Marcella Giuffrida is the co-founder of Forte Vita, a heated, weighted workout studio in Brentwood, Los Angeles, and the founder of MGPR, a boutique PR and social media agency specializing in emerging lifestyle and wellness brands. Before opening Forte Vita, Marcella built her career in New York’s luxury fashion PR world, later returning to LA to represent wellness and lifestyle clients, one of which led her to creating monthly puppy yoga events that unexpectedly planted the seed for a fitness studio of her own.

In early 2025, after struggling to find a studio she and her co-founder genuinely loved, Marcella spotted an opportunity: combine a luxury workout experience with the built-in community they had already cultivated. Within weeks, the two secured a hidden upstairs space above their favorite coffee shop, signed a $5,500/month lease, invested $100,000 of their own savings and began building Forte Vita from scratch. By October, just six months after the first spark of an idea, they opened their doors with a 20-person team, 5–6 classes a day, and a focus on elevated, stress-free fitness.

In its first month, Forte Vita reached 30% class capacity, driven heavily by TikTok and a smart, scrappy PR approach. Marcella shares how she built a cohesive brand before opening, leveraged influencers and brand partnerships for zero-cost amenities, and designed a guest experience that feels calm, intentional and premium in contrast to traditional big-box fitness studios.

Marcella breaks down the real costs and realities of launching a boutique fitness studio in LA, the operational challenges of the first 30 days and how to build a brick-and-mortar business that stands out in a saturated market, through authenticity, community and an eye for thoughtful details.

In this episode, we talk about:

• How a puppy yoga event sparked the idea for a boutique fitness studio
• Launching Forte Vita in 6 months with a $100K budget
• Breaking down the numbers: $5,500 rent, 21-person max classes, 5–6 classes/day
• How TikTok became their #1 customer acquisition channel
• Building a luxury guest experience vs. the traditional fitness chaos
• When to do PR, when not to and how authenticity beats paid press
• Growing to 30% capacity in month one and the surprising class times that work

If you’ve ever thought about opening a fitness studio, creating a wellness brand or building a brick-and-mortar business with strong community and storytelling, this episode is packed with insight.

Resources & Links

Forte Vita Website: https://www.fortevita.co/

Forte Vita Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fortevita.co/

Marcella Giuffrida Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marcellagiuffrida/

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