Pilates Studio Website Redesign Case Study: The Good Core
This Pilates studio website redesign case study shows how we moved a women-only studio off a slow, template-based Squarespace site and onto a fast, custom-built platform — without losing the Arketa booking system the studio runs on.
Key Takeaways at a Glance
- Rebuilt The Good Core's template-based Squarespace site as a fast, custom Next.js platform
- Desktop PageSpeed of 100/100, SEO 100/100, and a perfect 0 Cumulative Layout Shift
- Kept Arketa booking (and the studio's 4.9★ reviews) but integrated it so it no longer slows every page
- Bold editorial design that finally matches the studio's brand instead of a generic template
- One site serving two locations — Scarborough mat + Markham reformer — with waitlist capture for the launch
About The Good Core: A Women-Only Pilates Studio
The Good Core is a women-only Pilates studio built around one promise: a strong core, with zero judgment. They run mat Pilates classes out of their Scarborough studio and are launching a dedicated reformer studio in Markham, alongside private bookings and one-on-one private sessions. The brand is bold and editorial — high-contrast black-and-white photography, big confident type, and a clear point of view.
Their members find and book classes almost entirely on their phones. That makes the website more than a brochure — it is the front door to the studio, the place where a first-time visitor decides whether to book a class or keep scrolling. For a 2024 studio competing for attention in a crowded Toronto-area fitness market, the site needed to feel as premium as the in-studio experience.
The Good Core launched on Squarespace. It got them online quickly, but as the studio grew toward a second location, the template-based site started working against the brand instead of for it.
Why the Squarespace Site Was Holding The Good Core Back
When The Good Core came to us, the Squarespace site had three compounding problems that were undercutting a premium brand:
An embedded booking widget was slowing every page
The studio runs scheduling through Arketa. On Squarespace, the Arketa booking widget was embedded directly into the page, loading heavy third-party scripts on top of an already template-heavy theme. The result was a slow first load on mobile — exactly where most fitness prospects are searching. In boutique fitness, a few seconds of waiting is the difference between a booked class and a back-button.
A template design that did not match the brand
The Good Core's brand is striking — confident, minimal, editorial. The Squarespace build looked like a Squarespace build: a recognizable template with limited control over layout, type, and motion. The online first impression felt generic next to the studio's actual identity, and for a premium women-only studio, that mismatch quietly erodes trust before a visitor ever books.
Limited control over performance and SEO
On a template platform, the studio had little control over image optimization, layout stability, and the technical SEO signals Google uses to rank local businesses. For a new studio trying to get discovered in Scarborough and Markham, leaving search performance to a template was leaving growth on the table.
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Get Your Free AuditOur Pilates Studio Website Redesign Process
We rebuilt the site from scratch as a fast, custom platform — while keeping everything the studio depends on day to day. The work ran in four phases:
Discovery & Brand Capture
We studied the studio's brand — the editorial photography, the high-contrast type, the women-only positioning — and mapped every page and booking path the existing Squarespace site needed to preserve: mat, reformer, private bookings, private sessions, our story, and contact.
Design & Architecture
We designed a bold, editorial interface that matches the studio's identity instead of fighting it — full-bleed photography, confident display type, and a homepage that surfaces both locations (Scarborough mat, Markham reformer) above the fold. Booking is front and center without being heavy.
Build & Booking Integration
We built the site on Next.js, deployed on Vercel's edge network. Crucially, we kept Arketa as the studio's booking system — members and staff keep the scheduling tool they already know — but integrated it so it no longer blocks page load. Images were served as optimized WebP, and the layout was engineered for zero shift as it loads.
Performance & Launch
We tuned the site for mobile-first performance and the technical SEO signals Google rewards, then launched on the studio's domain. The result is a site that scores 100/100 on desktop PageSpeed, 100 on SEO, and holds a perfect zero on Cumulative Layout Shift.
Custom Pilates Studio Website Features and Build Details
The new site is custom-built, not a template. The homepage opens with a full-bleed hero — the studio's editorial photography behind the tagline "A strong core, is a good core" — and immediately presents the two locations: the Scarborough mat studio and the Markham reformer studio. A first-time visitor understands what the studio offers and where, within the first screen.
Each offering has its own focused page — mat, reformer, private bookings, and private sessions — so a visitor can go straight from interest to booking without hunting. The reformer page doubles as a waitlist capture for the upcoming Markham location, turning pre-launch interest into a list the studio can open the doors to.
Booking still runs on Arketa, the platform the studio already uses and where they hold a 4.9-star rating. The difference is integration: instead of an embedded widget dragging down every page, scheduling is connected in a way that keeps the site fast. The studio keeps its tools and its reviews; members get a faster path to a class.
Everything is engineered for the phone, because that is where the studio's audience lives. WebP imagery, a layout that does not jump as it loads, and prerendered pages mean the site feels instant — and reads as premium as the brand it represents.
Pilates Studio Website Redesign: Screenshots
New homepage: full-bleed editorial hero with both studio locations above the fold
Why We Rebuilt The Good Core on Next.js Instead of Squarespace
Squarespace is a great way to get a studio online fast. But it trades control for convenience: you get a template, limited say over how the page is built, and third-party widgets that you embed and hope load quickly. For a growing studio competing on first impressions and local search, those tradeoffs become the ceiling.
Next.js removes that ceiling. Pages are prerendered and served from Vercel's edge network — which has infrastructure near Toronto — so they arrive almost instantly instead of being assembled by a template engine on every visit. That speed is not cosmetic: Google uses Core Web Vitals to rank local businesses, and a studio that loads in under a second on a phone outranks one that stalls.
It also let us solve the booking problem properly. The studio's Arketa scheduling stays in place — members keep the tool and the studio keeps its 4.9-star Arketa reviews — but instead of an embedded widget weighing down every page, the integration is built to keep the site fast. The studio loses nothing and gains a site that feels premium.
The payoff shows up in the numbers: 100/100 desktop performance, a near-perfect 97 on mobile (where the old template site was weakest), 100 on SEO, zero layout shift, and a clean pass on Google's new agentic-browsing check that confirms AI assistants can read and navigate the site.
Pilates Studio Website Performance: Measured Results
We ran the new site through Google PageSpeed Insights. It scores in the top tier on every category — a near-perfect 97 on mobile and a flawless 100 on desktop, with a perfect SEO score and a clean pass on Google's new agentic-browsing (AI-readability) check:
| Metric | Mobile | Desktop | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Performance Score | 97/100 | 100/100 | Fast |
| Accessibility | 98/100 | 98/100 | Excellent |
| Best Practices | 100/100 | 100/100 | Perfect |
| SEO Score | 100/100 | 100/100 | Perfect |
| Cumulative Layout Shift | 0 | 0 | Perfect |
| Agentic Browsing (AI-readable) | 2/2 | 2/2 | Pass |
Key Takeaways for Studio Owners Considering a Website Redesign
Embedded booking widgets can quietly tank your speed
Tools like Arketa, Mindbody, or Calendly are essential — but embedding their widgets directly into a template page loads heavy third-party scripts that slow your whole site. You do not have to drop the tool. You need a build that integrates booking without letting it block the page.
A template can cap your brand
If your in-person experience is premium but your website looks like everyone else's, the gap costs you trust before a visitor ever books. The Good Core's brand is bold and editorial — the rebuild let the site finally look like the studio instead of like a template.
Mobile speed is your discovery engine
Most fitness searches happen on phones, and Google ranks local businesses partly on mobile speed. If your studio site is slow on mobile, you are losing both the click and the ranking. Run your site through Google PageSpeed Insights — under 80 on mobile is worth fixing.
You can keep your tools and still go custom
Going off Squarespace does not mean abandoning the systems your studio runs on. We kept Arketa and its reviews intact. The rebuild changed the foundation, not the day-to-day workflow.
Want a Studio Website Like This?
Every project starts with a free discovery call. No sales pitch — just an honest look at whether a custom site makes sense for your studio, or whether your current platform is fine. You own the code, the domain, and the content. No lock-in, no recurring template fees.
Book a Free Discovery CallTech Stack: Why Next.js for Boutique Fitness Websites
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a Pilates or fitness studio website cost?
A complete custom redesign like The Good Core falls in our Digital Foundation package, starting at $2,000. That includes design, build, booking integration, performance tuning, and deployment. There are no ongoing template subscription or plugin fees after launch — the site runs on Vercel's free tier.
Can you keep my Arketa, Mindbody, or other booking system?
Yes. For The Good Core, we kept Arketa — the studio's members and staff use the exact same scheduling tool, and the studio kept its 4.9-star Arketa reviews. The difference is how it is integrated: instead of an embedded widget that slows every page, we connect booking in a way that keeps the site fast. You do not have to switch tools to get a faster site.
Why move off Squarespace if my site already works?
Squarespace is fine for getting online. But it limits control over speed, design, and the technical SEO that helps you get discovered locally — and embedded booking widgets often drag down load times. If your studio is competing on first impressions and local search, a custom build removes those limits. The Good Core went from a generic template to 100/100 desktop performance and a brand-matched design.
Will moving off Squarespace hurt my Google rankings?
No — handled properly, it helps. We preserve your existing pages and URLs, set up redirects where needed, and build for the Core Web Vitals Google uses to rank local businesses. The Good Core's new site scores 100/100 on technical SEO, which is a stronger foundation for getting found in Scarborough and Markham than the template it replaced.
How long does a studio website redesign take?
Most studio rebuilds run 2–4 weeks from kickoff to launch, including design, build, booking integration, and deployment. The timeline depends on how many pages and locations you have and how much content is ready.
Do you only work with fitness studios?
No. We build custom sites for any small business that has outgrown a template — fitness studios, professional services, local businesses, and more. The same principles apply: fast mobile loading, a design that matches your brand, and a site built to be found and to convert.
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