By Kate Barrett Gallery
A combination indoor cycling and ballet-based barre studio called Biker Barre is slated to open this spring at 738 7th Street SE, one block off Barracks Row. The women behind the business are Jane Brodsky and Katie Fouts, both Capitol Hill residents and graduates of the University of Michigan who met here in Washington. Brodsky is the current owner of Red Bow Studio, a barre method studio that opened on H St. Massachusetts Avenue NE in 2010. Once Biker Barre opens, Red Bow will close its doors, honoring their customers’ existing packages at the new business.
Fouts and Brodsky are committed to Capitol Hill and have been buoyed by the support of a local landlord and help from Barracks Row Main Street in their search for an optimal location.
“We weren’t willing to leave the Hill. We’re really dedicated to the community,” Fouts told The Hill is Home. “One of the things that attracted us to that area is that there are so many restaurants and fun things going on on Barracks Row. One of the lessons we learned very quickly is that people really need to incorporate this into everything else going on in their lives.”
The vision is that Biker Barre becomes a relaxing neighborhood haven as well as an intense exercise studio.
“Much like a real “biker bar,” Biker Barre will give customers a chance to sit down, relax and have a few… classes. Customers will be welcome to hang out before and after classes in the plush lounge area where they may meet new people, use the free wi-‐fi, and just take a break from life on the Hill,” says Biker Barre’s press release.
Still, there is work to be done before the calm sets in. The building is under construction, with drywall next up on the to-do list. A stop work order is posted on the building pending electrical and construction permits. Fouts and Brodsky have appealed the stop work order and look forward to moving ahead with the permitting process with an eye on an April opening.
“We’re pretty pumped,” Fouts said. “You always take a risk when you start a business, but the response so far has been so overwhelmingly positive.”
Fouts herself found a healthier lifestyle through spinning. She was initially turned onto the sport living in Manhattan, where the idea of running a spinning studio of her own first began to take shape.
“I realized I could do this, too, and I could do this better — in a way that is more friendly, more neighborhood-focused,” she said.
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