{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Her customers are up-in-the-air but not her business plan","description":"On today\u2019s program, Michael Rogers talks with Christina VanDam, owner of Zeal Aerial Fitness in Grand Rapids, winner of a 2025 Micro Business Award from Michigan Celebrates Small Business. She discusses her journey from being a public school teacher to founding an aerial fitness studio that offers classes in silks, hoop, hammock, bungee, pole and aerial yoga, catering to diverse age groups. \u201cIf you're going to the YMCA, you're running on a treadmill or lifting weights, and we're not that kind of place,\u201d she says. \u201cYou use your whole body for your workout. I think what a lot of people don't realize is that aerials burn quite a bit of calories. It is still quite a new, new thing in the fitness industry, but there have been studies done that say that doing an hour of aerial silks can be equivalent to doing a three mile run.\u201d The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan\u2019s small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We\u2019re located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol. Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own.&amp;nbsp; Our 32,000 members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship\u2026a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it! (music licensed from www.jukedeck.com) ","author_name":"The Small Business Association of Michigan\u2019s Small Business Weekly Podcast","author_url":"http:\/\/www.sbam.org","html":"<iframe title=\"Libsyn Player\" style=\"border: none\" src=\"\/\/html5-player.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/39066040\/height\/90\/theme\/custom\/thumbnail\/yes\/direction\/forward\/render-playlist\/no\/custom-color\/88AA3C\/\" height=\"90\" width=\"600\" scrolling=\"no\"  allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen><\/iframe>","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/assets.libsyn.com\/secure\/content\/195549325"}