Ballet to Business

Jess Spinner shares how she transitioned from health coaching non-dancers to founding The Whole Dancer, a business that supports dancers with physical and mental wellness challenges based on her own ballet experiences.

This episode features Elana Roberts discussing her transition from a ballet soloist to exploring farming and bookkeeping after studying abroad in Italy.

Kathleen Gaines shares her journey from ballet training to becoming a writer and mental health advocate for dancers, highlighting her unpaid internship at Dance Magazine as a pivotal career step.

This episode features a conversation with dancer and entrepreneur Claudia Suarez about how ballet experiences shape lives and businesses, originally hosted on her podcast Beyond the Core.

Diana Albrecht shares her journey from ballet dancer to entrepreneur, discussing how she launched her company Apartment No.

This episode features photographer and entrepreneur Carly Topazio discussing her journey from ballet dancer to founding The Rosin Box Project, a summer dance company and photography business.

Kelly Schmutte shares her journey from ballet dancer to inventor of the PerfectFit pointe shoe insert, addressing the lack of customization options for dancers.

This episode features brand and web designer Kristie Zurmehly sharing her journey from professional ballet dancer to entrepreneur, discussing how determination and client referrals helped overcome imposter syndrome and build a successful business.

Ashlyn Carter shares her journey from being a dedicated ballerina to founding a copywriting business for creatives, exploring identity loss and career transition.

Oliver Endahl shares his journey of dropping out of college to move with his girlfriend to Austin, where he built the original dance photography Instagram account Ballet Zaida while navigating financial challenges and job rejections.

This Q&A episode of Ballet to Business celebrates three months of the podcast, addressing listener questions about body image, teaching adult ballet, dealing with difficult teachers, and coping with dance injuries.

Talia Bailes discusses how her background in ballet and research on literacy disparities inspired her to found Ballet and Books, a community organization combining dance and reading for children.

Kirsten Kemp shares her story of overcoming a knee injury while dancing for Oklahoma City Ballet and how it inspired her to become a mindset coach for dancers, addressing negative self-talk and criticism in training.

Emily Pearson shares how her yoga practice led to friendships and the inspiration to start State of Bodhi, a sustainable yoga clothing company, despite having no prior sewing experience.

This episode features Kirsten Evans discussing her journey from being offered a trainee position at Festival Ballet to balancing her dance career with writing a blog called Setting the Bar.

This episode explores how dancers and former dancers cope with the losses and adjustments caused by the pandemic, using ballet-derived character traits to navigate this challenging time.

Kelsey Kemp shares her journey from pursuing ballet to a technology consulting job she hated, leading her to become a career coach helping others find meaningful work aligned with their calling.

This episode continues a Q&A with Ray, covering dancer and teacher inspirations, partnering tips, and the role of faith in ballet.

Rachel Cossar shares her journey from professional rhythmic gymnastics and ballet to founding Choreography for Business after a turning point at Harvard, highlighting how body language accounts for most communication.

Jordan Fry shares her journey as a professional ballet dancer who started a luxury cake business, Ballerina Baker, after being asked to make a wedding cake for fellow dancers.

This bonus episode shares two practical journaling prompts to help listeners gain clarity and perspective during challenging times, particularly when feeling disoriented or lonely.

Alexandra Newman shares her journey from professional ballet dancer with San Francisco Ballet to launching her own wine business, On Point Wines, drawing parallels between ballet artistry and winemaking.

This episode features Katherine Hartsell sharing her journey from being laid off as a Boston Ballet dancer to founding Jai-Dee Dancewear, highlighting how personal and professional choices shaped her entrepreneurial path.

This episode is a Q&A session where the host interviews Ray about his background, family, and childhood interests.

Grace Kraaijvanger shares how her background in ballet and desire for creative connection led her to found The Hivery, a co-working space designed to combat isolation and foster collaboration.

Hannah Foster shares her journey from aspiring ballet dancer to freelance arts and culture writer, discussing how she realized her passion for writing and travel led her to leave ballet behind.

Julianne Spratlin shares her journey from ballerina to entrepreneur, founding an inclusive ballet school in San Francisco after developing a viable business plan with her family's support.

This episode features Allison Stroming discussing how her ballet videos on social media led to modeling opportunities and founding her own dancewear brand.

The host shares how a ballet injury and subsequent surgery led to the creation of this podcast, which features interviews with ballet dancers turned business owners.

This episode features an interview with Jane and Kalena from On the Other Foot Podcast, discussing their ballet backgrounds and podcasting journey.

Vanessa Woods shares her journey from a corporate job to founding Vitality Ballet, which offers ballet-based exercise classes for adults 50 and older.

Josephine Lee shares her journey of founding The Pointe Shop, a mobile pointe shoe fitting company, after realizing dancers were traveling long distances for her services.

A ballerina turned entrepreneur shares her journey of risking her life savings to launch a French single malt whiskey company.

Jordan Samuel Pacitti shares how his passion for skincare, developed through personal experiences and ballet career challenges, led him to found his skincare company Jordan Samuel Skin.

Benjamin Stewart shares how an impromptu performance where he improvised a song based on someone's name led to the creation of his meaningful NameSong Project.

David Kim shares his journey from professional ballet dancer to founder of Fire Leaf Extracts, inspired by discovering CBD's benefits for pain relief and seeing dancers adopt it from other brands.

Jordan Nicole Tilton introduces the Ballet to Business podcast, explaining its focus on helping ballet dancers transition to business due to fears of life without the stage and uncontrollable career factors.

Molly Rooney shares her journey from ballet dancer to director of the National Ballet Competition, highlighting how a pivotal competition experience reignited her passion and led to her current role, while discussing the broader debates around ballet competitions.

Jordan Nicole interviews Chelsea and Heather, sisters who founded Luckyleo Dancewear, sharing their journey from a small rented home to building a popular brand.