ANN ARBOR, MI — Ann Arbor’s newest Pilates studio is covered in pink.
Sol Society Pilates, 318 S. Maple Road, held its grand opening on Thursday, Feb. 19, according to founder Erin Cantrell, 47.
“This space is something that looks different, it smells different, it feels different,” Cantrell, a lifelong Ann Arbor resident, said. “The people treat you in a way that makes you feel so good.”
She added that people “need time to get away from your normal daily life and really feel like you’ve stepped out of your world.”
The studio contains a 3,100-square-foot hot mat Pilates room and a room full of Reformers. It offers several classes, including one called “Not Your Mom’s Pilates,” as well as private sessions.
The name Sol Society Pilates is partly a play on Seoul, South Korea, according to Cantrell, who is Korean American.
This fitness studio is different from other studios in Ann Arbor because of the location’s interior colors, top-of-the-line equipment and amenities, Cantrell said.
“I want people to walk in and forget about their whole everything,” Cantrell said.
Front of Sol Society Pilates, 318 S. Maple Road, in Ann Arbor.William Diep
Opening a Pilates studio has been Cantrell’s vision and in the works for close to two years. Although she still enjoys strength training, she has taken Pilates classes around the world and was starting to see this shift in fitness.
“People wanted something that was more than just a workout, they wanted more of an experience,” Cantrell said.
Cantrell grew up as a gymnast and has been a fitness trainer for over 20 years. She sold real estate for a living for about three years before she returned to her fitness career.
“I’m thankful for that piece of my life but a few years out of the gym, I was really missing it,” Cantrell said, noting that she especially missed the smell of a gym.
She began her fitness career by renting spaces from her friends’ gyms to train clients for about two years.
About 15 years ago, she opened Erin Cantrell Fitness, a fitness studio with strength classes and personal training, at 310 Miller Ave. in Ann Arbor. Cantrell loves her studio but wanted to open another studio that was more “aesthetically clean.”
“I wanted something a little bit different, I wanted something a little more serene,” Cantrell said, noting that Erin Cantrell Fitness will remain active and coaches will go to both studios.
Cantrell hopes the space serves the Ann Arbor community and “is a space that people call their home for fitness.”
Interested clients can book a class through the Sol Society Pilates website.
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