Good question! I wouldn’t think 5ish instructors is a “tiny” studio. I know of some that have only 1 or 2 teachers - I suppose they might be considered tiny. My studio has 5 male instructors and 4 women instructors (one of whom is there only part-time), and it feels like a medium-sized studio to me. Nonetheless, it is by far the largest studio within a 2-hour radius of my home, and the only one that does pro-am competitions. All the teachers there are employees of the studio, rather than independent pros who rent the space.
There’s another studio I have visited twice while I was out of state on business, and I totally love that studio, and wish I lived closer to it! It has 6 male instructors and 5 female instructors. Even though that’s only two more teachers than at my local studio, it feels much larger because they also have two owners, plus a general manager, plus an operations manager; and the physical space is HUGE, with a cool layout that has different sized ballrooms and places to practice, change, sit & watch, etc. It feels like a “large” studio to me. And again, all the teachers there are employees of the studio, rather than independent pros who rent the space (I asked). I’ve taken private lessons with 1 woman and 2 men there, and also got to dance with the general manager and one of the owners during their social dances.
The only other studio with which I have personal experience is 2 hours away from me, and the only teachers there are a husband and wife team who compete professionally. I took virtual lessons from the female teacher for several months, and had one in-person lesson with the male teacher. The studio is too far away for me to be able to take regular lessons there. And the lessons don’t cost any less than at the larger studios (although the cost of pro-am comps with them is MUCH cheaper…they charge a flat daily rate, regardless of the number of heats danced.)
So I guess I’ve visited S, M, and L studios. I wonder if there are XL and XXL studios too?
