Ballroom dance star: ‘It’s about helping people be healthier and happier’

Maks Chmerkovskiy, Val Chmerkovskiy and Tony Dovolani have helped popularize ballroom dancing in the United States by performing and teaching on the reality TV competition “Dancing With the Stars.”

With their success on the screen has come business opportunities to share their passion, and the latest iteration of that comes via a new dance studio recently opened in Las Vegas, which Dovolani discussed with VEGAS INC.

Who are your customers?

Technically, everyone. We’ll teach anyone interested in learning to dance, or looking for a rewarding activity or hobby, and has a desire for fun, good health, personal achievement or social fulfillment. We have a wide spectrum of ages, abilities and backgrounds, and we welcome people from all walks of life. We teach people with disabilities and use dance as physical, mental and emotional therapy. We’ve never turned anyone away, and we can teach anyone.

What is your business philosophy?

Our goal is to provide unique and memorable dance experiences for our guests. We strive to offer the best service in the most beautiful and inspiring dance studios. It’s not only about teaching people how to dance, it’s about helping people be healthier and happier while allowing them to express themselves with an incredible community of like-minded people. This is still a family-owned business, and we preach family with everything we do. We want people to feel at home when they walk in.

What’s the most important part of your job?

To make sure that every student has a comfortable and fun learning experience while feeling challenged and inspired to be a better version of themselves. We want every person to feel special after they leave our studio.

What is the hardest part about doing business in Las Vegas?

Las Vegas has very high expectations for great service and entertainment. Some of the biggest names in entertainment have residencies, and some of the most luxurious services are provided here. So we have to make sure that we fit in, and I think we will.

What is the best part about doing business here?

It’s the entertainment capital of the world. People come here to have fun and experience new things, and that’s what we’re all about. It’s one thing to sit and watch a show, but its another to be a part of your own show. We want everyone to feel like they’re the star of their own world.

What obstacles has your business overcome?

We’ve overcome a lot, and learned from our two decades of experience and growing pains. We have a great system in place, but I think our new challenge is expanding without losing the family touch and community feel. We’re working hard to keep that personalized Dance With Me experience while keeping the local flavor, and never feeling like we’re out of touch with the local community.

How can Nevada improve its business climate?

So far the climate has been incredible, both business and weather. We received an incredible welcome from the community, the press, and local officials. Ask us again in one year and we’ll let you know.

What has been your hardest lesson in your career?

Besides working hard at giving 100 percent to every single thing you do, it’s important to always analyze what you’ve done and find a way to do it better. It’s easy to get comfortable or caught up in your own success, but the moment you stop learning and improving is the moment you start failing. We look back after every project or implementation of a new system and ask, “How can this be improved? How can the next one be even better? What did we miss? How can the experience be more special for our guests?” I’ve learned a lot from working with our team and I’m always picking up new ideas from our teachers and students. An important quality of a good teacher is being a good listener, so I take their advice and suggestions to make our service better.