Today we’d like to introduce you to Joy Chery.
Hi Joy, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I am a New Jersey native, born and raised, who moved to the DFW area about 6 years ago. I am a wife and mother of three, who is the proud franchisee of DivaDance McKinney/Allen. I have always had a strong love of music and dance for as long as I can remember. Music and dance can be so therapeutic and can evoke so many emotions and memories. In my college years, I remember getting ready for a night out dancing to my favorite playlists. As I got older and my priorities shifted to that of wife and mother, I had less time to pursue dancing as a hobby.
One night, I was doing a Google search to find adult dance classes in my area and there were none available. I stumbled upon DivaDance as a franchise opportunity and thought I would look more into it. I went to Austin in July 2019 and took a class with DivaDance founder and CEO, Jami Stigliano. We danced to “Rake It Up” by Yo Gotti feat. Nicki Minaj, using actual rakes as a prop during the routine and I was hooked.
I decided to bring this franchise to the Allen and Wylie areas and we launched in October 2019. We got sidelined by the pandemic, but once we reopened in late 2020, we rebranded as McKinney/Allen and have been building our community with partnerships with recreation centers in McKinney.
The main reason that I wanted to bring this franchise to these areas is because I wanted to give other women an experience that would uplift them and leave them with a feeling of accomplishment and confidence. DivaDance is all about “confidence and community” and this is very important to me personally. As a Texas transplant, I know how hard it is to meet new people and form new friendships so I’m happy to provide an environment where people can come together and meet others who share the same interests.
Also, as a mother of three, sometimes my identity gets lost in that role and I love to have a place that I can go and forget about my worries for an hour and I want DivaDance McKinney/Allen to be that place for others as well. It brings me joy to see people leave class feeling great about themselves as we strive to provide a judgment free zone that encourages body positivity. The classes are beginner level so that no matter your prior dance experience, you can come leave all your worries on the dance floor. And if you miss a step, we’ll cheer for you harder because it’s not about perfection, but about having a good time.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. Our franchise had only launched about 4 months before the pandemic hit. We had just started to hit our stride, hosting classes in Allen and moving into Sachse in February 2020. Then, we had to shut our classes down in March. Thankfully, HQ brainstormed and began to livestream classes from Austin so that we could still provide our members with dance classes. Unfortunately, we lost pretty much our entire membership that we had managed to build after launch during the shutdown. When were able to reopen after quarantine, there were a lot of restrictions in place and a lot of people still did not feel comfortable being around others and participating in dance classes. It has been a long road to rebuild our community. However, the rebranding and shift to the McKinney area really helped to reestablish our business.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Besides being the owner of DivaDance McKinney/Allen, I am a pharmacist. I graduated from Rutgers University in 2006 and have worked as a retail pharmacist since then. While I enjoy being in healthcare and being able to impact patients’ lives, I wanted to become an entrepreneur and felt that DivaDance was the perfect fit because the mission is to change lives. But this company allows me to impact lives in a different manner than my role as a pharmacist and I enjoy getting to know everyone who takes classes and learning more about who they are.
What’s next?
My plans for the future is to be able to provide more in studio classes and expand by moving into other parts of my franchise territories. The goal is to be able to provide our dance community with more opportunities to slay through programs, workshops and series, including video and photo shoots.
Pricing:
- New Client Special: 3 classes for $49
Contact Info:
- Email: mckinneyallen@divadancecompany.com
- Website: divadancemckinneyallen.pike13.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/divadancemckinneyallen/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/divadancemckinneyallen
Image Credits
Hope Grubbs
