Buoyed by its growing success in Pacific Palisades, the Elite Movement Studio on Via de la Paz has expanded into an adjacent storefront and has added barre classes.
Owner Ashley Kanter held a grand opening on August 20 in the completely renovated space, which includes muted blue paint, track lighting, mirrored walls, new flooring and a redesigned bathroom and storage space.
“People like their exercise space to be clean and airy,” said Kanter, a Palisades resident who first opened a Pilates studio at 837 Via (next to the Palisadian-Post offices) in October 2011. “I had been looking at this new space for a while. Pilates and barre both help develop long, lean, defined muscles and are a nice combination for exercisers. I want to make this a one-stop shop.”
Kanter said that Elite Movement’s barre classes are popular because they offer consistent technique and expert instructors. She has taken numerous barre classes around Los Angeles and noticed that some teachers seemed to do their “own” thing.
“I had a vision of what I wanted,” said Kanter, who hired Brookelin Gottlieb, who was a master trainer for Pure Barre, a national franchise. “At Elite Movement, we have a set manual for instructors to follow. There is a framework.”
Barre presents a total body workout with some cardio. Instructors work all parts of the body, but within certain parameters and prescribed exercises. These routines are also set to a music playlist, because “when the music changes to what you are doing, it helps to motivate better,” said Kanter, who added that her teacher selection was thorough. “I interviewed many people because I really want quality control.”
Kanter hopes that barre, which is less expensive than Pilates and more intense and fast paced, will appeal to teens, too. “It’s fun to do,” she noted.
Elite Movement also offers a concierge service, sending private Pilates and barre instructors to clients’ homes. “With my company,” Kanter said, “people know that the people who come into their home already have had a background check, because they’ve already come under my scrutiny.”
In addition, “We are offering a certification program for people who are interested in teaching barre. It doesn’t guarantee employment here, but it will allow them to work at other barre studios in Los Angeles.”
Kanter, who was raised in Texas and swam and played golf in high school, attended USC and then Pepperdine Law School in 2007. She briefly worked in estate planning before switching to her fitness passion: teaching Pilates at various studios around L.A.
She and former partner Julianna Robinson opened their first Pilates studio in Santa Monica in 2009, and two years later leased space in the three-unit building on Via owned by Bhek Sinha, who had used it as the center for the Vedic Church since the 1960s.
Last May, the partners split, with Robinson keeping the Santa Monica studio and Kanter the Palisades space, which was a natural because she and husband Nick, a business litigation lawyer, and their 16-month-old daughter, Elle, live here.
Kanter discovered Pacific Palisades when she was a student at USC. “I drove for a family who lived here, taking their kids to soccer and helping out,” she said. “I fell in love with the town.”
Visit elitemovement.com or call (310) 230-3100.
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