Bittersweet Studios

Bittersweet is an exceptional place to learn pole, Lyra, aerial silks and take dance. The instructors are amazing and sincerely care about each and every student, as does the owner who is a champion on multiple apparatus and also a judge in national and international competitions. I can honestly say that signing up classes at Bittersweet was one of the best decisions I ever made. Everyone, including the other students, are incredibly supportive and welcoming. I have been coming for over a year and I look forward to every class. As a bonus I'm stronger than I've ever been and feel great. Please keep in mind that the negative reviews posted are primarily by people who are not students at Bittersweet. They spoke with someone on the phone, were late for class and wanted money back, signed contracts without reading them, didn't want to participate in warmup (which is essential for preventing injury and performance) or wanted to be put in advanced classes without meeting the standards set by the instructors for good reason - to assure safety and prevent injury. Students wrote glowing reviews because the studio deserves them.

Took the class with my friend and it was my first time doing pole and I loved our instructor Daniela! She was very knowledgeable, kind and made me feel comfortable with my ability/ not pushing me too far as well. Will definitely take it again!

As a middle aged FAI (Formerly Active Individual), I have been slacking off the last 3 years and had gotten so stiff and always sore and achy. I started attending the Stretch and Flex class with Lexis a couple of months ago and already feel 10 years younger!! Lexis uses massage balls for myofascial release and stretching combined with muscle engagement that has loosened my stiff joints and given me greater mobility for everyday activities. I love her class. The environment is clean, judgement free and encouraging.

My 10 y/o daughter attended a week of the Circus Camp and loved it! Coach Lexis was a great and thoughtful instructor. We hope there will be more kids/youth classes in the future!

first I will start that this location is beautiful, gorgeous, picturesque. 12 poles, smooth floors, many offerings. Now to the reason of my visit. I am relatively new to the Jax area &there are 2 pole studios around here, or drive to Orlando or further. I wanted to try BitterSweet out b.c they offer different classes that the other studio in area and I saw they were having a Halloween OPEN pole & aerial party. I thought to myself "wow! this is perfect ! what a great way to go there, meet some instructors, maybe the owner and also meet current or possible new members such as myself. I want to state that NO WHERE in any of there advertisements did this party state that is was for current members only. NO WHERE. The party was set Friday oct 28 6-9pm, costumes and games &fun times. I arrived 625pm. I walked in happy, dressed up in full costume and excited to possibly make some new friends and have a fun evening. I was ignored from the moment I entered. I walked in, there were a few people in the silks area and the rest huddled in the kitchen area. I made eye contact with several of them, smiled said a quiet hello, ( I was nervous ). I sat my things down and started warming up and put on my boots. For the first hour I was there no one spoke to me, no one approached me, I got a few side eye glances that i noticed but just ignored the vibe I was feeling. at about 730 they started to come to the dance floor area &said group photo time- felt super awkward and again still no one said anything to me. (side note- when you don't recognize someone enter your business, you would normally approach them correct? introduce yourself, say hello? not the case here as I stated I was completely ignored till 740 when I was first spoken to. Also I have been to many studios in many states and a couple different open pole studio parties- now if it not stated that these are MEMBERS ONLY than like 99% of people we assume it is open to anyone- the point of a studio party- get together, play games, have some snacks, laugh, dance some-not a structured class obviously, MEET NEW POTENTIAL CLIENTS, meet the instructors and or the owner(s)) Alright back to the story- after the group photo was taken at about 730. others went on to take some selfies and start doing some light poling themselves. I continued to do some floor work, low flow on the pole , then I wanted to do my favorite move-a layback. I did about maybe 3 climbs up a pole if even 3 full climbs - did my thing and continued down to the floor and more floor work- at this time i see out the corner of my eye that someone is now approaching me with a scowl on her face looking at her phone scrolling. first words she says to me "who are you? this is members only and I don't know you. can I have your name?" (now let me jump back real quick, when I first walked in all they had was a tablet with a check list of names to check in, well I did that. and again since no one bothered to actually approach me when I arrived over an hour ago or acknowledge my presence as a person, of course you don't know my name. I gave my name and she again said yea this is supposed to be a members only party &you've never been her. I'm gonna need you to come up to the desk and sign a waiver since you've never been here and this is members only (please say members only one more time to me) I also wanna state again no where in any of there IG posts said was it members only, you know mindbody has a feature where you can make it so only members can purchase and non members cant. yea that's a thing. so I'm up signing the waiver b.c hey no prob with that at all. all the while these have been the only words spoken to me and the tone of idk "disgust, audacity, how dare I come to their party ' that I felt in those moments was potent. she goes on to say, "yea this was supposed to be for members only b.c we don't know you or your skills and this was for members only"I've finished filling out the waiver &asked if she wanted me to leave since this was a private party. I felt so unwelcomed and so unwanted. "since you're already here you can stay but this was supposed to be for members only" - was her word for word reply and she walked off. (again please say members only one for GD time)I went back to where my things where gathered them up at left. walked out the door by 745. I have never been to a studio that was so unwelcoming and unwarm. I do not recommend for the simple fact that they were terrible unwelcome people. not a one introduced themselves and approached me, and I know I could have approached them but again I was nervous as this was my first time there. As I stated it is beyond beautiful for a studio but the owner/staff less than desirable. I wanted to form my own opinions about this studio b.c I had heard many negative issues with staff and classes there but wanted to give my own assessment. well with how i was "treated" lines up with what people say, make your own choice tho. Ive been poling since '18

Ok! I regret to inform you that I am now a 3-time pole fitness class dropout, but that's in no way a reflection on Summer (instructor extraordinaire) and the awesome time I had at Bittersweet Studios! It's all me and my weak core-- for obvious reasons! I attended a private birthday party at Bittersweet, and Summer was a gracious host! She's killer on the pole, she's a great teacher, and her strength is friggin' unbelievable! The girl's got some moves! I, on the other hand, found myself retreating at the first sign of a hard sweat, taking pictures, drinking champagne, and eating cupcakes while sitting on the super-cute floor poufs! Overall, the girls and I had a great night and thoroughly enjoyed our private party at Bittersweet! #PoleDancingIsASport

The first few times we went in we were extremely happy. Jason is a phenomenal instructor, so this review is not based on him. This review is based on Crystal, who works the front desk, and the studio policy. The main reason I gave two stars instead of one is because of Jason and the cleanliness of the studio. Here's the problem. We live about 30 minutes south, in South St. Augustine. I was willing to make the drive because my 10 year old daughter enjoyed her class with Jason in particular. Tonight, we were 5 minutes late due to traffic. Crystal told us that my daughter would not be able to participate because the studio had a policy that once it hits 5 minutes, you can't join. The class had just started their stretch, but she would still not allow her to join. So here we were after driving for 30 minutes, my 10 year old daughter was disappointed and Crystal proceeded to tell me that I would not be getting my money back. She did offer a hands only class that started afterwards, however that isn't what I paid for, not to mention that that would have turned this into a 3 hour ordeal, (an hour of driving, an hour of waiting and an hour of taking a class). The most disappointing part was the lack of Crystal's empathy. Regardless of how many years a company has been in business or what their policy is , there should be some degree of human compassion and empathy. My husband called to speak to a manager, who was not there so he instead got Crystal. She, again, was rude. Asking him if he knew how much AeriAl insurance was and telling him that we should've left earlier. When my husband told her that I had no control over the traffic, she told him that neither did she. She implied to him that my daughter had missed the stretch, which was not true. I should mention here that the week before, Crystal joined the class long after everyone had stretched. The first time, we loved this place, I even took a class with my daughter. It's unfortunate, but I don't think we will be returning and I will be disputing the $25 they refused to return.

Bittersweet Studios is my circus home. I've been doing aerial for several years now, have trained at multiple studios, and have worked as a circus performer and I mean it when I say there's no other place in Jacksonville I'd want to train. The owner and staff all take safety very seriously and it's clear that they have respect for the arts that they teach which is sometimes hard to find with how many studios have popped up (not just in Florida) trying to make money on the recent popularity of circus arts. If you're looking to try a new workout or learn pole/aerial, you'll find that here. If you're looking for top notch coaching and to advance you skills and artistry, you'll also get that here. Some advice for beginners: be prepared to work but have a lot of fun. The instructors are fantastic and I've made some of my closest friends here. You will work your foundations a lot to build strength and technique but that's why they are your foundations. Trust the process and the instructors, they'll get you there.

I was in town visiting from NYC and I would have loved to experience a class here, but unfortunately I didn't make it on time because of circumstances beyond my control. They are very strict about their 5 minute cut-off. I lost out on $30 and they weren't understanding at all. It would've been my first time taking classes with them. I guess there won't be a first time with them for me. Glad to have other options.Edit (in response to owner's comment):I understand that businesses have policies for valid reasons. I also understand the importance of warming up, having done aerial acrobatics, yoga, rock climbing, CrossFit, and capoeira for years. The point of my poor review is regarding your poor customer service; a point which you've carefully avoided in your response. A business with good customer service would offer first-time customers options, not simply turn them away at the door and refuse to provide some kind of second chance for them to use the money they spent (whether it's 30, 25 or 5 dollars). Considering your response to me-- as well as your other negative Yelp reviews-- it comes as no surprise that customer service isn't your strong suit. And for that reason, I'm glad I have other options for training aerial acrobatics.Update (6/9/2017): Notice how the business has had to ask people to go on Yelp to post positive reviews since their rating was getting so low. Four new 5-star reviews between 6/8 and 6/9. Also notice how their negative reviews are all customer-service related.Update (7/14/2017): Looks like the business read my review and asked some of the reviewers who were helping them inflate their average to take down the reviews. Notice the business' sweet reply on 6/10 to the 5-star review. Trying to make it seem like they are nice.Update (8/12/2017): I received a personal attack from Yelp user Shannon A., who has only one review on her account (5-star for Bittersweet Studios):You really come on to this page at least once a month to comment about the "update" of things? How sad of a life you've been living to dedicate so much time to this.

My wife and daughter went to this studio.We live about 30 minutes south, in South St. Augustine. Our 10 year old daughter enjoyed her class with Jason in particular so my wife didn't mind the drive. Tonight, they were 5 minutes late due to traffic. My wife spoke to the girl at the front desk, Crystal who told my wife that my daughter would not be able to participate because the studio had a policy that once it hits 5 minutes, you can't join. They had just started to stretch so she hadn't missed the stretch. When my wife asked for her $25 back Crystal proceeded to tell her that She would not be getting her money back because that is their policy. My wife called me upset because my daughter was upset. She told me how cold Crystal was and that she lacked empathy. Regardless of how many years a company has been in business or what their policy is , there should be some degree of human compassion and empathy. I called to speak to a manager, who was not there so I instead got Crystal. She, again, was rude. Asking me if I knew how much AeriAl insurance was and telling me that they should've left earlier. When I told her that My wife had no control over the traffic, she told me "neither do I". She told me that their insurance doesn't permit people to enter the class without stretching. My daughter would have stretched because they had just started. My wife explained to me that Crystal herself joined the class the week before without stretching! I wonder if the insurance company knows that!