04 Nov Setting My Own Bar

By Kendyl Lynch

I’m a young female entrepreneur who is launching a new business thousands of miles from her hometown.

My journey to open my fitness studio in Tampa is a dream come true. As I sit here writing this, I feel incredibly grateful and fortunate to have a strong support system that has empowered me to open a business—a business I love—in a new city.

My journey with barre3 began back in 2017. I took my first class in a studio in Alexandria, Va., with one of my closest friends from college. Fitness has always been a huge part of my life, but I never knew I’d feel so strongly about a specific type of fitness.

I’d never encountered a workout that will meet you where you’re at each and every day. We’re not here for perfection, negativity or competition. Our community is stronger together and when we’re embracing our differences. Yes, the movements are challenging, but it’s also empowering to make choices throughout the class that feel intuitive. Barre allows us each to listen to and celebrate our bodies. After my first barre class, I wanted more of this low-impact, full-body, high-intensity movement!

At the time, there were no barre studios where I lived in the Chicago suburbs. Just six months later, the first barre3 in Illinois was opening…in my hometown of Clarendon Hills, Ill. Fate or a coincidence? I can’t be sure to this day, but it absolutely steered my life in a whole new direction!

I became an instructor for the Clarendon Hills studio in 2018. I’d leave teaching with one question stuck in my head: “How can I open my own studio?” Eventually, I decided to put pen to paper and figure it out. There were so many pieces to the puzzle that I was unsure of, but I knew I’d adapt and learn as I moved forward. I signed my franchise agreement not knowing everything it took to open a business. And I’m sure I still don’t know half of what’s to come, but I’m prepared to face it all!

At this time, I was still living in Chicago, and the COVID-19 pandemic was taking over the world. Like many others, I had time to think and consider where I wanted to open a business, start a family and live. While Chicago will always have a special place in my heart, Florida was calling my name. I didn’t do it alone! My boyfriend and I moved to Tampa together—and we haven’t looked back!

While I’ve had many positive experiences so far, there have been challenges: delays, construction issues, errors. I was definitely discouraged at times. But I kept thinking, “Good things come to those who wait.” I’ve had to learn to trust the process and show up with patience. Getting upset didn’t fix a single problem, so why should I waste that energy?

We’re just about ready to invite everyone into our beautiful studio space—our official opening date is November 19—but I’ve been hosting free classes since April. Why? Because I deliver them in public or open locations–parks, breweries, community space–and have met hundreds of men and women. This is how I’m building my community here in my new hometown.

One of our core values at barre3 is “Give Generously.” I launched my business with open arms and am utterly confident that sharing these motivating and empowering classes in the community for free was the way to begin. It’s allowed me to meet kindred spirits who love this type of fitness as much as I do. So, I’m excited that more than 50 women and men are joining us for the official launch as founding members, and I’m so grateful for each one of them.

I’m also grateful for the small and amazing team surrounding me. They’re so motivated! And they have already helped me grow so much as a business leader: I have different conversations with each of them because they each have different strengths for me and different needs from me. They help me see beyond my single perspective and through so many beautiful and varied lenses.

The global pandemic has put so many plans and lives on hold—but it’s also created opportunities for people like me to walk through new doors and launch new passion projects. That’s my hope for you—that whatever you’ve experienced to this point, you can see it as a chance to move forward into better things and grow into your strongest, most resilient self.

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Kendyl Lynch believes that nurturing relationships is essential to making anything grow. With a BA from the University of Alabama in Public Relations, she has a proven track record as a conference producer, curating spaces for innovative thought leaders in the business world to easily exchange ideas in a real, tactile way. While Kendyl has harnessed the power of social media and online interactions, her core belief is that human contact can create substantial change. So she’s coupled her work in event production with her passion for fitness and building community within the walls of her soon-to-open barre3 studio.