HEALTH & FITNESS
DANCE MOVES
Andrew Holt, Chief executive, Parkwood Leisure
Why did you decide to actively pursue the dance market? As part of the Parkwood Leisure strate- gic review last year, dancing in the UK was identifi ed as a growth market. The dance market has grown steadily over the last fi ve years and we believe it has the potential to develop further. In the UK, 4.8 million people cur-
rently participate in community-based dance activities, while the numbers of children taking a GCSE in dance has increased by 170 per cent over the last fi ve years. The only current trade show for the dance market – MOVE IT – has increased visitor numbers by 58 per cent over the last three years. Faced with this evidence, the Parkwood board made a commitment to create a national dance brand in all Parkwood Leisure centres. In October 2010 a strategic team
identifi ed a clear strategy to launch a dance brand within Parkwood Leisure.
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Following a decision to focus on the dance market, Parkwood Leisure bought the Sway Dance brand last year and is currrently rolling it out across the UK
Andrew Holt
What happened next? Firstly a comprehensive review was carried out to assess the current dance provision within Parkwood Leisure. All general managers were asked to complete a questionnaire on the topic, in order to identify current participation in dance classes across Parkwood’s leisure centres, to assess the diversity of the classes available and the management arrangements for those classes. The results identifi ed that the majority of dance classes were being delivered by external dance teach- ers or dance schools. This made us
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wonder whether we could increase par ticipation across our centres by doing it ourselves. After signifi cant discussion it was
agreed that purchasing an existing established dance brand was the most attractive option for Parkwood Leisure. This had the added advantage of allowing existing systems and pro- grammes to be transferred effectively across all of our centres. There was also an agreement that dance is a specialism and obtain- ing the appropriate brand skills from day one would be crucial in creating a national dance brand.
ISSUE 2 2011 © cybertrek 2011
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