: the students, and these need not to be passed on).