May 1st means a new featured entrepreneur, and this month you get to meet Shannon-Lee Figsby. Shannon has taken the time to share a little bit about herself with all of us, and we are here for her high energy and gritty personality. Shannon shares how she has been dancing through life since 2010. We also love the fact that she’s a hard-working mom and we are so happy to feature her! If you want to learn a little more about Shannon, her journey as an entrepreneur and some advice she has for those considering taking the plunge, then read on. She shares what Pretty and Smart means to her and we couldn’t agree more.
Without further delay, meet Shannon.
I love my biweekly lash refills and manicures as much as the next girl, but I did not come to play.
– Shannon-Lee Figsby
Name or nickname if you have one:
My name is Shannon-Lee Figsby, or Shan. Or, you know…Mom!
Zodiac sign:
Virgo – a TRUE Virgo in every sense of the word!
What is your relationship with P&S Co.?
I love the ethos of P&S Co. and identify very much with the guiding principle that a woman can have it all – and not just have it, CHOOSE it all!
Where do you live and what do you do?
I am a 100% born and raised Montrealer, and I am an entrepreneur currently operating four businesses in different sectors (all have children in common!) My largest business, and the one that takes up most of my time, is a high-performance dance academy. Outside of the office, I am a Mom to my six-year-old son Dublin, a wife to Chris, a rockstar party planner and a terrible cook!
Tell us about the studio and how it came to be?
My oldest “baby,” Academie de Danse Elite Inc., is a recreational, competitive and pre-professional dance academy for children ages two to adult. We opened in 2010 and have been dancing through life since then – with a brief hiatus over the last few years, to say the least!
Some women raise babies, some women raise businesses – I do both. Back in 2010, I was working with a colleague at another dance studio that decided to close. My colleague and I decided to open a studio, a lifelong dream of mine when parents of our students began calling asking which studio they could find us teaching at. We became business partners, invested six thousand dollars each, and opened in a TERRIBLE part of town…but Elite was born!
Fast forward to 2016, my human baby is now with us, we have already changed locations and have experienced over 500% growth. My priorities, as well as my business sense, have shifted. And, largely due in part to my new role as a Mama, so did my intuition. I bought my ex-partner out of her 50% shares with an 8-month-old sitting on my lap in my lawyer’s office.
Ten months later we became the first dance studio in Quebec to ever win the title of World Dance Champions – and we truly never looked back. Elite was invigorated with passion, determination and an understanding of our unlimited potential as a unit.
Loving what you do is important. Doing what you love, though, is how you change the world.
What makes you feel pretty and smart? What does it mean to you?
To me, to be pretty and smart is to be refined. It’s to be comfortable in your own skin but still polite. It’s to be kind and firm at the same time. And it’s to remain graceful in graceless situations.
To me, taking two attributes that are historically meant to be viewed as an oxymoron when paired together and having them both resonate with you is the ultimate form of “girl power.”
I think to accurately capture my ultimate “Pretty and Smart” snapshot, you’d have to come visit me at the salon – a million foils on my incredibly blonde head, iPhone in one hand and laptop in the other, chugging coffee while my stylist begs me not to move!
Being pretty and smart means you’ve reached the ultimate understanding that women can be BOTH – I can type up contracts while I’m getting highlights done, and if you catch me on a good day, I’ll renegotiate your car lease and get you that recipe you were asking for before my blow dry is done, too.
What’s next for you and the studio? New projects?
Honestly, at this very moment, we are trying to remain very present! We are really allowing ourselves to just live in the here and now of this moment, and not focus on the “next” thing, for once. For two whole years, the “next” thing was so unknown that each day we do something “normal,” or as we did pre-pandemic, we are grateful.
I am very much of the opinion that those who work with children and teens should not be seeking to introduce “newness” at the moment, but rather providing a safe space for consistency, familiarity and love. We are focusing on strengthening the existing bonds that were imperative to our pandemic survival rather than focusing on new projects for the time being.
How do you like being an entrepreneur?
It’s truly all I know. I have been a businesswoman since Grade 2 when I received a “Creepy Crawlers” making kit for my birthday and began selling the jiggly creatures to friends for $1 each ($1.50 premium for a marbled gelatinous insect!) Shortly after my first venture began, my entire Elementary school received a newsletter home that there was to be no solicitation on school grounds. You win some, you lose some!
Being an entrepreneur is who I am. It’s not just a job title, it’s a lifestyle – and one that many don’t understand at that. There is little security, there is no true “off” button, and other areas of your life will take a backseat to your career more often than you may like. But there’s nothing more rewarding than the fruits of a solid hustle. Being an entrepreneur means that you will more likely than not lead a life that most people will not understand – and that’s ok because it’s truly not for everyone. But, what a beautiful life it is.
What is your number one tip for those who might be considering taking the plunge into entrepreneurship?
Start now. There will literally never be a perfect time, and you will never, ever feel ready. Do it anyway. Continue to fail forward and just refuse to stop. Be completely relentless in the pursuit of whatever sets your soul ablaze.
– Shannon-Lee Figsby
And for goodness sakes, don’t allow social media to convince you to spend time crafting a cute two-hour morning routine including meditation, two kinds of Yoga, three green drinks and a sweat lodge – get the kids to school, chug the coffee and write the business plan. Start now. Be relentless.
Can you give us the good and the bad? The single best and the worst thing about running the studio?
Absolutely! The single best thing about owning and operating a dance studio is that I make my living doing what I did for fun as a child. I’m not sure I could ask for more!
The worst? TAXES! The unglamorous administrative part (which, admittedly, is a pretty big part) of owning a studio is not always fun. It’s not very exciting, but it’s true. I am an extrovert and draw my energy from people, so the “must-do” tasks that I don’t want to do but have to get done regardless are the worst part for me.
You didn’t think I was going to say Dance Moms, did you?!
How do you juggle it all being a mom?
I’ll let you know once I figure it out!
I realized very quickly that my motherhood story was going to look very different than most, and I was ok with that. This meant that I did things very differently than my friends who had children before I did. I went back to work when my son was four weeks old and took no maternity leave, and taught dance classes with him in his bucket seat in the corner of the studio. I nursed him in our storage room between classes. This also included me making the choice not to send him to daycare, and he came with me to work each afternoon until my husband picked him up after work and did the nighttime routine. My son spent a tremendous amount of time at the studio during his toddler years and I would like to think that gave him an appreciation of what his mother is capable of.
Kindergarten is a whole different beast! I was just texting a friend the other day that somehow over the years I’ve managed to create training scheduled for thousands of girls all dancing six days a week with minimal effort, but I can’t seem to get a handle on my own child’s “stuff!” Kindergarten, new friends and a society that is for the most part reopening for the first time since my son was a toddler means a LOT! Between Baseball twice a week, swimming lessons on Sundays, Ninja Class on Thursday evenings, drum lessons on Mondays after school and soccer starting in June – let’s just say that I have gone from a juggler to a plate spinner!
What would you tell younger women who haven’t yet taken a risk they might be considering. Is this something you might not have followed yourself?
Feel the fear – and then do it anyway. You’ll never win if you never begin. And don’t forget, you can’t lose. You win – or you learn.
Personally, I am somewhat uncalculated and am a risk-taker by nature, so I tend to jump before I look – and ask for forgiveness, not permission!
What is the best word to describe you and why?
Gritty. I am not afraid to do the work to get the job done. I love my biweekly lash refills and manicures as much as the next girl, but I did not come to play.
Can you share your favourite item in the boutique with us?
This year, I am obsessed with our bleach-dyed cropped hoodies with our #Elite Fam Strong logo on them! Our signature pink with a fun twist, and meaningful branding. You can’t stumble by our Instagram account without noticing them!
What is your guilty pleasure?
Oh, this is easy – my obsession and insistence on watching every single episode of every single Real Housewives franchise there is or has ever been. Every single one. Usually while eating Cheetos and drinking a Caesar.
Number one thing on your bucket list right now?
I want to be invited to stay IN the castle at Disneyworld’s Magic Kingdom. Few people know there is one hotel suite in the castle itself and it is super secretive and invitation only. I have so many questions. How do the guests get in and out?! Are they allowed to take a midday nap?! Now, to figure out how to snag an invite…
We know that you have a large offering of different dance classes, what is your favourite class at the studio?
Oh, that is a hard one! My heart lies with a solid deep Hip-Hop class. Or Contemporary. Or Fusion, which blends the two and is pretty unique to our studio!
What is your favourite quote?
“And those that were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.”
– Friedrich Nietzsche
Tell us about the process that led you to Elite Dance Academy? Is this something you want to expand?
As I described earlier, Elite has been a fantastical work in progress since Day 1 and is constantly evolving. From dancing competitively as a child, transitioning to more serious training as a teenager and then dancing and cheerleading (Go Als Go!) professionally, dance has been a pillar in my life forever. Sharing that passion is a major joy in my life. I began teaching dance at fifteen years old in a church basement on Friday nights, and I guess I just never stopped!
It’s hard to encapsulate the journey of a corporation than began as a partnership, outlasted a pandemic and is still growing. We actually did expand in September of 2021 and opened our second studio about thirty minutes west of the main studio! But I’m not done yet – I’ve got my eye on a very particular geographical area for Elite’s third location!
What is one thing we didn’t ask but you want people to know about you?
I’m a huge proponent of higher education in all forms and a huge believer that school comes first. I have heard funny comments in regards to the small fortune that was spent while I was in school earning multiple degrees, only to choose a profession that didn’t require one. Education is a core value of mine, and something that I firmly believe is never, ever wasted!
Where can people find you online? What is your handle?
On Facebook and Instagram with my personal handle, @shannydancer (check my link tree!) The studio can be found at @academiededanseelite on both platforms, as can the Fine Arts Preschool, @prekkidsclub, that I am the proud co-owner of. Please don’t hesitate to reach out, I’d love to chat!
Thank you so much Shannon for sharing a little piece of you with P&S Co. today. We are so glad to feature you and your business. If anyone still has questions for Shannon feel free to ask them in the comments below or to contact her directly. Until next month, bye for now!
