‘I was juggling five jobs but quit them all to focus on pilates’: Meet the 20-year-old hoping her new studio will blossom in Slapton

Lily Hitchin is opening Core Blossom Pilates, after falling in love with the exercise form while participating in classes.

The 20-year-old, who lives in Wing, was at one point doing five different jobs at the same time, but said she quit them all to focus on building a career in pilates.

Lily said: “I started working at just 14 and have had experience across lots of different industries, from equestrian work, to hospitality, website development and marketing, and baking and patisserie.

“At one point, I was juggling five different jobs at the same time!

“I looked after 12 donkeys which were rescued from The Donkey Sanctuary in Devon (three days a week), I worked at The Harvester in Hockliffe, I worked at the Baa T-Room in Great Billington (twice a week), I worked for my sister’s travelling mobile equestrian shop every Sunday and I worked as a mixologist travelling around London for weddings and events.

“I juggled all this and ended up working seven days a week for a long time.

“Eventually, I decided to leave all five to focus completely on building my career in pilates and that decision has ultimately led me to being able to open my own studio.”

Lily is now a Level Three mat and reformer pilates instructor and next month she will fulfil a dream of opening her own studio at Bury Farm in Slapton.

“I first fell in love with pilates while participating in classes myself and I knew I wanted to create a space where people could experience that same feeling,” she said.

“I wanted the studio to be more than somewhere you simply come to exercise - it’s a place where you can leave your day at the door, quiet your mind, move your body, focus on yourself and leave feeling better.

“Before opening Core Blossom, I spent time freelancing at different pilates studios, which taught me so much about the industry and how every studio has its own personality, atmosphere and way of doing things.

“It is a very rewarding job, seeing people’s confidence and physical strength grow!”

Lily explained that the name for her studio, Core Blossom, has a particularly special connection saying: “My sisters and I are all named after flowers, Jasmine, Lily and Poppy, and my mum is a qualified therapist who runs her own practice called Start Blooming, so the idea of blossoming has always been part of our family.”

Alongside teaching, Lily has started hosting pilates and wellness events, including a session at a Porsche dealer in Northamptonshire which sold out in six minutes, while she has also been hosting combined padel and pilates sessions in the area.

Lily will be running taster sessions throughout the opening weekend of October 3 and 4, which also includes an open studio between 1pm and 3pm on October 3, when anyone is welcome to come and visit the space and meet Lily.

All visitors during the open weekend will be entered into a draw to win one month of unlimited reformer pilates classes.

Lily reflected: “A big part of my journey has been learning to embrace what makes me different.

“I’m a very creative and forward-thinking person, and I’ve always had lots of ideas and wanted to turn them into something real.

“I’m also dyslexic, and for a long time I saw that as something that might hold me back.

“Parts of my pilates training and exams were challenging for me but I kept going, qualified and continued to push myself.

“I hope that by sharing my story, I can show other people who might have struggled in a similar way that something you once saw as a weakness doesn’t have to define what you can achieve.”

The classes in both reformer and mat pilates will be open to everyone from beginners through to those with pilates experience, and places can be booked through the studio’s website.

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