HOW THESE SISTERS CREATED A UNIQUE FITNESS AND WELLNESS VENTURE AT BELL WORKS IN HOLMDEL

BY SAMANTHA FARAGALLI YOUNGHANS • PHOTOS BY PATTY PIXELS

The year was 2004, and the Hoboken fitness community was a shadow of what it is today. In what was a true gamble at the time, Danielle Buccellato elected to leave her day trading job in downtown Manhattan to pursue a passion: teaching a method of fitness instruction invented in the 1930s by German physical trainer, Joseph Pilates. She opened the doors to Renaissance Pilates in “Mile Square City” fifteen years ago, and the brand has flourished since.

The boutique fitness studio which also offered the first barre program outside of NYC as well the functional movement training system, body ART thrived in its location for nearly 14 years. But as competition increasingly crowded the city, Buccellato decided to return to her roots in Monmouth County. She ultimately closed the doors of the Hoboken location and opened Renaissance The Studio on Red Bank’s East Front Street five years ago. The business had a successful run there until 2019, when it relocated (with its original name) to West Front Street, in part to expand program content.

The new location offers Pilates, Barre, body ART, and Cardio Strength to locals of all fitness levels.
“We offer a premier service,” said Buccellato, a Holmdel native. “The team here is tasked with teaching clients how to move and how to think about their wellness goals,” adding that emphasis is on spreading positive energy in an intimate class structure. “We inspire a community that wants to be here and wants to be around the other hard working people here. We create a movement mindset that sets to encourage.”

Recently, the doors opened in a second Monmouth County location; Renaissance Pilates + Wellness was launched at Bell Works in Holmdel in late 2019, and while the new spot offers a brand proven approach to fitness and wellness, a new component there is creative synergy with Buccellato’s sister, Joelle, who is now a business partner.

“It’s humbling,” Danielle gushed of working with her sibling, who concentrates on the wellness end of the operation. “We’re both Monmouth County natives, and have opened this facility in a space that’s iconic, a place we’ve driven past our entire lives. For us both to be a part of it together is very exciting.”

Together, the family members offer a unique wellness and fitness experience, not only for the employees of Bell Works, but also for the broader community. In addition to Pilates, the new space features Whole Body Cryotherapy, CryoSkin, Infrared Sauna, and Oxygen Therapy, because as Danielle explained, “It’s imperative to work the body, but it’s just as important to postrecover the muscles and the mind.”

“We married Pilates with these other modalities, because wellness is multifaceted, so it’s vital to approach it from every angle,” Joelle added. “These are essentially lifestyle treatments to promote overall health.”
The duo has also installed Savant Lighting there, the most advanced illumination technology available one that works to, at the touch of a button, reset the circadian rhythm of the human body, among other innovations. For example, the system can be adjusted to simulate a sunny day in California, even while it’s cold and rainy in New Jersey

While elaborating on the services available at the Bell Works location, Joelle made particular mention of the Infrared Sauna, and how it works to help support detoxi cation and lymphatic drainage. Whole Body Cryotherapy, meanwhile, helps reduce in ammation, lactic acid buildup, and fatigue.

e two reported additionally that have seen great results from CryoSkin, a non invasive procedure that treats fat and cellulite in under 30 minutes, and described plans to expand the CryoSkin service to additional locations.

“We decided to take what’s already working, which is Pilates functional movement, flexibility, and core strength training techniques and pair them with scientifically proven wellness strategies to help extend longevity,” Joelle said. “And the results have been thrilling.”

Renaissance Pilates + Wellness
101 Crawfords Corner Road, Holmdel / renaissancebellworks.com
Renaissance The Studio
8 East Front Street, Red Bank / 732.268.7730 / renaissancethestudio.com