Since 2012, Dancers Edge dance studio has been giving kids in Saskatchewan the chance to dance.
Amy Bertram purchased Dancers Edge in August of 2019 from a sole proprietor. Dancers Edge was Amy’s hometown dance studio growing up in Warman, Saskatchewan.
“I’ve been here since the beginning,” says Amy. She moved her way up from dancing in 24 pieces a season, to becoming an instructor, and finally an office assistant before leaving for university.
“I’ve had the opportunity to see Dancers Edge grow over the last eight seasons from a small studio, in a small town, with about 50 dancers to 300 dancers and two studio spaces.”
Now, as the owner, Amy focuses on more day-to-day tasks like budgeting and marketing but teaches her Adult Barre Fitness and “Parent and Tot” classes. “Totally different ends of the spectrum, but they are both great classes and tons of fun,” she says.
Amy is a strong believer that everyone – no matter where they land on that spectrum – should get to dance.
“I am one of those people that believe that dance is for everyone – whether you have $10 in your bank account or you are a millionaire and you want to join every single class that you possibly can. We try really hard to allow the opportunity for every single person to come in and dance.”
With their scholarship program, Chance to Dance, dancers who maybe can’t afford to pay for classes on their own get that opportunity to earn their spot and dance at a highly competitive level.
Amy, a full-time registered nurse, has a great business mind and has worked hard to grow this “side business”. She attributes her business-savvy to her father. Similar to Amy, he has a completely different vocation but owns other businesses.
“He definitely gave me that little spark for sure,” she says. “From a young age, he instilled a hard work ethic and a business mind. He is one of the best mentors I have.”
Amy admits, “I am more of a registered nurse on the side than a business owner on the side.”
When Amy bought the business, the previous owner gave her an overview of Rotessa as parents pay through installments for dance classes. She says, “The website was super easy to use.”
“Rotessa has made it very easy for me to send off a form to families who want to pay through installments – it’s super quick. They do everything online and then I never have to touch a cheque or input numbers.”
“It’s probably one of the easiest parts of my job right now.”
Since the big leap of growth from 50 to 300 dancers, Amy keeps dreaming of Dancers Edge’s next steps: “The next step is to expand our building a bit more. We would like to create more space for our dancers so they can be here and be comfortable spending the evening here while they wait for classes.”
For anyone that has an interest in dance, Amy suggests just dipping your toes into one class your first year – or even just a low-commitment, sessional class: “Go for it, start small, and then I guarantee it will be the only year you go small.”
For more information and to follow Dancers Edge’s growth, visit their website or follow them on Instagram!
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