Julie Rice
Co-Founder and Co-CEO of SoulCycle
Like all new moms, the year Julie Rice became a mother was the year her life completely changed. But for her, it wasn’t the way it changes for most of us. Julie became co-founder and co-CEO of the smash hit fitness brand SoulCycle. For 20 years, Julie was a talent manager for Handprint, a firm that managed the careers of Will Smith, Jennifer Lopez, and Sean Combs. When she and her husband decided to start a family, she moved back to NY from LA and ended up starting the east coast branch of Handprint.
A few years later, Julie met real-estate agent Elizabeth Cutler while the pair were on maternity leave. They hit it off and decided to start SoulCycle together. At the time they started their business, Julie had a five-month-old baby. Julie said one of her motivations for creating SoulCycle was to make exercise be something that is not what “you dreaded doing. It could be something that you did with other people that you enjoyed. It could be social, it could be freeing, it can be a stress release. It could be really part of your identity.”
Rice treated her instructors like performers, scouting them and treating them like they were in the movie industry by providing benefits, paid vacation, and a clothing allowance. She said that “Making sure people feel taken care of, that they’re having the opportunity to shine — it’s what I loved about being a talent manager and what I spent a lot of time doing at SoulCycle.”
By the end of year one, the business was a huge success with a large celebrity following with attendees ranging from Jake Gyllenhaal to Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper in the NYC area. SoulCycle expanded to LA and welcomed then-pregnant Beyonce into the fold.
While SoulCycle has undoubtedly been a big success, Rice definitely put in the sweat equity by walking every avenue with a stroller, papering mailrooms, handing out branded T-shirts, and asking for introductions to magazine editors. She worked behind the counter for four years taking towels to the laundry and checking in clients. In 2016 she sold her final stake in SoulCycle to Equinox for over $90M.
Reflecting on what it was like to be a female CEO, Julie says that people asked her and Lisa if they were surprised the business was so successful “despite the fact that you’re women?” They believed that the extra pressure on women to do well and the fact that they were nurturing and detail-oriented helped them achieve success.
Advice from Julie to other leaders and entrepreneurs:
See a business therapist and learn to be true listeners. This skill will improve your entire organization. You will also learn to “empty your bucket,” which means having a difficult conversation, and conversations in general so you can build real relationships with your coworkers, employees, and customers.