My story
Why I built Studio Signal.
Rhys · Founder
The gap I kept seeing
I've spent 17 years in data and analytics. Most recently I led the analytics and data science team for Intuit across Australia and Asia, the company behind QuickBooks and Mailchimp, turning data into decisions and building the AI programs that help a big company know exactly what to do next. The whole time, I kept seeing the same unfair gap: big companies have entire data science teams turning their numbers into growth, while the small-business owners doing the hardest work have none of that. Same problems, none of the firepower.
I've been that owner
Years ago I ran my own small business, a clothing label I built with a mate. We made over a hundred products, got into shops around the country, built a following, even had bands and DJs wearing our gear. I loved it, and I learnt everything the hard way. The hardest part was never really knowing where I was making or losing money, or where to focus next to grow. My numbers were scattered across half a dozen different tools, and after packing orders and talking to suppliers, the last thing I had the energy for at 10pm was pulling it all together to work out my next move. I know what it feels like to run on instinct and just hope you're making the right call.
Why studios
Fitness and wellness have always been a core part of my life, as much for my head as my body. I surf, run, and train at my local gym on the South Coast most weeks. So building something for the people who run these spaces, the studios that keep their communities moving, means something to me.
The studio that started it
A mutual friend introduced me to Olya, who runs a beautiful Pilates studio in Sydney with a team of instructors, largely on her own. We started exploring what her data could tell her. It clicked the moment she looked and said, "I've never seen my business this way, all in one place, it's so powerful." There was so much locked in her numbers that could help her grow, and she'd never had the time or the tools to see it. I knew we were onto something.
What I always wanted to build
Studio Signal is the thing I always wished existed: the power of a big company's data science team, put straight into the hands of a studio owner. The numbers worked out properly, explained in plain English, telling you the few things to do each week to grow. Built carefully, and getting sharper with every studio we work with.
Come and shape where it goes.
I'm partnering with a small group of founding studios as we refine and grow Studio Signal across more studios and platforms. If that sounds like you, I'd love to hear from you.