STUDIO NOIR · Member Acquisition

Phase 1 Year 1 target: 60 paid members by end of Year 1 (July 2027 to June 2028). Charter cohort of 30 Founders + 30 rolling public admits.

Phase 2 target: 400-600 members by end of Phase 2 Year 1 (2030-2031). Full spec preserved for reference.

Owner: Tia Dunn, Marketing Director.

Phase 1 CAC target

Blended CAC target: under $60 per member.

At Phase 1 scale, CAC is very low because most sign-ups come from Taj’s audience (organic, effectively free) and referrals (only cost is the referral month bonus).

See 05_FINANCE/01_UNIT_ECONOMICS Section 3 for full CAC breakdown: - Waitlist from Taj’s audience: $0 per member (50% of Phase 1 sign-ups) - Referral from existing members: ~$100 discount per member (25% of sign-ups) - Paid Meta/Instagram ads: $180 per member (15% of sign-ups) - Content and PR (Tia): $50 per member (10% of sign-ups)

Blended: $57 per member acquired.

LTV-to-CAC: 113x (see 05_FINANCE/01).

Phase 1 acquisition channels (ranked)

1. The Founders charter cohort (T-6 to T-3)

• 30 spots, filled from waitlist applications
• No CAC (waitlist is already organic)
• 30 members × $349/month = $10,470/mo baseline revenue from Day 1

2. Waitlist-to-paid conversion (T-0 through Month +12)

• Target 20-25% conversion of Phase 1 waitlist (200-300 names)
• Expected: 55-70 conversions across first 12 months
• Blended CAC: $0 (waitlist paid for itself via organic acquisition)

3. Referral program (Month +2 onward)

• Existing members get 1 free month per 2 referrals accepted
• Effective member “cost”: $199-$349 (1 month waived) per 2 new members = $100-$175 CAC per member from referrals
• Target 25% of new members from referrals by Month +6

4. Small paid ads (contingency)

• Only if organic + referral is running below plan
• Budget: $300-$500/month
• Meta + Instagram, targeting Triangle metro women 28-55 with interests in fitness/wellness/dance
• Expected CAC via paid: $150-$300 per member

5. Occasional press hits (organic, no PR firm)

• If WALTER Magazine, Raleigh Magazine, or RALtoday covers us, we see a small waitlist bump
• CAC via press: near zero, but only 5-10 new signups per placement typically

Phase 1 member acquisition timeline

Pre-open (Aug 2026-June 2027)

• Waitlist grows organically to 200-300 names
• The Founders cohort fills to 30 across 3 rounds
• Landing page conversion rate ~10-15% (Phase 1 target)

Soft Open (mid-June 2027)

• 30 Founders active as paying members immediately (billed for their first month)
• Founders invite 1 guest each for the Soft Open week
• 5-8 conversions from Founder-invited guests (they see the space + arrival ritual)

Full Open (early July 2027) → End of Year 1 (June 2028)

End of Year 1 base case: ~77 active members. Comfortably above the 60-member target from 05_FINANCE.

Year 2 (July 2028 → June 2029)

Steady state at 70-80 members with continued waitlist flow + referrals. Focus shifts from acquisition to retention (see 02_MEMBER_EXPERIENCE/02_JOURNEY_MAP Stage 7).

Phase 1 conversion mechanics

Tour → sign-up

• Every new member tours with Taj (Founders cohort) or Studio Manager (post-Founders)
• Tour delivers the full arrival ritual as if member (prosecco, greeting, walk-through)
• Sign-up on the spot or within 48 hours via Mariana Tek
• Sign-up rate target: 70% of tours become members (small pool self-selects for fit)

First class booking

• Immediately after sign-up, first class booked (recommended: Pole Foundations for pole newcomers, or their preferred style)
• Founders welcome kit delivered at first class

90-day check-in

• Personal note from Taj at 90 days
• Attendance pattern review
• Renewal / satisfaction check

Phase 1 attribution tracking

Simple Phase 1 attribution via Mariana Tek member profile: - Referral source captured at signup (waitlist / Founder referral / friend referral / social ad / other) - No fancy attribution model needed at 60 members - Reviewed monthly by Trill + Tia

Phase 2 member acquisition (preserved for reference, rebuilt in 2028)

Phase 2 flagship target: 400-600 members by end of Year 1 of Phase 2.

Phase 2 CAC target: under $250 blended (industry premium clubs are $600-$1,200).

Phase 2 structural advantages (preserved): 1. Taj’s owned network. Founder with deep audience, waitlist growth compounding without paid spend. 2. Trill’s professional network. Cultural cohort (choreographers, MDs, athletes, artists) as founding member roster. 3. Taj’s Hot 97 access. Single broadcast segment moves regional interest. 4. Taj’s Team Hennessy access. Presenting-partner economics on opening night + potential INVITATIONAL title sponsor. 5. Tia in-house. No agency retainer. Cross-brand efficiency with Nomad Society. 6. STUDIO NOIR INVITATIONAL halo. TWG-produced championship generates national press money can’t buy.

Phase 2 channels (preserved): - Founding cohort of 450 (Phase 2 charter tier) - National influencer program - Corporate B2B (BofA, Truist, Ally with 6-15 anchor accounts) - Press-driven acquisition (Cultured, Departures, WSJ Off Duty) - Hot 97 activation - Referral program at scale - Paid social + Google

Full Phase 2 member acquisition plan rebuilt in 2028 with Phase 2 Marketing Manager and Community Manager hires.