FREE MVMT Shop's Ashley Rockwood Explains Why She Picks up Shop

The concept of the pop-up shop changed the way businesses think about brick-and-mortar retail. If you're a small business owner who doesn't want to sign a seven-year lease before you've proven your concept, you don't have to. Trailblazers - big and small -  have reinvented retail by creating short-term opportunities in retail to test concepts, using underutilized space and social media to fill those spaces for a moment in time. Ashley Rockwood, founder of FREE MVMT Shop is that for fitness. Rockwood created a permanent idea in the FREE MVMT Shop - a movement studio - but its location changes periodically. This idea is pushing Chicagoans to step out of their ordinary routines and into new neighborhoods,  all while FREE MVMT Shop acts as a temporary tenant in commercial real estate spaces. Rockwood's first pop-up was on Southport and her second is in Lincoln Park. After I caught wind of what she was creating, Rockwood and I met via Instagram as modern friends are wont to do. In today's digitally connected world, you can feel like you truly know someone if you follow them, even if you never meet. But Rockwood - and FREE MVMT Shop - are meant to be experienced in real life. After a conversation peppered with the words "collaboration" and "partnership," I stopped into FREE MVMT Show for a few classes, including my personal joy-factory, Ballet for Runners. It was clear that we would continue to use business as an excuse to be friends. And as we recorded this week's episode of #WeGotGoals, Rockwood and I talked about what's driving her to keep working on the dream others think is crazy, how dancing with Beyoncé helped and what she knows she capable of doing (anything she puts her mind to). Listen and subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, or any other podcasting app. Adding a rating or a review, if you’re so inclined, helps other people find the show too. And remember - YOU could be featured as one of our real-life goal-getters in an upcoming episode. Just send a voice memo with your first name and your hometown, then a goal you’ve crushed, a goal you’re eyeing, or your best goal-getting tip to [email protected].