54 min
The Best Brands Are Born From Personal Necessity with Helaine Knapp, Founder & CEO of City Row Girlfriends & Business
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- Entrepreneurship
We Talk About:
The benefits of rowing What it’s really like to build a business from scratch Vulnerability and asking for help Scaling business and pivoting during the pandemic What’s next for CityRow Mental health maintenance
Resources:
Website: cityrow.com Instagram:@cityrow Follow Alli: @alliwebb Follow Lori: @loriharder Follow Brittany: @britdrisc
Show Notes:
A few years ago, Helaine Knapp was just like any girl in her 20s living it up in New York City, blending a high-powered job in tech with high-intensity group workout sessions. After a back injury brought her to a complete standstill, she found herself scrambling for a low-impact workout. She found rowing, and the seed for her next venture, CityRow Go, was planted.
In this inspiring episode, Helaine connects with Brit on the trials and triumphs of running her own business, and the brutal and beautiful lessons she’s learned along the way, from the moment she knew she could make rowing sexy, to the emotionally draining fund-raising process, and why it’s so important to surround yourself with badass women who will always have your back. Take our word for it: Helaine’s jet-fueled success and boundless energy is going to have you running to the nearest CityRow studio.
Question Highlights:
What’s your career backstory and how did you start rowing? How did CityRow become CityRow? How do you work through insecurities? How did the last year impact CityRow?
Guest Bio:
Founder & CEO of CityRow Go. After spending years climbing the corporate ladder, Helaine Knapp left the world of publishing for tech start-up life. Group fitness was her outlet while working hard and taking on the hustle and bustle of New York City. However, months of spin and boot camp classes left her with a lower back injury, and she began searching for a workout that was low impact, but super effective. After a friend suggested rowing, Helaine initially rejected it as something “my dad did in college,” but following a few workouts on a sexy machine, and pairing it with total body sculpting moves, her mind was changed and the concept for CITYROW was born. With a mission of delivering a smart, fun, effective workout to all fitness levels, under Knapp’s leadership, CityRow has grown from one studio in New York City to a national, omnichannel fitness brand with 12 open studios and 65 franchises sold nationwide along with a top-ranked, on-demand, global program featuring at-home rowers and a fast-growing digital subscription business. Knapp has yet to row on the water and has been featured as a business leader and a wellness expert on TODAY, Women’s Health, ABC, Harper’s Bazaar, Shape, Well + Good, Vogue, Yahoo! Finance, and PEOPLE, among many others.
We Talk About:
The benefits of rowing What it’s really like to build a business from scratch Vulnerability and asking for help Scaling business and pivoting during the pandemic What’s next for CityRow Mental health maintenance
Resources:
Website: cityrow.com Instagram:@cityrow Follow Alli: @alliwebb Follow Lori: @loriharder Follow Brittany: @britdrisc
Show Notes:
A few years ago, Helaine Knapp was just like any girl in her 20s living it up in New York City, blending a high-powered job in tech with high-intensity group workout sessions. After a back injury brought her to a complete standstill, she found herself scrambling for a low-impact workout. She found rowing, and the seed for her next venture, CityRow Go, was planted.
In this inspiring episode, Helaine connects with Brit on the trials and triumphs of running her own business, and the brutal and beautiful lessons she’s learned along the way, from the moment she knew she could make rowing sexy, to the emotionally draining fund-raising process, and why it’s so important to surround yourself with badass women who will always have your back. Take our word for it: Helaine’s jet-fueled success and boundless energy is going to have you running to the nearest CityRow studio.
Question Highlights:
What’s your career backstory and how did you start rowing? How did CityRow become CityRow? How do you work through insecurities? How did the last year impact CityRow?
Guest Bio:
Founder & CEO of CityRow Go. After spending years climbing the corporate ladder, Helaine Knapp left the world of publishing for tech start-up life. Group fitness was her outlet while working hard and taking on the hustle and bustle of New York City. However, months of spin and boot camp classes left her with a lower back injury, and she began searching for a workout that was low impact, but super effective. After a friend suggested rowing, Helaine initially rejected it as something “my dad did in college,” but following a few workouts on a sexy machine, and pairing it with total body sculpting moves, her mind was changed and the concept for CITYROW was born. With a mission of delivering a smart, fun, effective workout to all fitness levels, under Knapp’s leadership, CityRow has grown from one studio in New York City to a national, omnichannel fitness brand with 12 open studios and 65 franchises sold nationwide along with a top-ranked, on-demand, global program featuring at-home rowers and a fast-growing digital subscription business. Knapp has yet to row on the water and has been featured as a business leader and a wellness expert on TODAY, Women’s Health, ABC, Harper’s Bazaar, Shape, Well + Good, Vogue, Yahoo! Finance, and PEOPLE, among many others.
54 min