Dance Teacher Expo 2024 Wrap Up

Hello, friends. I'm Amanda Barr.

And I'm Rebecca Lou Brennan. And welcome to Dance Principals United, the podcast.

Together, we are passionate about helping studio owners with the business of running their studio.

Join us as we talk everything from marketing systems, studio culture, motherhood, life, and everything in between.

This is the Dance Principles United podcast. Hi, friends, and welcome to a very special episode of the Dance Principles United Podcast. It is the day after dance Teacher Expo 2024, and I am here with the whole crew. I'm here with the lovely Bec.

Hi, guys.

I'm also here with Nay.

Hello, everybody.

And our amazing support crew, who you might have not heard on the podcast before, the beautiful Cara.

Hi, everyone.

And Tim.

Hi, everybody.

So exciting. Oh, my God. How great was X way back?

I mean, it was epic. Amanda, I don't know. I don't know if you remember this moment, but there was kind of this moment where you, Nathan, I were just like, we actually can't believe that we have created this. Like, it was. Do you remember that, Nath? Like, we're just all standing there together and it was this surreal moment of I can't believe that this is actually happening. And ours and all the things.

Yeah. Especially being so much bigger and better than last year as well. Like, last year was epic and amazing. And then walking in this year, especially that vendor arena, that was just absolutely next level, especially with the catwalk in there and all the lights and everything.

Like, oh, my gosh, for the people that weren't there, we took the vendor arena to the next level. It looks so professional. It was so amazing in there. We had 60 incredible brands, you know, Australian brands, but also brands from Canada, the uk, America. It was awesome, right?

It was so insane. And I think we had, like, nearly 60 brands in there, right?

Yeah.

And, like, everything from costume companies to software to all the things like syllabuses. It was the vibe. The vibe was like my favorite part, I think. Like, just how everyone was getting on with each other. Everyone was so supportive of each other, and I think, you know, that's just. It doesn't happen in our industry very often.

No, it doesn't. It doesn't happen nearly enough. Right. Bringing everybody together because it's obviously so incredible having the brands there, but what makes the event such a success is having all those incredible studio owners and teachers come together to bring that vibe that you're talking about.

Oh, my God. It was so good. We loved her. We had over a thousand people join us, and it was an amazing event. Everybody really just was there supporting each Other. You know, it's interesting. I was talking to. I don't know if I've told you guys this. Cara and I were both talking to Kate Evans from Acrobatic Arts, and what she said to us was, it's so interesting to talk to different studio owners and different teachers. You know, she works for Acrobatic Arts and obviously teaches as well. And she's like, you know, I have the same problems that you guys are all facing. I have the same problems in my class that you guys are all doing. We all are exactly the same.

No one's special.

No one's different. She had some really great insights, didn't she, Cara?

She sure did. And that's what it's all about. Like, in the dance industry, I think everyone thinks it's all about competition. And it's really nice, like, the absolute scale of the event and just how many people. We're all in the same space, but we were all in the same space this time in under the one roof, all there for the same purpose, and everyone was just vibing it. Like, I spoke to so many people at registration, and I stayed on the registration desk for the whole day on day one, and then day two, I moved into the vendor arena and had so many conversations with people, and everybody just absolutely loved it. Like, no one had a bad word to say about anything. And so many people that were strangers became besties, and just the connections that were made were just so amazing. It just warmed my heart. I loved it.

Well, I think that's, like one of the biggest things that Amanda Nathan. I have always wanted, Cara, is for people to connect with each other in this industry. And we all say together we are stronger. And Amanda and I got up in our opening address and said, try and meet people next to you. And also in that opening address, I said that I would have been the last person to have gone and number one, gone to this event, and number two, being brave enough to go up to people. But, you know, when you put yourself out of your comfort zone, and as I keep saying, that's how Amanda Nathan I met was at a business event. Not quite to the extreme of that by any means, but, you know, at a business event and look where it's bought us. And you just never know. You might meet your best friend there. Like, people have connected from last year's Expo and they're now coming to Expo together. It's crazy.

So good. I was chatting to some studio owners that were there, Candace and Brad from Harvey Bay, and they were with another Studio owner there. And I'm so sorry, I can't remember the name of that studio. There was a lot of people we've met.

Yeah.

And I thought the three of them were there together because they were standing there chatting. I thought the three of them were all there together and all business partners will work together. First time they'd ever met. But I saw them having such great conversations, and I was like, that's what it's all about, right?

Like, yeah.

They had so much in common. They'd never met before. It was so lovely to have that.

So amazing. And Tim, I know, like, a lot of the vendors in the vendor room, because that was your jam talking to them.

Or Tim, the king of the vendor room.

He is the king. But I feel like the same thing. Like, vendors were connecting with other vendors and getting on with each other up there as well.

Yeah, definitely. Look it up. It was such an amazing event and at risk of going on with it, but just the whole community and a few of my highlights were just having, seeing, and hearing people. Hey, Amanda, I haven't seen you since two years ago from this or there. Or vendors actually connecting with students that they used to teach or even. I think it was Manny from Block going over to see Debbie from Dance the Magic.

Yeah.

And they were just reconnections and rekindling old. I was gonna say romances, relationships, and friendships. It was just such a good environment. And I think having vendors in competing areas, there was no fighting. There was more connections, there was more growth. And it's just the realization that there's enough people to service every business. And it was just such a good environment and a dance, people just bring that extra buzz. And it was just humming the whole time. It was such an amazing experience.

It was so good. And I know we were talking about. We saw a few different, you know, companies chatting with each other and talking about how they can collaborate together and work together and. God, that was good, right? Like, because that's what it's all about. It's about, you know, building our brands together, building this industry that we all love together. Because, as you said, Beck, together we're stronger.

Yeah, absolutely. But today, guys, on the podcast, we thought we would chat to you about our. Each of our biggest lessons from the event. Because, you know, we all go to these events. We have a great time and all the things, but it's also a place to learn and self reflect and absolutely find what your biggest lesson was from the event. We had some amazing sessions as well, which we were kind of in and out of, obviously, because we were running around doing things, but we did get to listen to some stuff. But, Amanda, I know you got to interview a few people, but, you know, I'd love to know, like, what was your biggest lesson from this event? What was the one thing that you're like, right. You know, that was the hugest. Big aha moment.

My big aha moment. That's a big question on a Monday after a huge event. But, you know, I had so many of them, and I really think, like, I got the pleasure of interviewing Shannon Atkins, which was amazing. She was talking about, what are judges looking for? And that was incredible. She had some incredible insights into that. And some of them was that all judges are different. There's not a set thing. She was really talking about about that, but also about how she just really feels that kids should be kids, which I loved hearing.

Yes, I love hearing that as well.

And that, you know, sometimes those, you know, not everything matters so much. She said, you know, when she was a studio owner, she used to be so pedantic about every little thing that the kids did, from what they wore to how they presented to all those things. And she said, yes. Why it does matter. She said that she, you know, some interesting things she said was that she often disagrees with some of the other adjudicators, you know, for example, about, you know, how they wear shoes or, you know, if they're wearing one turning shoe or something like that. Some. Some adjudicators have that.

It's such a big thing now.

Yeah.

And she said, I don't care in reality, because in reality, they're not wearing any turning shoes when they're working professionally. So if they want to wear a turning shoe, great. Sometimes they're in a school hall and the, you know, the flooring isn't safe. Sometimes it's a safety thing. She's like, but really, does it matter? Why does that matter? She's like, I do think grooming matters, but some little things like that, the tights, the no tights, the one shoe, the two shoes, the no shoes. She's like, there's such little things that sometimes we just should, you know, skip ahead from and not worry about. I thought that was really interesting.

Very interesting. And I'm one of those studio owners who's really thinking about that. Exactly that at the moment, but my staff are as well. Amanda, it's like you are so worried about whether that judge is going to like the no shoe thing. Not like the no shoe thing. It's like this transition in our industry at the moment.

Yeah.

I love Shannon, though. She's. She's so encouraging and beautiful in. And I feel like she would not never judge a child on that and would always, you know, and I hope all judges would be like that, to be honest, because the kids work their guts out.

Absolutely. You know who else I interviewed? Marco, Seraya Zapata and Will Dyson from the cast of New Era. Oh, my God, there was so many takeaways. Will Dyson. I'd never met Will before and he's only 19 and I'd never met him before. And oh my God, the insights he shared with the room. Everyone was like, flawed. Like, he just hit the nail on the head so many times. It was incredible. You know, he was talking about ways that teachers and studio owners can encourage upcoming talent to really support them. And both him and Soraya were really talking about how our words as teachers have such massive impact on those children and how we've got to remember the power we have as teachers.

Yes.

That sometimes a throwaway comment that doesn't even mean anything to us can mean the world to a child. And, you know, Marco was kind of, you know, leaning into that as well and was talking about something that was said to him when he was at an open class in Melbourne that changed his whole life. He's like, that teacher doesn't probably even remember me in that class saying that to me. And it changed my whole life. And, you know, it made him, you know, pursue his professional career because of one comment. And it was just incredible. I really. Oh, my God. And there was so. Oh, my God, I can't even begin. I don't think I have enough time in this podcast to talk about all the incredible things that Marco said. Because I like, I love Marco, as you know, and he always has so many incredible things to say.

Yeah. Sophie Holloway had something interesting as well. She was talking about that as teachers, we should truly care about the way that we're teaching kids. Because she teaches mostly in full time schools and she said she has a lot of kids come to her and it's too late. Like, it's almost like they're at a stage where they haven't developed enough professionally. And Matt Lee was the same, actually. He was like, as teachers, now we're tunneling these kids into one thing. So rather than being able to do something singing, dancing, acting, blah, blah, he was like, you know, it should be a holistic view on teaching, but it's gone into this whole, like, you are just gonna be this one thing. And that's the one thing we're gonna push you forward for. But the problem with that is then when they get out in the big bad world, they don't have all the things anymore. It's like this new trend in studio ownership, which I thought was a really interesting way of looking at it.

It's interesting that so many of them said the same kind of ideas. Yeah, they're all noticing the same thing. So many of them meaning amazing teachers and choreographers. Like. Yeah, really, really interesting. Nath, you didn't really get to any sessions.

No, because I was in and out, just making sure I was there. I made that one. But, oh, yeah, because I was in and out helping the tech, the tech setups and all those things, making sure it was all running smoothly with the ICC team there. But, yeah, that was really interesting what you guys were saying there. Just to sort of go off on a tangent a bit, do you think it's sort of going away from. Because they're obviously both, like, talking about professional, like getting work as a performer. Is it almost sometimes what's. What's going on in the comp world maybe isn't so much translating sometimes to that side of things.

Yeah. Matt Lee was talking about that now that everything is so the kids are on Instagram so much and seeing all.

It's funny. Kieran was talking. I don't know. You didn't see Kieran Kulik's session, but he's talked about the Instagram. Yeah, sorry to interrupt.

No, it's fine. They're just saying that, like, the kids now on Instagram think that because those kids are winning comp. And the parents. I said to Matt, I know you don't see that side of it, but as a studio and other parents as well, because those kids are winning comp. That that's the way the world of dance is going. But as Matt Lee said, the reason he's had such a long career and the reason he knows that his career will continue is because he can do all the things, sing, dance, act. He's like, you need acrobatics, you now need circus. He's like, you need to be good at everything. Not just, I'm a technical dancer, because the technique will get you through the first two rounds of even a cruise ship audition. But get to round three and you're screwed. So it's just like that whole realization in our industry and thinking about what we're giving our kids is, are we giving them a long career or are we just giving them that very short Career.

And it's interesting, the same trophy.

Oh, the very short trophy and the trophy career.

Because I think the whole trophy career is a whole different kettle of fish. Right?

Yes. But Matt also said you can only do the Cirque du Soleil contract or the technical, whatever it is contract for five to ten years max.

Yeah.

And then you. You. Your body cannot physically cope with that anymore. So it was it. Yeah. I loved interviewing him. I was such a fan girl, too. I was literally so nervous to interview him because I was like, this is Matt.

Like, watch him in every show.

Looked up to him for so long. I said that to him in the beginning, but it was, like, one of the best experiences of my whole life, getting to interview him.

You didn't tell me that.

It was 100%. God, we're so lucky to be surrounded by the people we're surrounded with on the weekend. They're amazing. Like Glen Wood from Glenwood Talent.

We've all got to talk about. We all have stories about Glen Wood. He was amazing.

He, like, blew me away with. You know how we talk about brands that have survived through the ages? Coca Cola, perfect example. Okay. Like, it was, what, born in the 1950s or something, is still one of the best. I mean, we all had a Coke Zero at lunch today.

Yes.

But you know what I mean, like, it's a brand that has lived through time and. And evolved and done all the things. So, you know, when Glenwood was one of our premium sponsors and bought in young kids, tapping had a very fresh look to his stall. Just did all the right things, connected with everyone. Had Darren Disney in there. Like, it was one of the most epic things I've ever seen. And I was. When on the. Tim will tell you. But, like, was at the dancer store mucking around and stuff. Like, he is just someone who evolves. I was so impressed with that.

I think we all were.

Kara, you saw that the lunchtime tap sessions. Like, their store was just. He was like. They got their tap boards out. They were doing little demonstrations with their assistants at lunchtime. They got out there and did a little show. They brought a crowd, and the crowd just stood around their store and just watched them do this little tap show. I was mesmerized. I was literally sitting there with my jaw dropped just watching because I was like, this is so fun. Like, I didn't get to go up to any of the sessions. I was busy doing other things. But, you know, to be able to come down in the vendor arena and see them demonstrating what they were actually talking about to people and was just amazing. That's right. Glenn got it and he was just amazing. He did not stop and he was just incredible.

It was almost like a bit of a marketing masterclass. Like, it was for as incredible as it was, it wasn't like a big bells and whistles production or anything like that.

He does well.

Yep, he had that. They do the thing that they do amazingly there at Glenwood Tap, obviously. They literally had two tap boards and a bunch of really friendly, welcoming people who also happen to be amazing tappers hanging around and showcasing what they did. And I think it's. Yeah, just, like I said, a really good example of just doing what you know and doing it really well and being friendly and personable. And the crowds come.

Definitely. I think I was at the other corner of the vendor arena, which was a big room, which was a very big room. And he said it was an impromptu lunchtime session. The hall just stopped because you just heard that rhythmic tapping, Just that distinctive tap, tap, tap, tap, tap sound. And everyone just stopped. Like, what is that? I need to go and see it. It was like that sort of Pied Piper moment where everyone just kind of huddled around to see what was happening. It was such a easy thing to do. It was so organic. And so a marketing masterclass. Exactly what you said just drew the people.

I think you guys need to think about that with your studios. Like, what are you doing in your local area to stand out a little bit? What's something a bit different that you can bring? You know, if you are going to the local fatal fair, what are you bringing with you to the local fatal fair that's going to make you stand out from other studios? If you're marketing, what are you doing to market to make you stand out and be completely different from everyone else? Because there's a lot of noise in the marketplace, but when you do something, you know, we could have talked about any of the 58 brands, but we all are talking about Glenwood Tap and you know it. That's why. Because he was so. Well, they were so smart with how they did that.

They were captivating, you know, like, they just captured people's attention. And don't get me wrong, all the vendors were absolutely amazing. Absolutely vendor arena this year. Next level.

Oh, my God.

Like, it looked incredible. All the stores looked amazing. All the vendors were amazing. I went around and checked out every store. Even after set up on Friday night, I had a little sneaky look at everyone's store and was just like, was so excited for the weekend. Because I just knew everyone was going to walk into that hall, which we were so scared about having originally because we thought it was going to be huge. It was, you know, this scary thing. But it was packed out and. And it just looked epic. And it was epic. Everyone was just loved it.

You know what else I think was interesting was this. The vendor people who for me, put a little bit extra effort into their stall. Like one of the ones that I want to say is atod. Yes, they. Their store, like, they obviously invested in it, but they just put that extra little bit of finesse, I guess you'd say, and effort into it. And I think, again, like with your dance studios, first impressions are very important. And that first impression of when people walk in can really make or break something. And I think when you looked at their stall, that first impression was very, very impressive. I don't know if you felt.

I felt, yeah. 100.

Yeah. Something we talk about all the time with our studios, right. In that, like you said, you get one chance to make a first impression. And too often in our studios, sometimes we get a little bit lazy when we walk.

Our waiting rooms are looking a bit sloppy. They're looking a little bit old, messy.

With the amount of small humans we have coming through every week.

Too many popcorn on the floor, bloody popcorn on the floor.

And the paint gets chipped here and there. And it keeps getting like. Yeah, just those little things that we keep overlooked that we get to acclimatize to and we gotta look at it with fresh eyes pretty regularly.

It's thinking about what the message is that you're sending people when someone first walks in as well. Like, you know, what message are you giving them? Are you giving them a fun, friendly message? Are you giving them a professional message? Are you giving them a we care about your kids message? Because that's the top three things I think that we need to be thinking about.

What about Hope from Enrolio, what she was talking about that she does the amazing hoping I'm from Enrolio, but you.

Can'T see Beck's face at the moment.

Because who also has a studio herself. Talk about that one.

Beck the experience.

Look, I'm obsessed with Hope after the weekend, I have to say, but she has done a lot of training in the Disney experience, which Amanda and I have tried to do, but we can't do it because we're in Australia. But anyway, she has done a lot of training with that Disney experience. So she was telling me things like when. When you walk into the studio, she has Music playing and she has, like, this garden that you walk through, so you feel like you're kind of going into a fantasy room that at the end of her classes, she gives out lavender flannels, like, to every child to wipe their faces and hands over with. But, like, I can imagine the experience in her studio would be absolute next level. These are not hard things to do, though. Like, it's just small, little things. That's what I'm saying. Like, you don't have to go out. We're not saying go and spend $50,000 and refurbish your waiting area, but, like, little things like that, that you do that show that you care so much about those kids and about the experience. Experience is what's going to make it next level.

Yeah. That you can do consistently as well.

100.

Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. So can we talk about the fashion show? Can we, like, have a pause and talk about the fashion show? Because that was one of the highlights of the event for everybody, the Saturday night event. It was amazing. The girls at Future Stars did an awesome job of choreographing 10 brands. So much fun. So everyone was so into it, right?

Yeah, it was epic. Look, I'm really proud of the girls, and I also think that they tried really hard to use different kids from different studios as well as my studio, obviously. But, you know, there was a lot of diversity in there. There was a lot of kids from different studios who've used Future Stars, and I think that was really nice to see those kids working together. As Matt Lee said in this session, you know, there's no point being competitive with each other at your age group, because you're all going to end up working together at some stage. And that's something that Marco's always said as well. And I think we really need to. To think about that in our industry, and I'm glad we're now bringing studio owners together. That's really important. But that fashion show was absolutely incredible. The. The brands, though, and the. The look of those costumes. I was just blown away by some of the costumes. And that's what I was saying to everyone on the stage. And you were two. I mean, you can see it in a catalog, and you can see kind of what it looks like, but when you actually see it on a dancer dance, it is a totally different experience.

Yeah, I absolutely loved it. And I loved, you know, there were so many different brands that had a different feel to them. Right. You know, there was, you know, classic brands that had, you know, that was really aimed at young Children. There was more adult kind of style brands and everything in between more edgy kind of styles and more. More traditional styles. And it was so great to see that there was something for everybody and for every studio owner or different type of dance or whether it was a wreck or. Or a comp class, because sometimes we did different sort of styles of costumes and so many little cuties. You know, the moment I absolutely loved, there was a little girl who. Who wasn't very happy on stage.

And I know she was a student of yours, Gabby.

She was so cute. She. She was crying on. On the catwalk. And it was so lovely to see because in a room full of a thousand studio owners and teachers, every single one of us got that right. We've all had that moment with a preschooler who we thought would do great, and they cried on stage.

God, I think I've never run so fast backstage in my whole life. That's so bad for her. But she was fine. She was fine.

Oh, and they always are, right? But, like, every teacher got it. We've all been there. We've all seen that. And I thought that was just so lovely that everyone was, like, very supportive. You know, they clapped her, but were also really mindful. The thing I noticed was everyone gave her a clap but didn't, like, overwhelm her. It wasn't too loud. It was, like, the right level. I think everybody got the moment. You don't want to, like, start screaming and cheering for from her, because we all know that that doesn't work. No, it overwhelms them more. It was so lovely. It was heartwarming.

A lot of pressure on her. Like, she's just. I think she's just turned six a week ago and. Oh, my gosh, I just thought it.

Was heartwarming for the teachers and the studio owners that everyone gave her so much love.

You know what else I loved? The uniforms. Like, yes, a lot of brands chose to show studio owners the types of uniforms they can get. And Amanda and I did, in one of our sessions, a big talk on the fact that you guys should be making profit off your uniforms. I'm a big believer in that. We are a business. We should be making profit. And you got so many different types of uniform. I can't believe how much is out there. For those of you who are listening to us who don't have uniform in your studio yet, check it out. Like, there is so much out there.

For you to get so many new brands, too.

Don't. Incredible. Like, don't disvalue. How amazing having a uniform in your school is. And I also think, like, parents prefer a uniform. I was saying the thing I hate in one of our sessions. I said the thing I hate most in my life is mufti day. Like, Tim will tell you the torture that we go through on mufti day with our kids and how much they have anxiety over what to wear. Right, Tim?

It's a hard enough time getting them all into school uniforms and matching socks and shoes at the same time. So no having. I certainly think having a. What's called a uniform, everyone's in the same sort of outfit. Nobody feels like they're, they're, they're left out or nobody feels like they're the odd one out.

Yeah.

And it's flipping your thinking on that, guys. It's like, you know, oh, I'm worried that parents won't want to pay for it. Whereas if you tell parents the benefits of it, I think it can be a huge game changer.

I know that's one of your pet peeves bec that you're like. Because it's always. It's almost the first objection. If you're talking with studio owners on any of our calls that we do, it's always the first objection you hear when they say they don't have uniform. Like, oh, no, my parents wouldn't like it. Like, well, that's not true. Like, you will hear from the two, like, whinging parents that you always. That always complain about everything. You'll hear from them. But the other 200 will actually appreciate it. So, like, don't listen to those more powerful negative voices. It'll actually be a net positive for your studio. A huge positive. Your studio and will be something you can make money from.

Absolutely. Hey, can you guys tell me when we're talking about the Saturday night, the fashion show and the cocktail hour, what was your, like, standout? Cara, what was the best part of the fashion show? The cocktail hour. Was there a moment in the fashion show that you're like, oh, my God, I'm so this. I love this. Or what was it?

Look, I was late into the fashion show because I was making sure everyone got in there. You know, you're right. When I walked in, I stood at the back of the room and I looked and I was just, like, blown away. I think I've showed you guys 20 times the photo I took on my phone from the back of the room of just the scale of it, like, how many people were there and watching it from the back of the room. Everybody was just loving it. Like, there was studio owners all there, like, mingling together that didn't know each other, that had become besties. During the day in sessions, they were watching the fashion show, you know, seeing, like you said, seeing the movement of the costumes and uniforms on actual bodies and not just someone standing there. Someone actually posts about it on socials about, you know, if you want to market, you know, a product, get a dancer to wear it. Like, how much better, especially in the dance industry, like, how much better did it look when someone was actually up there dancing in it then, like Beck said, seeing it in a catalog or seeing it hanging on a rack when.

It could have been airbrushed or it could have been.

Yeah.

So I think my biggest thing was just that seeing everyone in that room watching everyone came together. There was none of this, oh, I can't sit next to. To that person or be in the room with that person. It was just. Yeah. Epic.

So, so good.

Still can't get over the scale.

So, so good. Nathan, what's your favorite?

Well, I had, like, almost the exact opposite perspective because I was right at the front. I was, like, bringing it back to me, obviously, possibly the most important person in the fashion show, Beck. Because. Because. Because I. Well, exactly. I had to Press space bar 10 times to start to start the music. Yeah, I know, I know. But for me, what. I absolutely loved exactly what you were saying. And, like, what we've all been saying about, you know, studio owners, how much more powerful it is for them to see the costumes on that. Like, I had a view of a whole bunch of studio owners and teachers across from me, and as they're. I can't demonstrate this on a podcast because no one can see me, but every time, like, a costume that they wore a uniform, they would, like, come out. You could see them, like, tapping the person next to them, like, pointing at the like and like, describing the things that they loved about it. And, like, I presume, because my lip reading is not that good, but I presume talking about, like, what sort of class I would think that for. Yeah, that'd be good for. Yeah, exactly. So that. That sort of thing I thought was really, really cool.

Yeah. So, so good. Tim, did you have a moment on Saturday night? Was it. Was it the beers? Is that. Was that the best one that was any.

It was a long day and a long week leading up to everyone in all those sorts of logistical things. Things. But I think for me, and the reason I love being around you guys is you're really good storytellers you can create a really good story. And being a footy dad, I honestly didn't think. And Amanda said this during the show as well. She said, could you. Did you think two years ago you'd be watching ballet outfits going from block? But no, just the. The whole storytelling of Shay and Tara and the future star media. Future stars media. Just the way that they can tell a story through movement and. Exactly right. You got the uniforms and they're good to look at, but they're better to be seen moving and doing.

They were really clever with that because they. They told. I don't know, they seem to tell a different story for every single brand.

I did.

And so every brand had their own flair and their own style and their own music, obviously.

Absolutely.

But I feel like they did suit that really well. I totally agree.

So many good ones. I loved those. Like the cute little moment with the Barbie and Ken in the old 50s outfits of the little girls come out in Hamilton's theatrical outfits. Oh, my God, that was so cute. Out of the boxes, the little Barbies. That was such a moment. And then also Archie with his Taylor. With his Taylor Swift hat, the one that he got given by Taylor Swift and the whole Taylor Swift theme. Oh, my God. That was for Studio 7. And that was.

That was so smart.

So cute. And the friendship bracelets.

Yeah.

So many clever ideas like that. I know. The Studio 7 team gave to Tay and Sharon.

Yeah, they came up with that idea. It was.

I always say that wrong.

Shay and Taryn.

I didn't. Shay and Taryn, yes.

That was such a smart concept. And yes, Studio 7 said they wanted to do the Taylor Swift idea, but to throw out the friendship bracelets with Studio 7 written on them, I was like, that is so smart. And then luckily, Archie from my studio obviously got that Taylor Swift hat, which was.

Oh, my God, so cute.

That was really loved it.

And when Susie interviewed him, he was just so proud to talk about his hat, 100%.

But again, like, let's learn from Studio 7. That was a really standout moment. They were smart. I know heaps of brands asked for that after. And the Taylor Swift theme. And Shay and Taryn were like, sorry, someone's already taken it. But, like, what a smart theme to come up with again, as a studio. What are you thinking about? That's a little bit different, a little bit out there. Like, I think we all just can learn from stuff like that, for sure.

Do you know what was really clever about those bracelets? Like, for. If you weren't at Expo and you didn't see this. They made, you know, the Taylor Swift friendship bracelets that were all beaded. They threw them out to the crowd. Do you know what happened yesterday with one of those friendship bracelets? The security brought it in to me and said, someone's lost a bracelet. It's got a name or something on it. And we looked at it and Nathan and I looked and we went, oh, Studio 7. It's Studio 7's bracelet. You know, like, imagine if someone picked that up on the street and saw Studio 7. So smart.

So smart.

Yeah. Just those extra little things. It's like we were talking about with, like, the stuff that the Glenwood team were doing. Like, sometimes it's just the simplest things that are just so well executed that make the biggest difference. Like square rows. When they were showcasing their uniform range, the kids were coming out with square rose socks on. And it just had that extra. Just that little bit. Just that little bit of brand recognition that was all uniform that looked the same. That just, like topped it off, the little tiny things.

But I have to mention Hamilton's, who came with doll boxes for their Barbie theme that she had got printed saying DTE dolls.

Yeah.

Like, that is so smart. It's. It's not just cute, though. It's smart. It is such smart branding.

Attention to detail.

Yeah. Like just taking things to that next level and doing that little bit extra can make such a difference.

I mean, to Amanda's point earlier, you don't have to go and spend 50 grand redoing you can spend. It's. It's about little things, not the money that you can spend.

Yeah.

The socks, the bracelets. That's the.

It's not lots of money covering.

It's not a lot. It's just coming up with a good idea.

And we all have good ideas.

Yeah. On trend. Not just unique ideas.

Yeah.

And that's what we're talking about tomorrow. Actually, it's funny. We've been prepping our sessions. We're doing a studio growth club day tomorrow and we've been prepping our sessions. We're talking about executing those ideas, which is so, so exciting. But oh, my God. Expo was just amazing. There were so many amazing brands. I was blown away by some of the outfits. I was blown away by so, so many of the vendors. The session. Oh, my God. Every single thing about it. I'm just going to keep saying, oh, my God. Because it was incredible.

It was incredible. I want to say, though, and I know we're probably wrapping up, but you know, the Amount of work that we put into that event was insane.

Oh, yeah.

And every person knew what they were doing for every second. We had everything down to the last detail. And obviously our team is super exhausted and have done all the things, but I think just putting again, out to you guys, to have a really successful event in your studio, you've got to put that hard work and effort into it. And you've got to realize that to make something that huge, you really have to know what every person's doing. You've got to. I mean, Amanda, you were so smart with the marketing and the ideas behind. We sold out of merch Cara.

In, like, how what the merch was next level. So Amanda and I literally had this discussion, like a couple of weeks before in regards to the merch about, you know, how much do you think we need? Do you think anyone will even buy it? Like, what should we do about the merch the first day? Do you know how many people I had lining up saying, I want one of those merch bags. I want one of those merch bags.

I think it's because we're clever about what we got. It is.

Amanda is so smart with, like, coming up with those ideas and, you know, I know you've got support with that, but it's like the two of them with those incredible ideas and that is just.

It's just those little things that people on trend things.

It is like. But then, yeah, there's just so much that goes into that. And I think you guys need to think about if maybe your concert wasn't what you wanted it to be, maybe it wasn't as successful as you'd think. Self reflect and think, why? Because I don't know, I feel like we have a great team here. We each have our niche of what we're great at in that event and we each do our things. I mean, Nath created this incredible app. Every single person talked, every vendor. Tim, you agree with me, really talked about that app and how amazing it was. Tim's there chatting to the vendor people the entire time, helping them with the logistics. Like, we each have our thing that we obviously are doing, but I feel like it is so much work to make an event like that amazing. And you guys need to think about that with your concert or with your.

Event, it's doing all the things that's.

Going to be the next shirts, the next shirts.

We had Taylor Swift shirts this year. Next year, it's going to be all the things shirts, because that's what things.

The amount of people that Said to me, you guys need to have all the things shirts, because every single podcast, you talk about all the things. For those that are listening, I'm in here in the background and I've told them we need all the theme shirts, I think.

Oh, I was gonna say. Sorry to cut you off, Tim. One thing that I think you will definitely love, Beck, that I noticed this year, just sort of like as I was adding people into the app and monitoring the ticket sales as they came in and things like that was how many people this year have bought along, like, studio owners. Incredible. Studio owners bought along so many more of their staff and showing how much they're really investing in their staff and their team and bringing along 4, 5, 6, 7, even like 10 plus staff.

10 staff coming down from Queensland that they were bringing. We even had people coming in from New Zealand with like six staff. Like, that was huge.

And even people that weren't bringing massive amounts of staff. But I spoke to two incredible studio owners that had traveled from five hours out of Adelaide. So, like, the investment and like some people that were a few hours, like three or four hours out of Perth, like, that's a big time and financial investment to get there, to get across the country, to come to an event like that, to so, to be investing in their team so much is going to absolutely level up their studio, Right?

Yeah. As you said, like, that's how you grow your studio, is you make those investments in your team, you all come over together, you make, you know, some big plans on how you're going to grow that studio, how you're going to do better things in your classroom, in your marketing, in, in your customer service so that your studio can be, you know, everything you've ever dreamed of.

And I see a lot of people always say, like, have the objection to that around, not just in dance studios, but in all businesses. What if I spend all this money on training my team and they leave? And the flip side to that is, well, what if you don't and they stay?

Yeah.

Because that's ten times worse, right?

Absolutely, absolutely.

And on that note, with the people traveling, I spoke to so many people and we had so many people, like you said, from New Zealand and we have people come from Western Australia. But this year I really noticed we had so many people from Queensland and also Victoria. And so I asked them, like, where did you come from? How did you find out? You know what I found really interesting, they found out from another studio owner that had come last year that they saw post about it and say that they were coming and they actually reached out to them and said, was it good? Oh, how was it? Was it good? And when they found out how amazing it was, they then traveled down together. Two completely different studios in neighboring suburbs once upon a time would have been competitors actually traveling together to come and come to the event. And I just thought that was so nice.

I haven't told any of you this yet, but Jade Barnes from Dance Life messaged me me today and said she is so blown away that we have created something in the dance industry that she never thought was possible. Like I. And I agree with that. Like so many of them, Darren, Disney, Paul, Malik, they were like, Beck, we have seen so many of our friends here today that we haven't connected with for so long. And you guys are bringing the dance industry together with this.

So lovely.

But it's true. And our dance industry should be together. We should be supporting each other. That's what is incredible, I think, about dance principles United Tribe sgc. We're bringing people together who normally would be competitors, who are now working together and supporting each other. And that's what we're all about. Right, Amanda?

Absolutely. Well, thank you so much, everyone for listening to this very special podcast. You have to excuse our husky voices. We're all feeling, oh, very exhausted. I know Beck's voice was very husky this morning.

That voice memo that you said.

Voice memos this morning were very. We're feeling exhausted. It was obviously a really big. We did three days because we did bump in on Friday of the event. But we have had the most incredible time we're up here. We're having. We've had a bit of a half rest day today before we get into a studio Growth Club event tomorrow with all these new studio Growth Club members.

So exciting, so exciting.

So we cannot wait to do that tomorrow. But we just wanted to thank everybody again for coming out to Expo, for supporting our vision. It has been absolutely an incredible ride and we've absolutely loved every single moment. So thank you so much for listening to the podcast, for coming to Expo. Drop us a message.

Being brave, making connections.

Absolutely. If you're listening to this, drop us a message. We'd love to know what your favorite part about Expo was. That means the world to us. We'd love to know. Because we'd love to know what we can keep working on and what we can do even better for next year.

Absolutely. Thank you guys and we will see you next week.

Thanks, squad.

Thanks.

Bye.

Bye.