Brion Isaacs, alongside his business partner and wife Heather Andersen, are opening their eighth location for their business New York Pilates.
Isaacs has an extensive background in music, design, fashion, and hospitality, and from a young age, he was consistently surrounded by creatives. His grandmother was a musician and a painter, his grandfather was an art supplier, his father was a clothing designer, and his stepmother owned a restaurant. Witnessing each of his family members in these spaces helped him develop skills connected to retail and commerce-focused environments. Isaacs embodies the saying “a man of many talents.” Over the years, he has created a name for himself for his work as a DJ, graphic designer, and entrepreneur.
Isaacs and Andersen opened their first New York Pilates location in 2013, and the brand has since grown to a total of eight locations. Over the past few years, pilates has been gaining popularity due to the growing knowledge of health benefits connected to the workout. Pilates helps build one’s core strength with a concentration on posture, balance, and flexibility. New York Pilates is described as being a cutting-edge exercise destination that has revolutionized boutique fitness. The brand is accompanied by the digital platform NYPWORLD and the Elite Online Mat, Anatomy, and Reformer Certification Course.
The Knockturnal spoke with Isaacs about New York Pilates and the continuing success the business has had over the years. He also discussed the influence his upbringing had on his life journey and the decision to start DJing again after ten years.
The Knockturnal: Growing up you were surrounded by many creative people in your family, can you describe what that experience was like? How did seeing these creative spaces help you figure out your own path?
Brion Isaacs: My grandmother was a musician and a painter, my grandfather was an art supplier, my father was a clothing designer, and my stepmother owned a restaurant. So, I grew up completely surrounded by talented people in a retail and commerce-focused environment. I used to like to say “I don’t really do anything for fun. I do it to be professional.” I never really just did anything to do it alone in my room. If I was gonna do something I was gonna do it like on a world stage like New York City. so, I think that was really impactful. I grew up between New York City and Puerto Rico. I remember my dad would have us selling t-shirts on the street on 86th and Lex in Harlem for the Puerto Rican Day Parade. My grandmother would have me stocking items for the art store since I was 10 [years old] in the basement and I would help my stepmom in the restaurant running around serving drinks since I was probably 12 [years old] to her and her friends only. I remember growing up my dad would have graphic designers in his office and I’d watch them make t-shirt designs. Also, my best friend’s mother is a very successful music agent so we grew up completely surrounded by music and going on tour since we were like kids. Growing up around music, art, design, and hospitality completely mixed like a pancake which became me.
The Knockturnal: At the age of 16 you started performing as a drummer and DJ, what was that experience like at such a young age? How did you get into music?
Brion Isaacs: My best friend and I have been playing music together since we were probably 14. We both played guitar and he needed a drummer. He gave me two options. He said I need you to learn the bass or the drums. I figured I would learn the drums. That seemed fun. We practiced in our electrical closet in his mom’s office on 28th and 7th. His mom was constantly encouraging us to practice our instruments and write songs. She would let us know when we had to step it up and if we ever wanted to play at a venue what kind of level of musician we had to become. We did that from 14 to 16 and then we played our first show I think when we were 17 at CBGB on an amateur night on Mondays and I think we got asked back and then we got thrown in that whole band rock n roll thing that was emerging in NYC in the early 2000s. We were very friendly with The Strokes at that time and other bands coming up like The Mooney Suzuki, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Interpol where we were all at the same bars when we were out. I don’t remember how we first started playing at Black & White but it was below the management office of The Strokes so all those guys were coming in. We were teenagers and they were probably a few years older than us. We were looking up to them a lot and that’s how it happened. From playing music I got offered a DJ gig. My first DJ gig was at Diesel. I was trying on clothes. I lived down the street from there on 59th street and I gave someone my CD and they were like “Well can you DJ?” and I said “Of course, I can DJ!” I didn’t know how to DJ at all. I went online and looked up how to DJ. All I had was iTunes and my iPod. I kind of set something up and that was how I started DJing.
The Knockturnal: Have you always had a vast interest in the creative world?
Brion Isaacs: Totally I think most kids have that creativity in them and then it’s a matter of whether or not it’s fostered. I can’t imagine that growing up in an art supply store didn’t have a huge part to play in what became important to me. Something that was so cool about growing up in an art supply store was that the toys that we were given to play with were paintbrushes, crayons, markers, paper, and clay. My grandmother also had keyboards, guitars, and saxophones everywhere. When you’re a kid you’re going to pick up things to play with. My sister and I would paint and sculpt things and try to sell them on the street in front of our building. I remember the idea of commerce being built into us.
The Knockturnal: In 2008 you founded Rivington Design House, which served as a design studio and art gallery that showcased young artists and various brands. What inspired you to open this studio?
Brion Isaacs: When I was working at Lee’s Art Shop basically from 10 years old till they closed, I became friendly with a lot of the other employees. They were mostly artists and we were mostly musicians. My friends and I had this idea and we were very inspired by the types of parties that were happening in the late 70s in New York City, and we thought there was a total lack of that scene happening in New York. We thought, “How can we get a party of our own going?” So, we would throw these parties called ‘Shindig’ and we did them in the office of a magazine called The Journal on Avenue B. We would have $10 all-you-could drink, we would go get kegs of beer and the cheapest alcohol we could get from Jersey, bring it over, and we would perform and take care of the music and all of the artists from the art supply shop would do all the artwork. We came together and made this really cool scene that wasn’t happening in New York. Inadvertently, I was curating and installing artwork, oftentimes only having 24 hours to install, deinstall, have a party, clean up and get out of there. We did a lot of those and they were really fun, often broken up by the police for overcrowding. They got featured in Spin Magazine, NME, and anyone, and everyone was welcome if you had $10 to get in and we would hand out fliers on the street. That was kind of happening when I was in my early 20s, and then in my mid-20s when I started doing freelance graphic design, and eventually opened up my own spot. I had this idea that it’d be really unique if people could walk in off the street and say “Hey, I need a logo” because you really couldn’t do that anywhere. I signed a lease on the Lower East Side, and I realized that I had a 12×12 foot space with white walls, and one of my friends walked by whose an artist and I said “Hey do you want to put some artwork up here? It has a window.” and that is what started it. It was kind of a mixture of circumstances, and it grew into some really cool artists showing with us and into a much bigger space.
The Knockturnal: How does your business (New York Pilates) look different now vs. when you first started?
Brion Isaacs: When you’re young and have ideas, you put things out there and you might end up doing something that you don’t fully comprehend the possibilities of. As New York Pilates grew and we stayed true to just building something we thought needed to exist, we were able to hone and sharpen the knife of what was this idea, to the sharper point that it is now. What changed more than anything was the relationship between Heather and I. We’ve gotten so much better at communicating and understanding how to paint the vision so that the other person could walk down the road with the other person. Leadership skills have been absolutely improved and are something that we focus on in such a big way. The brand, of course growing from one studio in a basement on West 3rd Street, to what will now be eight studios between New York City and the Hamptons is in itself, a massive transformation. If it wasn’t for some very amazing mentors and advisors we had along the way, there’s really no way we would have gotten here. I think that saying how you’ve changed from year one to year ten, I’d probably have to write a book about that
The Knockturnal: Congratulations on opening your 8th location! Describe the feeling you get each time a new location is opened?
Brion Isaacs: The practice of opening a location is like learning a drum beat. You’re just trying to get better at it every time. How can you do it faster, how can you do it smarter, how can you do it with less stress, how can you do it better? So, number eight, I think the feeling is not about collecting studios, but more so focusing again on sharpening the knife. How much better can we do it this time, how much faster, how much cleaner, what can we add to the design without stressing out the team, how can we staff it in a way that is natural and organic, how do you just keep growing while helping your team never getting fatigued. That’s the practice that we’re focusing on the most with opening stores.
The Knockturnal: When you first started creating your business plan, did you ever imagine you’d be opening multiple locations?
Brion Isaacs: Heather always said that she was going to start a Pilates empire, so I think she definitely did. My family did have multiple shops, so I don’t think that was ever a weird thing. When we first started, the idea was more “Is this really going to take off?” It sounds funny now, but we asked ourselves if people were going to want to take a Pilates class because it didn’t exist. Now it is not only a big thing, but out here in the Hamptons being open year long, it only takes a couple of shops and a couple of people to change a lot of people’s worlds. By opening more stores and continuing to do that in places that don’t have access, we’re able to provide them access to health and wellness. Coming from New York City, I never realized how desolate a lot of places can be if a few shopkeepers weren’t there to keep the towns alive, and how important it is when you have that. I learned that from my grandmother because she was absolutely incredible at this. How shopkeepers set the tone for towns and neighborhoods, they can create magical experiences for people and it’s really cool to be able to continue the legacy that I feel like I’ve come from from my grandma and being able to do that now, I’m excited to keep doing it.
The Knockturnal: What made you decide to return to the music scene after nearly 10-years away?
Brion Isaacs: I was pretty sure I would never play music again professionally. Two things hit me. One was a former bandmate of mine that I used to play with in a band called Gordon Voidwell, Kassa Overall, who is one of the best young jazz drummers in the world. I told him “I used to be a musician” and he said “You’ll always be a musician,” so I started framing it as “I used to be a professional musician” as I was not playing professionally at that time. That was the first seed, me accepting that I’m never not going to be a musician. The second one was COVID. When COVID hit, we weren’t allowed to operate the studios for about a year and a half and we were sitting around in our house doing nothing and trying to keep the business afloat. I had the impulse to buy a drum kit again. So I bought a drum kit, started playing, and posted a little bit on social media. Everyone knew me as one of the Pilates people, no one knew anything about my past DJing and drumming. As I started posting, people started finding out and I started telling them if they ever wanted to play, let me know because I have a little more free time than I used to. A few people found out that I had played Coachella and it piqued their interest, then a lot of people found out and soon I found myself playing with Oli Benz and then with Kate Usher. Then I actually had to start turning away gigs. DJing started happening again because one of the directors at Surf Lodge heard I was playing music again and asked me to DJ. They booked me and I started playing almost all the time because there are not a lot of Montauk DJs. After that, it just started picking up again and next thing you know we’re playing in Aspen, and I didn’t really think I would be playing outside of New York again but here we are. I’m really happy to fully embrace it because I’ve been doing music direction for New York Pilates since we started, and I think a lot of people didn’t know too much about my history. So now knowing I’m an active musician, it makes a lot of sense how music is such an important part of New York Pilates.
The Knockturnal: What have been some of your biggest learning experiences in running a business?
Brion Isaacs: Communicating with your partner is the most important thing that could ever mean anything in business. I think that learning that if one person doesn’t want to do something and another person does, never ever make the other person do something that they don’t want to do. Both people in a partnership should have the opportunity to be happy, and you can’t be happy when one person is upset. When people say communication is key, and for me, I’m working with my business partner and my wife, I don’t think that it’s clear enough about what that means and understanding that communication is about both of you communicating how you feel and spending the time to research and understand what your feelings are. Just because you feel something, doesn’t mean that it’s real, and taking the time to really dissect yourself and never stop studying and always keep learning is how you’re going to make it through. Making it from one store to eight is by growing, to become the person who runs eight stores not one.
