YesPilates.com Interviews Carrie Macy - 2009 Ad Campaign Model for ToeSox

Jeanne M. Cummings, YesPilates.com - Respected and talented photographer Jasper Johal had to think about whether or not he would say yes to doing the ToeSox 2009 Ad Campaign. His “Body As Temple” series is very dear to him and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to use the fine art series as a marketing campaign. It’s one of the reason’s Joe Patterson, Founder and President of ToeSox, wanted to respect Jasper’s original art for the ads. The two agreed and Pilates Instructor Carrie Macy was asked to pose in the photographs, wearing only those cute five toed socks on her feet.

Since the inception of ToeSox in 2004, sales have doubled every year and with the economic challenges, one would think the ToeSox business would suffer as people cut spending on their “do not need” items. However, not a chance… sales more than doubled again! With such a successful ad campaign and seeing that striking Pilates body in every PilatesStyle issue, we just had to know more about ToeSox, the artistic ad campaign and the girl in the photographs.

YesPilates.com -  What made you think to do this ad campaign?
Joe Patterson - Jasper’s ‘The Body As temple’ fine art series. I had been a fan of Jasper Johal’s photography since first buying his calendar at a holiday mixer in 2006. I approached him at a conference and asked if he would be interested in doing an ad campaign in the same style as his fine art series. Initially, he had to think about it. The ‘Body As Temple’ series is very dear to him and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to use the fine art series as a marketing campaign. Mainly, I think that Jasper agreed to do it because I am a big fan and appreciate his work but also because the campaign respects the original art. Every time we use the images we make sure to credit the photographer and model. Through our campaign, more art lovers are becoming aware of this beautiful series. We now offer a calendar with Jasper’s photographs that people can frame for their walls.

YP - What have sales done since the launch of this campaign?
JP - Sales have more than doubled since we first started the campaign. It is hard to say exactly how much is attributed solely to the ad campaign but it has certainly made a tremendous impact. We receive compliments on the artwork nearly every day.

YP - Why do you think that sales are doing so well during a recession?
JP - I think we have done well during the recession for a couple of reasons. Our main demographic is active, educated women over 30 and they have fared very well through the recession.  ToeSox are a reasonably priced item well suited for Pilates. A lot of studios are implementing “sock only” policies and ToeSox are a big help in solving the hygiene and safety issues.  Also, the individual toes are a significant benefit for your feet. Think of it like exercise for your toes. Most people spend all day with their feet crammed into shoes and this really glues the toes together. ToeSox help and encourage your toes to separate and this works the muscles that spread the toes. These muscles get stronger resulting in much healthier and happier feet.

YesPilates.com - How would you describe yourself in a short paragraph?
Carrie Macy - Hmmmm… ok…let me think for a second. I think I embrace life. I love trying something new and pushing my limits physically, mentally and in business. I look for good possibilities in everything as opposed to looking at the negative side of things. With people, new jobs or opportunities… unless my gut says something is wrong, I’m really willing to try lots of different things. I think that serves me well as far as the opportunities I’ve gotten to explore, the people I’ve met and friendships I’ve cultivated.

YP - Did you go to ToeSox with this idea, or did ToeSox go to you with this ad campaign idea?
CM - They [ToeSox] went to Jasper, who is the photographer. He’s been in the Yoga/Pilates world for a while and is quite well known. I worked with him previously on his project The Body as Temple. Jasper came to me and said “ToeSox wants to do a yoga and Pilates campaign, will you be the Pilates girl” (Carrie laughs) I was like “okay sure!”… so that’s how it all came to be!

YP - That’s pretty cool! So you’ve worked with Jasper before?
CM - Yep… I’ve worked with Jasper several times previously; first with his Body As Temple series and he also photographed me for the cover of the Body Mind Spirit Conference Workbook.

YP – Did you wear ToeSox pior to doing the ad campaign?
CM - I had never used ToeSox before but I knew about them. Through the ad campaign, I got a bunch of ToeSox, and I actually LOVE them! So it’s been a neat relationship now to cultivate with Joe [from ToeSox] and their company because it’s a real cool product and I’m so happy to endorse it!

YP - Do you wear ToeSox in your own Pilates workouts now?
CM - I wear them all the time, actually. I used to be just a total barefoot proponent, but they make me feel like I have bare feet and allow me to “stick” a lot better. Also it’s much more sanitary. I wear them during every Pilates workout. Definitely!

YP - What made you say “yes” to be in the ToeSox Pilates advertising Campaign? Did you know that you would be unclothed?
CM - Jasper approached me and said that ToeSox wanted to do something similar to what we had done in the art series where I’m nude but with their socks. I thought it was a really cool idea and I did the project because I knew that Jasper would make the shots look amazing. In a business sense it was good exposure, not in a nude sense (we both laugh), but just me as a person. ToeSox references me in every photo that they use and posts my bio on their website. You can’t really say no to publicity that’s connected to a really nice product and an ad campaign that you know is going to look beautiful.

YP - Did you have much say in any of the exercises or the way the photograph’s were taken?
CM - Yeah, totally. Jasper is really neat in that he chooses people to work with that really know their art form, and so he says “ok, I need one that’s more vertical, or I need something that looks more impressive” and then it’s up to me to show him different exercises that could work for what he’s striving for. It’s a very interactive process in that I show him poses and ideas and then he tells me what works best for the photo.

YP - Judging by the photographs in the ad campaign, you look like you definitely have Pilates “in you”.  How long have you been doing Pilates?
CM - I’ve been involved with Pilates since 1996, so thirteen/fourteen years.

YP - Do you have any mentors in Pilates?
CM – Absolutely! Sadly, my main mentor, Jacqui Landrum, passed away last year. She and her husband, Bill, were my first Pilates instructors. They gave me the inspiration for investigating and understanding the beauty of how the human body works. Jacqui instilled in me a quest for always seeking more and continually wanting to try something new. As a choreographer, dancer and Pilates mentor, Jacqui inspired me both in dance and Pilates. She is definitely the reason why I teach Pilates.

YP - What was your path in Pilates?
CM - I suffered a really bad hamstring injury while dancing and my teacher sent me to Jacqui and Bill. At that point, I had never heard of Pilates. After six months my injury was completely healed and I had a whole new understanding of how to support my body while dancing or doing anything. I continued my practice for about three years while going to college and about the time I graduated I knew that Pilates was my life path.

Jacqui and Bill suggested that I go to the source and learn from Romana Kryzanowska. I studied with her in New York and then did my apprentice hours in Pasadena. I worked at studios in Los Angeles and started developing my own clientele. I had an opportunity to teach in London for six months and really loved it. Once I returned to the States, I discovered that Power Pilates was opening Studios within Equinox and I began managing two of their studios here in California, and became a teacher trainer for them. That’s really more of the direction I’m going in now, training teachers. I love being able to pass on the knowledge that I have gained and help others develop their practice.

Last year a friend and I started our own studio. We had grand hopes and did pretty well initially, but the recession was in full force and there were a few things we didn’t do correctly including location. Unfortunately, we had to close the studio this year. I am currently with Equinox, managing one of their programs and I continue to offer teacher trainings.

YP - Interesting about opening your own studio. We like to help educate teachers on that very topic and we display articles on it. What do you think is the #1 lesson you learned from opening your own studio and what might you have done differently?
CM - The number one thing would have been… well there are two that are really big! Number one was the location. It wasn’t the right place to cultivate private clientele and for Pilates that’s really one of the main money makers of a studio. We got swept into that space because there was a studio there before and it was such a beautiful space. It was absolutely fantastic! It was like, move in ready… you know. It was just so easy for us to take it over rather than trying to find our own space and put in all the equipment and all that. But the location in L.A. wasn’t quite right for the private clientele. … a better location would have helped. The other reason is that our overhead was just too big for what we could make there. We were a bit over ambitious and fell short. The main thing I would do differently is to improve the location and start smaller, for sure! But I don’t regret it at all because my partner and I learned so much and there are so many amazing things that came out of it even though it was really sad to lose it.

YP - What feedback have you received both professionally and personally from the photographs?
Surely you’ve received many compliments – anything surprising?
CM - Really flattering feedback. It’s great because even people that I haven’t spoken to in a long time will reach out to me and comment on how beautiful the photos look. It has all been a bit of a surprise because it is a little racy, a little out of the box, but everyone has been impressed and it’s all been good.

YP - After the fact, are there any exercises or anything you would have done differently for these photographs?
CM - Not really. It’s pretty challenging to do really impressive looking movements without the machines in Pilates. You can do some really cool things on the reformer and Cadillac, but on the Wunda Chair or on the mat it’s limiting. So I racked my brain to figure out what would look the most interesting and beautiful. For the next shoot maybe we’ll have a reformer and/or Cadillac.

YP - Do you have any current concerns or hopes for Pilates?
CM - Yes, absolutely. I’m really involved with the Pilates Method Alliance to help our profession become recognized with more credibility. I just attended the PMA teacher training summit in November and it’s been really neat to see the progression of the PMA from when they first started. Pilates is really coming together and moving toward a common goal of having a true certification that’s recognized by the federal government and bringing us up to another level. In doing that, it’s going to raise the bar with what training programs require and what they teach. The smaller training programs that offer to show you “how to teach Pilates in a weekend” are really going to be weeded out. I definitely see that it’s going in that direction.

YP - Is there anything else you’d like people to know?
CM - My whole experience of working with ToeSox and Jasper has been hugely positive and very warm. ToeSox is a great company and they have a wonderful product. They listen to their consumers, and they want to give the best out there. And also, just tell people to try Pilates! (Carrie laughs) Go find a great teacher and give it your best shot! Do Yoga too… together, they’re the best!

YP - Well, thank you to Jasper for saying “yes” and using his art to deliver a classy ad campaign that made us look two, three, and four times!  And thank you to Carrie for showing us what a Pilates body can look like naked!  With people looking like you, Pilates should be an easy sell!

Tags: Carrie Macy, Equinox Fitness, Jasper Johal, Joe Patterson, pilates, power pilates, toesox