WAREHOUSE Experience: B/SPOKE’s South Boston Popup Inspires, Energizes

By Ginger DeShaney

Emily Katz

Eclectic artwork and funky lighting provide the perfect high-energy backdrop for working out at WAREHOUSE at 64 C Street in South Boston.

A talented, diverse, and passionate group of artists was given free rein on the walls of B/SPOKE Studio’s 22,000-square-foot WAREHOUSE, which offers spin classes, weight training, yoga, personal training, and so much more.

“WAREHOUSE embodies our aesthetic, energy, vibe, and culture,” said Emily Katz, B/SPOKE Director of Studios. “We had an opportunity to create and design a new space that feels really authentic to who we are and who we want to be as we continue forward.

“Creativity, imagination, and inclusivity are literally painted into our DNA,” Emily continued. “Our walls are oozing with color, passion, and heart.”

WAREHOUSE has been open in Southie since November as a popup experience, and will stay open through at least the summer, said Emily. “We hope to stay in the space even longer if the opportunity is there, and look to have further updates for our community soon.”

B/SPOKE has studios in Boston’s Financial District, Wellesley, and Mashpee Commons in Cape Cod, and has been exploring South Boston as another potential location for some time. National Development, the owner of the Cole-Hersee building, allowed B/SPOKE to open WAREHOUSE as a popup experience to see how the activation would go and how the community would respond.

“We’ve had an awesome response,” Emily said, noting they’re welcoming new clients every day and already have a strong base of regulars.

“We’ve got a WAREHOUSE following,” Emily said. “We’re very grateful. We’re really motivated to create a fitness and wellness hub for Boston, and to continue cultivating a strong community.”

When COVID-19 hit, B/SPOKE pivoted to live-streaming classes and launched an on-demand portal. B/SPOKE rented out its entire fleet of bikes for people to use at home and launched its virtual platforms in tandem — ensuring that the B/SPOKE experience was available any time, anywhere.

WAREHOUSE was literally designed for COVID protocol. It has 25-foot-high ceilings, fresh air supply in the rooms, and a facility large enough to hold 37 bikes spaced 14 feet apart. The separate entrances and exits create no two-way traffic. WAREHOUSE staff do temperature checks on clients, everyone wears masks, and the staff also wear gloves.

“It’s safe and spacious,” Emily said, noting there’s a very large (and free) parking lot across the street and easy T access on the Red Line.

In addition to its classes, WAREHOUSE holds some special events. It also has fitness partners who come in and host their own classes. “We want to create a platform where other people can have space to do what they love,” Emily said. “It’s a nice way to use our space for something bigger.”

Mark Partin and Ryan Olsen founded B/SPOKE Studios on the idea that fitness can be a catalyst for change and with the motto “CREATED TO IMPROVE LIFE.”

For Emily, it’s that and so much more. When she first moved here from the Midwest, she was looking for a place to work out, enjoy music, and meet people and found B/SPOKE. “I fell in love with the brand, the music, and the energy.

“It’s always been my happy place. You can just be. The energy is wildly contagious. It is a magnetic force of forward progress.”

She has been with the company for almost five years, starting as an ambassador, then working at the front desk and as a studio manager, and now she oversees the teams and operations at all the locations. “I really love the B/SPOKE experience through every lens,” she said.

“Our team is full of incredible talent and amazing individuals. People who are involved with the studio are doing it for more than a workout and more than a job. It is a lifestyle, it is a network, it is a friendship, it is a community. There’s a lot of love and heart within these walls.”

She said people are able to work through all of life’s challenges at the studio, whether it’s stress, home, work, relationships, and more. “And this bike that goes nowhere, goes everywhere. It’s a form of therapy for many of our clients. You can forget about the outside world … even just for a moment in time.”

“IN MUSIC WE TRUST” is another one of B/SPOKE’s taglines, said Emily. “Music is the great connector of all people as well as our classes. Without music — and a beat — we are unable to do what we love to do, which is teach classes, move, sweat, and inspire together.”

Speaking of music, clients use Silent Disco headphones at WAREHOUSE. “It’s a way for us to create a strong audio experience,” Emily said. The music and the instructor’s voice are channeled through the headphones and clients can adjust the volume to their comfort level. “Everyone is in their own sphere of music — so cool!”

Emily encourages everyone to check out WAREHOUSE. The cardio, yoga, and strength classes complement each other so nicely, she said. “There’s a little bit of something for everybody,” she said, noting it’s a safe, accessible, open space where everyone can feel comfortable.

“We hope that we can become a bigger part of South Boston,” Emily said. “We hope to continue growing this community, and investing in our new Southie home. We’ve had a good start and we would love to build on that.”

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