Four top SoulCycle instructors 'fat-shamed front desk staff, sent nude photos to clients and used homophobic and racist language', but are treated like celebrities by the company because they are the 'moneymakers', ex-employees claim
Four top instructors at SoulCycle have been accused of fat-shaming front desk staff, sending nude images to clients and using homophobic and racist slurs as current and former riders, studio workers and corporate employees claim that the company did nothing about the behavior because they are 'moneymakers'.
According to a bombshell investigation from Business Insider, the inappropriate behaviors dates back to 2014 and involves instructors Conor Kelly, Laurie Cole, Mike Press, and Janet Fitzgerald.
One example of the alleged behavior occurred in August 2014 when Jennifer Brody was working as a studio manager at a SoulCycle in Palo Alto, California.
She recalled an encounter with Kelly who was in town to teach a class. Brody, who is a black woman, said after changing out of her workout clothes, she put on a bandana and when she passed Kelly he allegedly laughed and said: 'Whoa! Aunt Jemima!'
He was apparently referencing the syrup and pancake brand. The Aunt Jemima character has racist origins as it is based off the stereotype of the 'mammie' (or mammy) a black woman who worked for white families and took care of their children.
Conor Kelly has been accused of making a racist remark to a SoulCycle employee as well as sending nude images to riders
Laurie Cole is another master instructor who has been accused by three people of fat-shaming SoulCycle employees
'That he felt OK calling me "Aunt Jemima" in the middle of a studio lobby in Palo Alto was disgusting,' Brody told Business Insider, which interviewed more than 30 SoulCycle insiders for their investigation including, current and former riders, studio staff, instructors, and corporate employees.
Brody didn't report the behavior at the time because she didn't believe anyone 'would have cared'.
'SoulCycle kind of turned the cheek on a lot of stuff as long as they were making money,' Brody said.
One SoulCycle rider, who took one of Kelly's New York classes, told Business Insider that 'walking into Conor Kelly's class was like walking into a sex dungeon'.
A SoulCycle studio employee claimed Kelly would do 'weird sexual dance moves'.
One former high-ranking employee told Business Insider that Kelly would also text nude photos of himself to riders and that the photos were circulated around the SoulCycle community.
'That became problematic because people's spouses were complaining, and then it caused a lot of infighting with riders as well,' the former employee said.
The former employee said that company officials ignored complaints about Kelly because he was 'a moneymaker'.
'He did teach a great class, and it was very evident that the reason SoulCycle was keeping him on was because he was pulling in money for them,' one rider told Business Insider.
Laurie Cole is another master instructor who has been accused by three people of fat-shaming SoulCycle employees.
New York instructor Janet Fitzgerald who is SoulCycle's senior training officer, has also been accused of making inappropriate comments during training for other instructors
Mike Press is the fourth top instructor accused of inappropriate behavior. He allegedly had relationships with riders and in one incident pressured a rider for sex
One former assistant studio manager in Manhattan claimed that Cole ordered managers to remove certain staffers from their shifts because they weren't in shape.
'She has taken photos of staffers who were maybe curvy and said, "This is not on brand for my check-in. I don't want this at the front desk during my classes,"' the former manager recalled.
Cole has also allegedly used homophobic language at work, and in one particular incident in 2017 she reportedly told an assistant manager, 'Well, they better not hire a bunch of twinks to work there,' while discussing the opening of a new studio.
'It was just so shocking to hear,' the manager told Business Insider. 'Because I'm in the queer community, I can understand how messed up that is.'
The manager said she reported the incident but to her knowledge 'nothing happened'.
Sources said that leadership at SoulCycle was also aware of the complaints against Cole who met with the company's chief people officer several times.
She was taken off the schedule a few times, but her behavior didn't change, according to the former employee.
New York instructor Janet Fitzgerald, who is SoulCycle's senior training officer, has also been accused of making inappropriate comments during training for other instructors.
Two people told Business Insider that she sometimes referred to riders as 'little sluts'.
One instructor has claimed that Fitzgerald had asked her and others about their sexual orientation during training, which she said she found to be 'super bizarre and unnecessary'.
Another senior instructor said Fitzgerald would say things like: 'Do you want to get f**ked?'
'And the girl or boy would be like, "Uh, what?" And then she'd be like, "You're never getting f**ked if you look like that. Let your hair down. Put some lipstick on or something,"' the instructor claimed.
The instructor said she didn't complain about Fitzgerald because she didn't want to hurt her chances of becoming an instructor.
'There were no repercussions for trainers,' the employee said. 'They did whatever they wanted.'
Meanwhile, some former employees have accused SoulCycle of fostering a toxic work environment in which top instructors are treated like celebrities and everyone's duty is to keep them happy
Mike Press is the fourth top instructor accused of inappropriate behavior. Before the pandemic, he was teaching in New York City, but he's now teaching in Westchester and Greenwich where studios are open.
SoulCycle rider, Olivia Atherton, told Business Insider that she was in an on and off relationship with Press after they met at SoulCycle's East 63rd Street studio in 2017.
That same year, Atherton said Press pressured her to give him a blow job in her Manhattan dorm room.
She says he also tried to pressure her into continually have sex with him.
'He was very forceful,' she told the news site. 'I took a shower and I was, like, "No, I don't want this right now."'
When she got out of the shower, she said Press was lying on her bed. He took his pants off and said: 'You at least owe me this.'
'He pressured me for probably about 10 minutes, and I was very clear that I did not want to do anything,' Atherton said. She told Business Insider that she was 'very uncomfortable, very nervous' and 'did what he wanted,' referring to the oral sex.
They reportedly broke up in August 2019. In August 2020, Atherton said she sent emails to SoulCycle that detailed the instructor's alleged acts.
She received a response that said the matter would be escalated but she hasn't heard anything since.
'I'm disappointed that they clearly value their prize instructors over their riders. And I realize it's not their fault what Mike did, but especially when there's more than one woman saying this guy is using his platform to prey on women,' Atherton said.
According to Business Insider, other women have claimed they received unwanted messages from Press.
Meanwhile, some former employees have accused SoulCycle of fostering a toxic work environment in which top instructors are treated like celebrities and everyone's duty is to keep them happy.
'They didn't have a sense of reality,' a former corporate staffer said. 'They thought they were celebrities. The sense of entitlement was fueled by SoulCycle giving them exclusive treatment.'
A SoulCycle spokesperson told DailyMail.com in an emailed statement: 'When we receive complaints or allegations related to behavior within our community that does not align to our values, we take those very seriously and both investigate and address them'
Sources told the news site that the accused instructors were given perks like Soho House memberships.
A former employee said the company was paying for Cole's membership to SoHo House, where membership costs start at $2,400 annually.
Top instructors would also get thousands in gifts for their birthdays while new instructors would get a $25 gift card.
Last year, the company paid for part of the wedding of two instructors, former CEO Melanie Whelan told Business Insider.
The company is also said to have paid for a Mercedes-Benz for Cole to drive around the Hamptons when she taught there in the summer.
Top instructors could take home as much as $1,500 a class. To put that in perspective, instructors like Cole and Kelly, were teaching anywhere from 15 to 20 classes in a week in the summer of 2019.
Cole, Fitzgerald, and Press are still teaching classes while Kelly last taught in October.
A SoulCycle spokesperson told DailyMail.com in an emailed statement: 'At SoulCycle, our priority has always been to build a community centered on our core values of diversity, inclusion, acceptance and love.
'When we receive complaints or allegations related to behavior within our community that does not align to our values, we take those very seriously and both investigate and address them.
'We are committed to continuing to make improvements and ensuring that we live up to the values that our teams and riders expect of us,' the statement reads.
A DailyMail.com request for comment to Cole, Kelly, Press and Fitzgerald was not immediately returned on Tuesday.