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    Home»business»How to Start Prepping for Summer Intensive Sales
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    How to Start Prepping for Summer Intensive Sales

    Seasoned retailers share how they are already making plans and placing orders.
    By Hannah Maria HayesMarch 23, 2025
    Image courtesy of Rosy Cheeks & Company.

    Right about now, pre-professional dance students all over the country are learning whether their auditions successfully landed them a place at their coveted summer dance intensive. Yes, it’s only March, but it’s time to start thinking about how to get those students into the shop to buy their summer dancewear before the recital season shopping frenzy is in full swing. 

    “You have to start now,” says Valerie Vermeire, owner of Step ’N Stretch, which has three Minneapolis-Saint Paul, MN, locations. “Pointe shoes often have to be ordered in advance, and dancers will need multiple pairs to get them through the summer. They’re also going to need several leotards and pairs of tights—some programs have dress code requirements in place.”

    Place Those Orders ASAP

    As well as dancewear, dancers will need hair and makeup accessories to see them through their summer intensives. Image courtesy of Rosy Cheeks & Company.

    A typical summer intensive shopping list includes leotards, tights, skirts (both wraparound and character-dance length), warm-up gear, multiple pairs of shoes for several genres of dance, stretch-conditioning-recovery accessories, and a bag to lug everything around in. Many students will dance in a culminating performance, which means they’ll also need support wear, sewing kits, and hair and makeup accessories.

    “Dancers are just starting to hear back from auditions and are making their choices on which program to attend. They’re excited, and I find that they want to get that shopping in during the lull before recital time,” says Mary Lou Reinwand, owner of Rosy Cheeks and Company in Madison, WI. She’s owned her 5,000-square-foot shop for 30 years, and produces and carries her own line of dancewear and costumes. 

    Reinwand takes advantage of any and all vendor promotions, typically offered in February and March. “When my suppliers offer a discount and free shipping, I order $20,000 from every company,” she says. “It all arrives in May, goes into backroom stock, and I have 90 days to pay. Generally those big orders carry us through the whole year.”

    Satori Dancewear in Reno, NV, doesn’t have the space to keep that much inventory. Instead, owner Denelle Padgett-Martin places a big order from Capezio, Bloch, and Freed two or three times a year and then smaller orders as needed. Vermeire placed a large Nikolay order last month, and her Bloch and Capezio orders will be in by the end of April. “It can take six to eight weeks to get items manufactured, unless they already have some in stock,” she says.

    Host a Pointe-Shoe-Fitting Event

    A pointe shoe fitting event hosted at Step ‘N Stretch in collaboration with Nikolay.

    Step ’N Stretch holds a Nikolay pointe shoe event every spring, timed so students can stock up for recitals and intensives. A Nikolay fitter will go to all three locations and handle about 50 to 60 prebooked appointments over the course of two days. “Dancers travel from bordering states because they know they can experiment with shoes their local stores might not carry, or even test out new styles,” Vermeire says. “We also video throughout the day and get photos that we post on social media. That always drives a lot of views.”

    Even if another brand ends up being the best fit, Nikolay provides Step ’N Stretch with complimentary items such as T-shirts, tights, posters, or toe pads. That way, every customer who has a fitting appointment receives a free gift with their purchase. Vermeire books the event with her sales representative a year in advance. 

    While a vendor-sponsored event might be tough to pull off for this year (unless it’s already in the works), inquire now about next year and start planning your own daylong special event. Use deadstock or final-clearance items for gifts with purchase, or provide a coupon for a discount on a future purchase. 

    Boost Summer Intensive Impulse Buys With Stellar Service

    Padgett-Martin curates special bundles of essential items for summer school dancers. Image courtesy of Satori Dancewear.

    The art of chatting can go a long way in building loyalty, leading to incremental sales. “We’re just a small mom-and-pop store, and a lot of it is word of mouth,” says Padgett-Martin. “It’s [all about] telling people that they can contact us about anything. We will open early, stay late, drop items off. … Half of my customers have my phone number.” Being approachable and accessible encourages repeat business, ensuring customers can reach out if they’ve forgotten something. “We remind dancers that if they’ve underestimated how many pointe shoes they might go through while they’re at their intensive,” Reinwand says, “we can easily mail them whatever they need.”

    Last year, Padgett-Martin’s store moved to a location connected to a ballet academy, though they have their own entrance. To ensure other schools don’t feel uncomfortable at the new location, Padgett-Martin provides off-site uniform- and pointe-shoe-fitting events. Some summer intensive products that have been successfully upsold during these events (often via casual conversation) include salve for sore muscles, stretch therapy bands, kinesiology tape, travel yoga mats, sewing kits, and foot-care bundles.

    Hannah Maria Hayes has an MA in dance education from New York University and has been writing for Dance Media publications since 2008.

    business Denelle Padgett-Martin how to Mary Lou Reinwand placing orders Rosy Cheeks and Company Satori Dancewear Step 'N Stretch summer intensives summer season Valerie Vermeire

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