The pandemic proved a rocky period for Charlotte education startup SkillPop, but those challenges are now a thing of the past.
SkillPop, founded in 2015, provides expert-led classes and workshops on several topics ranging from calligraphy and photography to learning how to create your own business. Covid-19 halted its in-person learning in 2020 and 2021, requiring the startup to pivot its business to a complete virtual model. As of February, SkillPop's in-person classes were brought back permanently with an online class option still available.
The startup's return of in-person classes comes after SkillPop offered a series of 10 courses last summer as a test run post-pandemic, said Haley Bohon, founder and CEO.
"Do people still want to take in-person classes? Do they still know us as a company that does in-person classes? And the overwhelming answer was, yes," she said. "Those went really well. We had incredible attendance and great community support and saw a lot of love for that."
SkillPop has seen soaring growth since its return of in-person programming. About 50,000 students have joined its classes since its inception in 2015, and 1,200 have signed up since the courses were brought back on Feb. 22, Bohon said.
The revival of its in-person learning model was made possible through a partnership with Camp North End, the anchor site for its workshops held every Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday throughout the entire year.
"In-person classes are back for good, and this has really taken off this spring," she said.
The ed-tech startup thrives on community partnerships and engagement, as it began with hosting pop-up-style classes throughout the Southeast. That strategy is reflected in its recent headquarters move to a shared office space in South End with marketing agency the Grit Group. SkillPop formerly worked out of a Hygge coworking facility before moving into its new office in May.
"Once we looked at bringing in-person classes back pretty seriously, we needed to get office space again just for the logistics — supplies and materials, and to have a central meeting point for my team." Bohon said. "It's a very new partnership, but so far, their team has been incredibly welcoming, and it's been a lot of fun to share an office with them."
In addition to Camp North End, SkillPop has also partnered with Madison Perk Coffee Bar and most recently Northwood Office to host classes at their venues. The startup runs classes on Tuesdays at Madison Perk and Wednesdays at Northwood Office's Brixham Park in Ballantyne.
"Our model this year is so partnership driven," she said. "We're trying to, as much as we can, connect with these other community partners that we work with."
SkillPop recently introduced a new name for its virtual class subscription: "Class of the Month." It was formerly known as SkillPop Anywhere. A Class of the Month subscription provides one in-person class and an on-demand course for $19 a month or $209 a year.
The startup is also still hosting corporate-level events, a transition that gained traction in 2021. SkillPop grew its corporate side organically, building on the customers it already knew. It is now SkillPop's fastest-growing segment, CBJ previously reported.
"I think a lot of our last three years has been focused around, okay, when does in-person learning come back? And what does that look like? How will it be the same or be different as it was before," Bohon said. "And so, now that we're there, I'm trying to just let it settle a little bit and give it some time to grow and some time to breathe. And to also continue to really make sure we're doing a great job for our partners, and then we'll go from there."
