When I first started pole dancing in 2004, there were only three pole dancing schools in NSW that I could find, now there are over 150 pole schools in the Asia-Pacific region. Pole dancing (outside of gentlemen’s clubs) is still relatively new and therefore most studios are owned and operated by former students with little or no fitness or business qualifications, which is fair enough seeing as how accredited instructor courses have only come into existence within the last year or two. However, the consequence is that the reputation and credibility of the industry continues to suffer, and so it’s not until some structure and regulation is brought to the industry, will pole dancing be seen as a genuine sport, dance, or art form, and not just some fitness craze; the Asia-Pacific Pole Sport Alliance (APPSA) intends to provide this structure and guidance as the industry’s peak professional body.
The APPSA recently launched at the Asia-Pacific Pole Dance Championships in Brisbane by a group of pole professionals who intend to provide career services to pole professionals and help create consistency in the industry through the APPSA. Such services would include discount insurance for members and job networking, and consistency would be achieved, for example by standardising judging criteria in competitions.
I played devil’s advocate with Cherene Thomas-Smith, the founder of the APPSA and asked, why do we need the APPSA? Why do we need a body to represent pole dancers to government bodies or the general public? How would studio owners who are already successfully in business benefit from becoming a APPSA member? Surprisingly, Cherene came back with a number of very relevant and persuasive arguments. For example, I’m sure most of you saw the news reports about Debbie Plowman, the young UK mother who became paralysed after falling off the pole last Christmas. This accident highlighted the danger of the sport and the need for professional instructor training, and whilst this may seem crass it is a reality, the need for adequate public liability insurance on the behalf of studios.
Another example is the increase of PPCA and APRA tariffs which would have had a huge and devastating impact on many pole studios if the original 3000% rise in license fees went ahead. Thankfully, Fitness Australia, on behalf it members, took legal action which prevented what could have been the end of many fitness businesses. It’s support like this that the APPSA intends to provide to its members when and if the time comes.
What Cherene did want to stress however was that APPSA is not setting out to be the regulator or dictator of the pole industry, rather she sees the APPSA as an information resource, guardian, and advocate for pole professionals. As the Managing Director of Pol-arise Australia Pty Ltd, Cherene too has encountered many of the unknown and unforeseen corollaries of operating a pole studio such as the onerous requirements of OH & S, and hopes to foster the pole industry through the APPSA by providing other studio owners and pole professionals with guidance and support through training programs, and other initiatives, which in the end will result in a more reputable and respected industry overall.
The APPSA website is currently under construction, so if you would like to find out more about the APPSA, email cherene@appsa.org.
The APPSA recently launched at the Asia-Pacific Pole Dance Championships in Brisbane by a group of pole professionals who intend to provide career services to pole professionals and help create consistency in the industry through the APPSA. Such services would include discount insurance for members and job networking, and consistency would be achieved, for example by standardising judging criteria in competitions.
I played devil’s advocate with Cherene Thomas-Smith, the founder of the APPSA and asked, why do we need the APPSA? Why do we need a body to represent pole dancers to government bodies or the general public? How would studio owners who are already successfully in business benefit from becoming a APPSA member? Surprisingly, Cherene came back with a number of very relevant and persuasive arguments. For example, I’m sure most of you saw the news reports about Debbie Plowman, the young UK mother who became paralysed after falling off the pole last Christmas. This accident highlighted the danger of the sport and the need for professional instructor training, and whilst this may seem crass it is a reality, the need for adequate public liability insurance on the behalf of studios.
Another example is the increase of PPCA and APRA tariffs which would have had a huge and devastating impact on many pole studios if the original 3000% rise in license fees went ahead. Thankfully, Fitness Australia, on behalf it members, took legal action which prevented what could have been the end of many fitness businesses. It’s support like this that the APPSA intends to provide to its members when and if the time comes.
What Cherene did want to stress however was that APPSA is not setting out to be the regulator or dictator of the pole industry, rather she sees the APPSA as an information resource, guardian, and advocate for pole professionals. As the Managing Director of Pol-arise Australia Pty Ltd, Cherene too has encountered many of the unknown and unforeseen corollaries of operating a pole studio such as the onerous requirements of OH & S, and hopes to foster the pole industry through the APPSA by providing other studio owners and pole professionals with guidance and support through training programs, and other initiatives, which in the end will result in a more reputable and respected industry overall.
The APPSA website is currently under construction, so if you would like to find out more about the APPSA, email cherene@appsa.org.
