The mainstay of mainstreet

Tell Charlottetown’s Lacey Koughan that she should relax, enjoy herself and cherish her formative years, and she’ll tell you that’s exactly what she’s doing. At 17, the high school senior already owns and operates her own dance studio. What could be finer than that? “It’s simple,” she says. “I wanted to be my own boss, and now I am.”

Indeed, she is. Although 24dancePEI is mere months old, she’s managed to attract a crop of more than 30 regular, paying, young pupils who now study hip hop (for ages five and up) and diverse dance moves (for ages 11 and up) at her studio in the capital city’s downtown.

Though 24dancePEI has been primarily a one-woman show to this point, Koughan says she’s had performers from the Charlottetown festival teaching at her summer camp. This fall, as the studio increases its offerings to 17 classes per week, Koughan says she’s had to hire two new instructors.

Another new project she’s starting in the fall is 24strong. “It’ll be a YouTube-based community for young girls to learn how to be happy, healthy and strong — physically and mentally,” says Koughan. That’s just for starters: she eventually hopes to grow it into a national and international travelling event featuring empowering activities for young girls, such as exercise routines, yoga, healthy recipes, mindfulness, and community involvement.

For Koughan, research and determination have been the watchwords of her entrepreneurial journey. “I know I’m young and I know what some people think about that,” she says. “But I don’t let the negativity bother me. I have the training and I did my homework to prepare for this.”

In fact, Koughan has been dancing since she was a mere tyke. She’s taught others since she was 14. She began to learn her private-enterprise chops while on a student co-op program at a local gym, Kinetic Fitness. She designed a logo, formulated a business plan and created a Facebook page. Then, she hit the bricks with posters and a word-of-mouth campaign to spread her message.

If the young businesswoman has a lesson to impart in all of this, it would be something along the lines of: Follow your bliss. And, of course, this: Make sure you’re prepared. She’s done both, and both have taken her a long way in a very short time.

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