Female emPOWERED: Winning in Business & Life – Details, episodes & analysis

In this powerful follow-up episode, Christa Gurka shares part two of her journey to selling her Pilates studio, Pilates in the Grove. After a near miss at the closing table in 2024, Christa regrouped, healed, and ultimately closed a successful deal in March 2025. 

This episode is both a personal story and a practical guide for boutique fitness and wellness business owners considering a future sale.

Christa walks listeners through what went wrong with the first deal, what changed the second time around, and how she approached due diligence, valuation, and choosing the right buyer. She shares honest reflections on the emotional rollercoaster of selling something she spent 15 years building, and the mindset shifts required to transition from founder to former majority owner.

Whether you're years away from selling or just starting to wonder what your exit might look like, this episode offers a roadmap, real numbers, and reassurance that it is possible, even for small, service-based businesses, to build and sell a valuable asset.

Key Takeaways:

• How Christa turned a failed sale into a successful one within a year
• The importance of preparing your business two years in advance for a potential exit
• Why removing yourself from day-to-day operations is essential for building a sellable business
• What multiples buyers typically pay for boutique fitness businesses
• How to emotionally and strategically navigate due diligence
• Tips for choosing between multiple offers—and why cash upfront isn’t always the only factor
• The role of systems, team structure, and profit margins in business valuation
• How Christa stayed involved post-sale as a strategic partner

Thinking about your own business exit strategy? Download Christa’s free Exit Strategy Matrix to help determine whether it’s time to keep and collect - or prepare to sell and cash in: www.christagurka.com/exit

Want guidance on building systems and preparing for growth or eventual sale? Join the FitBiz Foundations monthly membership: www.christagurka.com/fitbiz-foundations

Have questions about selling your business or interested in having Christa speak at your next event?

• Connect on Instagram: @christagurka
•  Email: christa@christagurka.com

Subscribe to the Female Empowered Podcast and tune in weekly for more insights on building a wellness business that works for your life and future.

In this week’s episode of Female Empowered, host Christa Gurka is sharing a story she's never told publicly before - the story of the time she almost sold her business, Pilates in the Grove.

This is part one of a two-part series where she'll walk you through the emotional, strategic, and operational journey behind trying to sell the business she built from the ground up. From a modest $2,400 investment in 2008 to a multi-location, seven-figure business, Christa poured everything into building something that could eventually operate — and be sold — without her.

After being inspired by a panel of business brokers, Christa started prepping intentionally for a sale: systematizing operations, cleaning up financials, and evaluating business valuation. She even got to the point where she was under contract and this close to finalizing the sale. But at the very last moment, a surprise clause from the buyer’s lender brought everything to a screeching halt.

This episode is a candid look at what it takes to get a business ready for sale, what Christa learned from the due diligence process, and how she navigated the emotional fallout when the deal didn’t go through. 

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How Christa grew Pilates in the Grove into a sale-ready business
• The operational and financial prep that goes into a potential sale
• Why having systems and SOPs is essential — even if you’re not planning to sell
• What it felt like to have a deal fall apart last-minute
• The mindset shifts and resilience I had to tap into after the fallout

Make sure you’re subscribed to the Female Empowered podcast so you don’t miss Part 2 next week, where Christa will share what happened after the deal fell through — and what she's doing differently now.

• Follow Christa on Instagram @ChristaGurka
• Check out past episodes and business resources at www.christagurka.com

If this episode resonates with you, share it with a fellow business owner who’s thinking about selling — or simply trying to build a business that doesn’t depend on them every minute of the day.

Welcome back to another episode of the Female Empowered Podcast! Today, we’re diving into something every small business owner faces—the mental battles, self-doubt, and challenges that come with running your own business.

In this episode, I’m opening up about the emotional rollercoaster of entrepreneurship, how to take control of your narrative, and why being "in the arena" means embracing both high achievements and setbacks.

If you’ve ever felt criticism, comparison, or self-doubt creeping in, this conversation is for you. Let's talk about why vulnerability is a strength, how to celebrate your wins, and why the most successful entrepreneurs keep showing up, even when it’s hard.

Some of the key takeaways from this episode include...

• Embracing discomfort: it’s a non-negotiable part of business ownership.
• Take control of your own story instead of letting internal critics define your success.
• How vulnerability fuels growth: leaning into it helps you become a stronger, more creative leader.
• The importance of showing up and taking risks: progress happens when you stay in the game.

Loved this episode? Share it with another woman in business who needs to hear it!

Looking for a supportive community of women in the arena? Join my monthly membership group at ChristaGurka.com and connect with other ambitious entrepreneurs navigating the same challenges.

Let’s keep the conversation going—follow me on Instagram @ChristaGurka and DM me your biggest takeaway from today’s episode!

Hey there! Welcome back to another exciting episode of The Female Empowered Podcast. What we will be diving into is a unique aspect of small business success – the importance of having a business that is more than just YOU as a practitioner.

This episode is great to listen to if your goal in the future is to still generate revenue while you are not working, to be able to possibly sell the business in the future, or to truly have more freedom and more opportunities. The answer to all these possibilities is having a strong management team.

However, I am not saying that if you do not have a management team you are not a business. This episode is made for those who want to generate revenue while they area away and those who want to have a lucrative and successful exit strategy.

Let’s talk about:

• Introduction to the topic
• Why this episode is for you
• The number one benefit of having a strong management team: It Reduces The Dependence On You As The Owner
• What made me realize that I need to restructure my business
• The difference between having a business that YOU are running and a business that runs on auto pilot
• The second benefit of having a strong management team: It Demonstrates That The Business Is Set-Up For Sustainability
• At what cost is it costing you to do everything on your own
• Two things you need to consider if you want your business to survive even without you
• The third benefit of having a strong management team: It Improves Growth And Scalability
• If your business doubled in size right now, could you handle the growth?
• The fourth reason in having a strong management team: It Creates A Good Succession Plan
• The importance of having a well thought out Succession Plan even if you don’t want to sell and just want to fade out
• What a management structure could look like for your business
• Hiring an Operations Manager
• All about a Marketing Manager or a Marketing Team
• What Studio Managers or Fitness Directors do
• What Sales Managers do
• When should you think about having these people on your Management Team
• Conclusion

This is what we talk about in our Inner Circle Program. We help you decide the roles you need to hire for based on your unique business model and set-up. So if you are hesitant or confused on what you need to do next but you know that you need a team, consider applying for our Inner Circle Program. I am with you step by step so that you can feel like a whole new business after and feel more like the CEO of your business as you plan your exit strategy.

Looking for advice and resources to help you market and grow your clinic or client based business? Visit my website or follow me on Instagram!

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review for the show to help other female fitness and wellness professionals find our podcast! 

Interested in being a guest on a future Female Friday episode? Email me at Christa@pilatesinthegrove.com!

Hi! Welcome back to another exciting episode of The Female Empowered Podcast. What we will be covering this week is all about sale strategies for small boutique fitness owners.  

This episode is actually based from the Go Give Yourself More series. It’s one of the best sales books I’ve read and we will talk about how the principles from this book can be applied to your business.

I wanted to do this episode because sales gets a bad reputation. For me, it made me feel uncomfortable because I thought about it as “selling” myself. This book helped me be more comfortable with the idea of “selling” because it guided me to articulate the value of what it is that I am selling.

So, I will be sharing with you the principles I learned from the Go Give Yourself More book and I hope you can apply them to your business!

Let’s get into:

• Introduction to the topic
• How I felt about “selling” before I read the Go Give Yourself More book series
• The Go Give Yourself More book and why I want to share the principles of this book
• The first principle: Understanding Your True Wort
• Our true worth is determined by how much value we bring to others
• Our true worth is not our self-worth
• Some examples about understanding your true worth
• The second principle: The Law Of Compensation
• Our income is determined by how many people we serve and how well we serve them
• How you can impact the Law Of Compensation
• The third principle: The Law Of Influence
• Owners have the opportunity to personally connect with their customers
• Some examples on the Law Of Influence       
• The fourth principle: The Law Of Authenticity
• Be authentic and inject your own personalities into your business
• Authenticity attracts like-minded individuals who will resonate with your mission
• Conclusion

If you are interested in grabbing the PDF I created about all the things I shared with you in this episode,  follow this LINK.

Looking for advice and resources to help you market and grow your clinic or client based business? Visit my website or follow me on Instagram!

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Give Yourself MORE
• Sales Strategies for Small Boutique Fitness Business Owners PDF

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review for the show to help other female fitness and wellness professionals find our podcast! 

Interested in being a guest on a future Female Friday episode? Email me at Christa@pilatesinthegrove.com!

Hi! Welcome back to another episode of The Female Empowered Podcast. Let’s talk about how to pay yourself as a business owner and why it matters.

This topic is something that comes up during our coaching programs and our Mastermind. I personally had no idea about how to do this when I started my business. So, let me help you understand the various ways how you can start paying yourself as a small business owner and what the implications are based on how you choose to pay yourself!

Just a word of caution, what I will be discussing in this episode is based on my personal experiences. So please, still make it a point to consult with your accountant, your financial team, your bookkeeper, an attorney, and the like.

Let’s dive into:

• Introduction to the topic
• As an LSC/S Corp, you can pay yourself through salary
• Factors to consider when paying yourself through salary
• As an LSC/S Corp, you can pay yourself through owner’s draws or distribution
• Difference between salary and owner’s draw
• Factors to consider when paying yourself through owner’s draw
• As an LSC/S Corp, you can pay yourself through profit share/profit distribution
• Factors to consider when paying yourself profit share/profit distribution
• Advantages of owner’s draw
• Drawbacks of owner’s draw
• My personal number one reason why taking owner’s draw versus a salary is a drawback
• My personal experience on taking a very low salary and an owner’s draw
• Why is it important to decide how much you’re going to pay yourself and how you’re going to pay yourself
• Conclusion

If you are interested in knowing more about this matter, you can check out my audio course here: https://www.christagurka.com/audiocourses.

Looking for advice and resources to help you market and grow your clinic or client based business? Visit my website or follow me on Instagram!

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review for the show to help other female fitness and wellness professionals find our podcast! 

Interested in being a guest on a future Female Friday episode? Email me at Christa@pilatesinthegrove.com!

Hi! Welcome back to another episode of The Female Empowered Podcast. The topic for this week is the second part of my “Meet My Team” two-part podcast. Last time I had with me my Chief Operating Officer/Executive Director, Lauren, and my Director of Studio Operations, Kelly.

Today, I have with me Sarah. She is my Virtual Assistant and I wanted to talk a little bit about what she does in her business and what she and her team does for both Pilates In The Grove and our Beyond The Movement program.

Let’s get to it:

·      Introduction to the topic

·      Meet my Virtual Assistant, Sarah Mamaril: who she is and her company, and what she and her company does

·      How is it working with Sarah and her team, who is working across the globe, where and when do we communicate

·      Quick glimpse on how I met and how I started working with Sarah

·      What impressed me the most with Sarah

·      What Sarah and her team does for Christa Gurka and Pilates In The Grove

·      What I love about working with Sarah and her team

·      The lowest package Sarah offers

·      General price range for Sarah’s lowest package to her highest package

·      What can Sarah say about the price difference between her VA company and VAs in the United States

·      Sarah’s pricing is based on different factors

·      My thoughts on Sarah’s growth as a leader and as a CEO of her own company

·      A quick glimpse on the workflow I have with Sarah  

·      The benefits of allowing Sarah and her team with the entry points and access to your business

·      How some business owners decided to work with Sarah

·      Where you can find Sarah and her team

·      Sarah on hiring a Project Manager

·      Sarah’s final words and advise

If you have other questions or if you found anything confusing in this episode, shoot me a DM on Instagram!

Looking for advice and resources to help you market and grow your clinic or client based business? Visit my website or follow me on Instagram!

Links mentioned in this episode:

·      Catch Creative Labs

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review for the show to help other female fitness and wellness professionals find our podcast! 

Interested in being a guest on a future Female Friday episode? Email me at Christa@pilatesinthegrove.com!

Hi! Welcome back to another episode of The Female Empowered Podcast. The topic for this week is actually part 1 of a two-part podcast. I am bringing in and introducing to you guys the people who are part of my team!

I think it’s great to pull back the curtain and show you a real-life view on who else makes the magic happen in my business!

Today, I have with me my Chief Operating Officer/Executive Director, Lauren, and my Director of Studio Operations, Kelly. Know more about what they do and how they help me navigate through many things and aspects in the business!

Let’s talk about

• Introduction to the topic
• Meet Kelly, my Executive Director and Director of Studio Operations: who she is, what she does, and how she became part of my team
• Meet Lauren, my Chief Operating Officer/Executive Director: who she is, what she does, and how she became part of my team
• A quick glimpse on my story and how I built my team
• How Kelly went from a clinician to a leadership-managerial role and how was that transition like for her
• Skills that Lauren brought from her corporate background that helped her quickly adjust to the role
• Lauren’s responsibilities and accountabilities in the company
• The importance of being present and on top of things
• A glimpse on how Kelly’s week goes, the different tasks she does, and how she handles it
• The challenging part of the job for Kelly and what makes it easier for her
• The most difficult part of the job for me
• What Lauren and Kelly do and think to help them get through difficult conversations
• Coaching groups and fitness foundation communities
• The mindset that helped me in difficult conversations
• Kelly’s advice if someone will have to step in her role in another company
• When does asking questions become difficult for business owners
• The good thing and importance of respecting boundaries
• Lauren’s advice if someone will have to step in her role in another company
• It’s okay to not know what you need when you’re new at a job or position
• The importance of meeting with your team
• Kelly and Lauren’s final words and advise

I will leave you all with the fact that having these amazing women in my team and learning how to handle the business better and be a better leader has been 12 years in the making. I am still a work in progress. You might think it’s not possible for you and your business but you certainly can do what I did, too! Just give yourself the time so that everyone can move into the roles and seats they are fit for!

If you are interested in growing a team like mine, go and check out all the business mentorship programs you can look into. Go to www.christagurka.com!

If you have other questions or if you found anything confusing in this episode, shoot me a DM on Instagram!

Looking for advice and resources to help you market and grow your clinic or client based business? Visit my website or follow me on Instagram!

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review for the show to help other female fitness and wellness professionals find our podcast! 

Interested in being a guest on a future Female Friday episode? Email me at Christa@pilatesinthegrove.com!

Welcome back to Female emPOWERED! Today, I will be talking about a replay episode. I wanted to share with you how you can navigate a slow season in your boutique since summer has begun and it could be a slower time for some people.

For me, it’s slower because school is out and people are leaving for their vacations. So, if you are experiencing a slower schedule like me during this time of the year, or for any other time for that matter, let’s dive into how we can prepare, navigate through slow seasons, and how you can best use your time.

Let’s talk about:

• Regrouping and revitalizing yourself and your team
• Keeping a list of what you want to get done
• Recording content, programs, exercises, or other things you can use once you’re busy again
• Creating pop-up classes, sessions, and the like
• Training and onboarding new staff
• Hosting workshops and trainings at your facility
• Getting your back-end and processing in order
• Enjoying the downtime and leaning into the rest
• Investing in some business coaching

Looking for advice and resources to help you market and grow your clinic or client based business? Visit my website or follow me on Instagram!

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review for the show to help other female fitness and wellness professionals find our podcast! 

Interested in being a guest on a future Female Friday episode? Email me at Christa@pilatesinthegrove.com!

Hi! Welcome back to another episode of The Female Empowered Podcast. The topic for this week is something that I believe people don’t really talk about much in the small business world. I also think many business owners don’t understand this especially if they don’t come from a business background.

The topic is how to never run out of money, which are basically cash flow strategies for your small business. Learn about these strategies so your business thrives instead of going out of business!

Let’s discuss:

• Introduction to the topic
• The number one reason businesses go out of business – They don’t have enough cash
• My own experience of putting out more cash than getting more cash in
• Do not use your personal bank account to never run out of money for your business
• S Corporation vs.  Sole Proprietor and how it differs in paying yourself
• The importance of speaking to a Tax Adviser
• What should happen when someone pays you mone
• Why you need to figure out your monthly operating expenses and how to compute it
• The other accounts I advise small business owners to have
• What I recommend you do if you get three months’ worth of operating expenses in your profit account
• Why you want to keep moving money out of your operating account
• An example of computing your monthly and annual revenue, overhead, additional expenses, your salary, taxes and profit so you don’t run out of cash
• Think about how much you want to put away, how much you want to save, and how much you want to budget for then plan accordingly
• There is power and strength in numbers

If you have other questions or if you found anything confusing in this episode, shoot me a DM on Instagram!

Looking for advice and resources to help you market and grow your clinic or client based business? Visit my website or follow me on Instagram!

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Episode 176

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review for the show to help other female fitness and wellness professionals find our podcast! 

Interested in being a guest on a future Female Friday episode? Email me at Christa@pilatesinthegrove.com!