Pineapple – Fashion with Inspiration

The famous Pineapple dance studio was founded in 1979 by Debbie Moore, who wanted to make dance available to a wider range of people.  Located in Covent Garden, central London, the studio building used to be a pineapple warehouse, hence the unusual company name.  Founding Pineapple not only helped lovers of dance from all walks of life, it created wonderful opportunities for Debbie Moore herself, and she became the first female chairman to walk the London Stock Exchange in 1982.  This was just the beginning of an amazing career which has inspired large numbers of dancers, and businesswomen, in 1984, the Veuve Clicquot ‘Businesswoman of the Year Award’ was given to Debbie Moore.

In 1983 the book ‘The Pineapple Dance Book’ was published, offering good advice to those interested in dancing, from fitness tips to exercise guides.  Six years later, in 1989 ‘When a Woman Means Business’ was published by Debbie Moore and proved influential to many women, in 1999 it was translated into Chinese so that Chinese women could also benefit from the lifestyle advice.  Today, as a premier dance studio, Pineapple offers around 3,500 members all kinds of lessons and activities, from classical ballet and jazz to acupuncture.  Some tutors even offer private dance classes which are preferred by some students.

The name Pineapple has also become synonymous with good quality, practical dance wear.  Pineapple itself has twelve stores located across the UK, Bath and Milton Keynes being two of these locations.  Over the last few years, Debenhams have been selling an extensive range of products both in the UK and abroad.  A few catalogue companies also supply some of the product range.  The range of dance clothing is designed to meet the needs of all kinds of dancers, just like the dance studio itself.  Comfort, practicality and safety are all taken into account throughout the range, as well as fashion.  The clothing is very distinctive, and the numerous styles are sure to appeal to all kinds of people.

In addition to the well known clothing range,Pineapple produce bags and accessories such as caps, yoga mats and fitness exercise balls.  Relatively recently a range of dance DVDs have been produced to aid learning dance techniques and exercises at home.  Pretty much any dancer can benefit from one or more of the products from Pineapple.  Many clothing items have enough appeal to be worn away from dance and exercise lessons, and are sometimes worn by the fashion conscious, whether they are dancers or not.

The dream of one lady has had an amazing impact on the world of dance, and has inspired business women from all walks of life, including Debbie Moore’s own daughter, Lara, who has now launched her own clothing range called ‘Kiss My Cherry’, specialising in accessories, sexy outfits and hats.  The love of dance has united large numbers of people throughout the years and continues to do so.  Debbie Moore’s desire – to make good quality dance wear and lessons more available to all, was, in her own words, because she feels ‘to dance is to live’.