Greenwich 1-on-1 is a great new business based in Greenwich (but available to everyone, not just Greenwich residents) and if you have an athletic child, or one that wishes he/she were a little more so, read on...Greenwich 1-on-1's unique approach to coaching can make all the difference in a child's performance in everything from baseball to yoga to lacrosse. It's not just for the kids though! Visit www.greenwich1on1.com to learn more about how Greenwich 1-on-1 can help Mom and Dad too and check out the interview below with Valerie Erde and Melissa Davis, cofounders of Greenwich 1-on-1. They're two busy Fairfield County moms who just wrapped up their first very successful Spring Break sports clinic and who have a lot more on the horizon.Q: What is Greenwich 1on1?
Valerie: Greenwich 1-on-1 is a new company that provides highly personalized sport-specific and general fitness training no matter what your age, your starting point, or your goals – whether you want to simply learn a new sport, enjoy being a solid recreational player, or become a competitive athlete. Though the name is 1-on-1, and private training is our primary focus, it is meant to reflect the general idea of a small setting. We do offer semi-private lessons and clinics as well, but our clinics have a maximum ration of 6:1 so that each participant still gets plenty of individual attention.
I really believe that with the right instruction that helps build confidence and skills, plus a little patience and practice, anyone can enjoy sports. There are sports for those who love the idea of being on teams and want to compete against others and sports for more solo flyers where it’s about reaching your own personal best.
Nowadays, with the dwindling of playground time, often playing organized sports is important for kids in staying fit. Besides hopefully developing a lifelong love of fitness, sports can really help build character. As Dr. Jordan Metzl, a New York physician specializing in sports medicine says, “The lessons kids get from playing sports are completely as valuable as the sports skills themselves. The field or court is a safe place to play out and learn the issues of life. You can experience winning and losing, joy and pain, what it means to effectively prepare and what happens when someone is better than you."
Melissa: We also have extremely talented coaches that bring high-level expertise to working with both children and adults. Instead of walking into a sports facility and being assigned a trainer who knows little about you or your child, parents will be provided with a variety of coaches from which to choose.
Q: Why do you feel 1 on 1 coaching is so effective?
Valerie: It’s just a fact that people learn better and more quickly in a small setting and I have seen that firsthand with my children, who combined have taken private, small and large classes in baseball, gymnastics, karate, skiing, soccer, swimming and tennis between them, and my own experiences getting back into tennis and skiing after a somewhat long mom hiatus. You get to work on the areas that you need to work on in a way that you cannot do in a larger group.
Melissa: Everyone has different strengths and weaknesses and learns in different ways. Greenwich 1-on-1’s goal is to develop a training plan unique to each client. We hope to build confidence and skills that allow children to return to their respective teams as more valuable players. Our training will help children not just to be better athletes but also to have more confidence in all areas of their lives.
Q: How did you two end up working together?
Valerie: Greenwich 1-on-1 is a new company that provides highly personalized sport-specific and general fitness training no matter what your age, your starting point, or your goals – whether you want to simply learn a new sport, enjoy being a solid recreational player, or become a competitive athlete. Though the name is 1-on-1, and private training is our primary focus, it is meant to reflect the general idea of a small setting. We do offer semi-private lessons and clinics as well, but our clinics have a maximum ration of 6:1 so that each participant still gets plenty of individual attention.
I really believe that with the right instruction that helps build confidence and skills, plus a little patience and practice, anyone can enjoy sports. There are sports for those who love the idea of being on teams and want to compete against others and sports for more solo flyers where it’s about reaching your own personal best.
Nowadays, with the dwindling of playground time, often playing organized sports is important for kids in staying fit. Besides hopefully developing a lifelong love of fitness, sports can really help build character. As Dr. Jordan Metzl, a New York physician specializing in sports medicine says, “The lessons kids get from playing sports are completely as valuable as the sports skills themselves. The field or court is a safe place to play out and learn the issues of life. You can experience winning and losing, joy and pain, what it means to effectively prepare and what happens when someone is better than you."
Melissa: We also have extremely talented coaches that bring high-level expertise to working with both children and adults. Instead of walking into a sports facility and being assigned a trainer who knows little about you or your child, parents will be provided with a variety of coaches from which to choose.
Q: Why do you feel 1 on 1 coaching is so effective?
Valerie: It’s just a fact that people learn better and more quickly in a small setting and I have seen that firsthand with my children, who combined have taken private, small and large classes in baseball, gymnastics, karate, skiing, soccer, swimming and tennis between them, and my own experiences getting back into tennis and skiing after a somewhat long mom hiatus. You get to work on the areas that you need to work on in a way that you cannot do in a larger group.
Melissa: Everyone has different strengths and weaknesses and learns in different ways. Greenwich 1-on-1’s goal is to develop a training plan unique to each client. We hope to build confidence and skills that allow children to return to their respective teams as more valuable players. Our training will help children not just to be better athletes but also to have more confidence in all areas of their lives.
Q: How did you two end up working together?
Valerie: In June, I had placed a post on Craigslist looking for coaches to get a sense of their site as a source for talent. Well, not only did I receive responses from some truly excellent coaches, but Melissa sent me her resume. I took one look at her background -- college athlete, former youth recreation director, and business development manager at Sports Illustrated -- called her immediately and told her that it while it would be great to have her as a soccer coach, I knew that she could bring much more to the table . When we met we just clicked, plus she had great ideas and her enthusiasm. I knew she would be the perfect Sports Director.
Melissa: I responded to an ad that Valerie posted on Craigslist. After meeting her, I knew that we could work well together. Our backgrounds were complementary and we shared a similar vision for the business.
Q: How does each of your backgrounds help with what you are trying to accomplish today?
Melissa: I responded to an ad that Valerie posted on Craigslist. After meeting her, I knew that we could work well together. Our backgrounds were complementary and we shared a similar vision for the business.
Q: How does each of your backgrounds help with what you are trying to accomplish today?
Valerie: Though on the surface one wouldn’t really see how my background fits into a sports training company, but the reality is, throughout my career in management consulting, media, and later as an au pair counselor, I have always had a client service orientation and been very successful at finding and promoting talent. And really the core of our business is the coaches we hire and how we and they provide the best service to our clients that we can.
Melissa: I have always been passionate and involved in sports. I played numerous sports in high school and college and I remain a competitive runner. My professional background has centered on sports, marketing and youth recreation. I worked at Sports Illustrated in the New Business Development Department and I was the director of client relations for a large recreation company in Los Angeles.
Q: Where do you see Greenwich 1on1 in five years?
Melissa: I have always been passionate and involved in sports. I played numerous sports in high school and college and I remain a competitive runner. My professional background has centered on sports, marketing and youth recreation. I worked at Sports Illustrated in the New Business Development Department and I was the director of client relations for a large recreation company in Los Angeles.
Q: Where do you see Greenwich 1on1 in five years?
Valerie: Down the road, we hope to become the place for parents to go when they are looking for private lessons in any area-sports, arts, hobbies, enrichement - whether for their kids or themselves.
Melissa: We hope eventually to expand out company to reach children and adults throughout Fairfield County. We also hope to provide lessons in other extracurricular activities besides sports. We see ourselves as a one-stop shop for both parents and their children.
Q: Why are your coaches special?
Melissa: Our coaches have a variety of experiences and have been selected not just for their athletic talent, but because of their enthusiasm and patience. We have coaches who played professionally, coaches who have played in college and coaches who are just good teachers. We had a huge response from coaches who applied for positions with Greenwich 1 on 1 and we take pride in only having chosen those we felt were special. Our coaches have been thoroughly screened, their backgrounds have been checked and they are trained in CPR and First Aid.
Valerie: I’m pretty sure that we are also the only organization that requires its coaches to attend a workshop in sports safety. We also expect our coaches to be positive role models for the people they instruct.
Q: Tell us about a success story you've seen with 1 on 1 coaching.
Melissa: We hope eventually to expand out company to reach children and adults throughout Fairfield County. We also hope to provide lessons in other extracurricular activities besides sports. We see ourselves as a one-stop shop for both parents and their children.
Q: Why are your coaches special?
Melissa: Our coaches have a variety of experiences and have been selected not just for their athletic talent, but because of their enthusiasm and patience. We have coaches who played professionally, coaches who have played in college and coaches who are just good teachers. We had a huge response from coaches who applied for positions with Greenwich 1 on 1 and we take pride in only having chosen those we felt were special. Our coaches have been thoroughly screened, their backgrounds have been checked and they are trained in CPR and First Aid.
Valerie: I’m pretty sure that we are also the only organization that requires its coaches to attend a workshop in sports safety. We also expect our coaches to be positive role models for the people they instruct.
Q: Tell us about a success story you've seen with 1 on 1 coaching.
Valerie: I have seen was with my own son. Last year, my son was feeling a lack of confidence in his soccer playing. We enlisted coach Mike Schechter’s, who is now on board with us, for some private soccer lessons. My son skills’ rapidly improved, but more important, Mike helped boost his confidence. The last day of the fall season, my son kicked his first goal in a team situation in more than a year. Words can not describe the joy on his face that day. And he loved going to every session with coach Mike; it made him feel special and he was able to work on the areas that made him a little fearful – like chesting a ball – in a very low pressure situation and then he took those skills and brought them to the team play.
Melissa: I have a very direct, personal experience with this question. I worked diligently with a local high school track coach who broke down my running technique and developed a training plan specific to my goals. He took two minutes off my average mile and pushed me to place third overall (female) in the Ridgefield Half Marathon.
Q: So you're both moms. As a mom, what's your favorite part about living in Fairfield County?
Melissa: I have a very direct, personal experience with this question. I worked diligently with a local high school track coach who broke down my running technique and developed a training plan specific to my goals. He took two minutes off my average mile and pushed me to place third overall (female) in the Ridgefield Half Marathon.
Q: So you're both moms. As a mom, what's your favorite part about living in Fairfield County?
Valerie: I have a daughter who is into the arts and nature and a son who loves nature and sports. Fairfield County offers such great mix of good schools, cultural opportunities, parks, beaches - and plenty of sports of course!
Melissa: Fairfield County is a wonderfully family-friendly place to live. My husband and I have two young boys (ages 2 and 4) and there is no shortage of options of worthy experiences to give them. The school systems in Fairfield County are the best in the country and every town has plenty of parks and play space and a multitude of recreation leagues for children of all ages. I doubt there is a better county in all of American in which to launch this type of business.
Melissa: Fairfield County is a wonderfully family-friendly place to live. My husband and I have two young boys (ages 2 and 4) and there is no shortage of options of worthy experiences to give them. The school systems in Fairfield County are the best in the country and every town has plenty of parks and play space and a multitude of recreation leagues for children of all ages. I doubt there is a better county in all of American in which to launch this type of business.
Q: What's your favorite family activity in Fairfield County ?
Valerie: Biking to Tod’s Point together and stopping somewhere for ice cream.
Melissa: One of our favorite destinations is the Norwalk Childrens Museum and Aquarium. We take our boys there at least once a month. They love to pet the stingrays!
Call now to arrange your first private or semi-private lesson with Greenwich 1-on-1!
Melissa: One of our favorite destinations is the Norwalk Childrens Museum and Aquarium. We take our boys there at least once a month. They love to pet the stingrays!
Call now to arrange your first private or semi-private lesson with Greenwich 1-on-1!
203.344.9277 or www.greenwich1on1.com
1 comment:
It's so nice to know that you really did a great job in meeting up the needs of your customers. Even though sometimes we may encounter problems, but at the end of the day we will feel so relieved just because we gave them what they need. Just like most of the people working in a call center. Their job is very stressful and yet so rewarding. They may be able to hear a lot of complaints or concerns but once that they already solved it, they get to feel a certain fulfillment within them.
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