Ara Pilates: A Studio That Outgrew Chaos (and Built a Team to Match)

Gabby Toro
May 19
4 min read

What began with one founder and a right hand holding it all together became a culture of shared leadership that empowered everyone.

Meet Marlys:

Marlys is the kind of founder whose presence shapes a room before she even speaks. As the creator of Ara Pilates + Movement, her vision was clear from the beginning: a space where people feel whole, connected, and powerfully at home in their bodies.

A deeply attuned practitioner and teacher, Marlys built Ara on excellence - every class thoughtful, every moment intentional. But as the studio expanded, the team grew faster than the systems behind it. And Marlys found herself doing more than just leading - she was holding everything together by sheer force of will.

That’s when Chloe stepped in.

WE LOVE CHLOE!!

Meet Chloe:

Chloe isn’t the owner of Ara but she is its anchor.

As Marlys’s right hand and the studio’s Assistant Director, Chloe has a gift for sensing what needs to shift before it breaks. Her mind is sharp, her presence steady, and her commitment to culture is unmatched.

Chloe saw where things were headed: incredible people doing incredible work but without clear lanes, shared agreements, or structure to support the mission. She brought insight, calm urgency, and the clarity to ask:

“What if we built systems that reflect our values?”

What she needed help with

By the time we connected, the team had heart but not a shared operating rhythm.

Instructors didn’t have a unified teaching standard. Front desk were making magic at the front desk, but with unclear protocols and no feedback loop. And most decisions still landed on Marlys, who had outgrown the “chief everything officer” role but didn’t yet have the systems to step into pure vision and leadership.

Chloe could see the gaps. And she knew Marlys couldn’t fill them alone not without burning out.

This wasn’t about micromanagement. It was about creating a foundation that scaled with care.

WHAT WE FOUND IN THE AUDIT

We dug deep into handbooks, team roles, and cultural undercurrents—and here’s what surfaced:

Strong values, but vague boundaries. Everyone knew what Ara stood for but didn’t always know what they were responsible for.
Gaps in professional safety. Instructors hesitated to speak up about scheduling, conflicts, or discomforts - unsure if their concerns were “valid.”
No ladder for decisions. There was no clear chain of accountability. Issues (from minor scheduling hiccups to interpersonal friction) either got stuck at the peer level or escalated straight to the top. This left Marlys overextended, and Chloe over-reliant on instinct rather than process.
Unused leadership capacity. Brilliant, capable people were underutilized not because they weren’t ready, but because the system didn’t yet have the roles or rungs for them to step into. Without a defined hierarchy or handoff structure, everything looped back to Marlys, whether it needed her or not.
No formal path for feedback. Problems lingered too long or went underground - not because people didn’t care, but because the systems didn’t invite resolution.
Chloe needed to step away from the weeds to be able to MANAGE and OPERATE the business at this scale. We need a Chloe 2.0

WHAT WE DID TOGETHER

This wasn’t just a studio cleanup. It was a Culture reset.

✅ Rewrote Front Desk & Instructor handbook. We overhauled both instructor and studio liaison guides embedding clear language, safety protocols, and exact expectations for class flow, client care, and boundaries.

✅ Defined every role, responsibility, and chain of communication. Team members now know what they’re responsible for, how to escalate concerns, and where their role fits in the larger studio ecosystem.

✅ Created a Team Care function. Instead of going straight to Chloe, team members now connect through Circle, with a designated lead managing conflict resolution, coverage needs, and emotional support.

✅ Established professional boundaries. From client communication policies to emergency protocols, we built shared agreements that protect staff and elevate the client experience.

✅ Anchored the CEO. We created space for Marlys to operate as the creative, strategic lead - not the default fixer. With clear systems and support, she can lead without losing herself.

The transformation

Ara today runs on clarity, care, and culture.

Team members show up grounded and prepared. Clients feel held from the moment they walk in. Coverage happens without scramble. Feedback flows without fear. And Chloe? She leads with presence, not panic.

Instructors are more autonomous. Liaisons feel like true studio stewards. And when issues arise, they’re handled with compassion and clarity - no more waiting, wondering, or spiraling.

This isn’t just about Pilates. It’s about building a place where people can show up whole.

WHAT I WANT OTHER CEOS TO KNOW

You can set high standards and lead with heart.
You can build a business where team care is not an afterthought, it’s the structure.
Where professionalism doesn’t cancel out creativity.
Where you don’t have to be the emotional safety net for everyone… because the system itself holds people.
The business you’re building is a reflection of you and it should support the people who bring it to life.