Edmonton Pilates studio forced to close just hours after grand opening due to flood

Strong Pilates officially opened its first Edmonton studio on July 18 after months of planning and construction, but just eight hours after its grand opening, a severe thunderstorm flooded the business, forcing it to close almost as soon as it welcomed its first guests.

The fitness studio estimates the damage at more than $150,000, and because of an insurance issue, owners Marta Misiewicz and Riley Young currently expect only about half of those costs to be covered while they continue negotiating with their insurance provider.

Strong Pilates combines reformer Pilates, strength training and cardio into one 45-minute workout using its own brand of Rowformer and Bikeformer machines. The concept first caught the owners’ attention while taking a class in Toronto, and after opening a successful location in Kelowna, they decided Edmonton would be the perfect place for a second studio.

Bringing that to Edmonton was about a year in the making. The pair began searching for a location around this time last year before securing a space in December. Construction began in March, and in the weeks leading up to opening, they hosted community classes and built excitement through a successful pre-sale.

When opening day finally arrived, everything seemed to be falling into place.

“A lot of blood, a lot of sweat, a lot of tears that brought us to this moment,” said Misiewicz.

The studio celebrated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, champagne and local vendors. Classes were fully booked throughout the day, with many sessions already waitlisted into the following week.

But just a few hours later, everything changed.

Around 10 p.m., a powerful thunderstorm swept through Edmonton, bringing torrential rain that flooded roads, homes and businesses across the city, something we’ve become all too familiar with this season.

“We obviously felt the rain where we were staying, and then we checked our security cameras, and everything was just kind of underwater. So we quickly drove there and got a bunch of shop vacs and squeegees,” said Young.

But the damage had already been done. Flooring, drywall, mirrors and the reception area were all saturated.

The owners say the flooding came up through floor drains connected to the municipal stormwater system.

“It’s such a contrast between it being literally probably one of the best days of our lives — the high that we felt that morning… and then, eight hours later, a very quick turnaround to being like, ‘Oh, wow, this is the complete opposite of what we expected.’”

Engineers are now assessing permanent drainage improvements, including potential backflow prevention measures, to stop it from happening again.

While the owners continue working through their insurance claim, Rob de Pruis, national director of consumer and industry relations with the Insurance Bureau of Canada, said situations like this can quickly become complex following major weather events.

He explained that commercial flood insurance is optional and is not automatically included in a standard business insurance policy. Different types of water damage, including burst pipes, sewer backups and overland flooding, are often treated as separate coverages.

He added that commercial claims can also become more complex because businesses often lease their space, meaning responsibility for damaged walls, flooring and other improvements may be divided between the tenant and landlord depending on the lease agreement.

Even once coverage is confirmed, rebuilding is rarely quick.

According to de Pruis, flood remediation begins with extracting the water and removing damaged materials before buildings are slowly dried using industrial fans and dehumidifiers. Only after the moisture has been safely removed can reconstruction begin, a process that can take weeks or even months depending on the extent of the damage and contractor availability.

In Strong Pilates’ case, the process has been further complicated by what the owners describe as an insurance discrepancy that is still being worked out with their provider.

They say they were initially told their policy would not cover the damage before later learning there may have been an error in how the claim was assessed, and they are now working through discussions with their insurer regarding partial coverage.

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De Pruis said another factor that can affect payouts is the amount of insurance a business chooses to purchase.

Businesses select their own coverage limits, he explained, and commercial policies often include co-insurance provisions that can reduce payouts if a business is underinsured.

If a business disagrees with an insurance decision, de Pruis said the first step is speaking with the adjuster or insurance representative. Claims can also be escalated through the insurer’s complaints process, the independent General Insurance OmbudService, or Alberta’s formal dispute resolution process.

The owners had originally hoped to reopen within about 30 days, but as repairs have progressed and more issues have been uncovered, they now believe it could be closer to 60 days depending on what engineers recommend.

But giving up isn’t an option.

“Failure isn’t really an option for us. It’s this unfortunate hurdle that we have to jump through, but it’s not something that’s causing us to fully close our doors,” Misiewicz said.

While the studio remains closed, the pair hopes to host free community events and outdoor classes while they wait to reopen.

For now, they’re asking Edmontonians to stick with them.

“We’re just waiting on permits from the city to do some mat Pilates classes in the park and things like that, some pop-up events at various rental spaces,” Young said.

“We’d just love to see people out there and come together with us. I think that’d be all we can really ask of people.”

Strong Pilates

Address: 11821 105th Ave. NW

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