Say goodbye to memberships!
Beginning January 2026, we will be saying goodbye to the membership format that has been used since the studio opened. After research, analysis, surveys, gut feelings, and having a conscience, the studio feels this is what’s best for everyone.
“But Riker, why?”
There are different reasons as they apply to the different levels of membership. For Basic memberships, the process is a hurdle to gaining new attendees. Let’s face it, it was a litle bit complicated and just not easy enough for a lot of people. We want to strike a balance between keeping our attendees safe[r] and driving enough attendance to keep the studio open for rope. This is the first step in that direction.
To our Founding & Benefactor members, and for our Unlimited members, THANK YOU! Your support has been appreciated more than you know. Unfortuantely with attendance being what it is, and with the studio diversifying into photography and venue rental to drive revenue, there aren’t enough rope sessions on the schedule to make it worth the cost of your subscription - especially with the price drops coming (more on that further down the page). Did you know that there are roughly sixteen(!) rope events in the DFW area each month… before counting anything happening at Shibari Studios? Add in three weekly shibari sessions at the studio and that puts the number near thirty. That’s more than the days in a month! While it’s awesome to see shibari growing in popularity, these numbers are unsustainable.
This is why starting next week, rope events at Shibari Studios will be only $10 for in-house groups that don’t require bringing in outside presenters - including Identi-Ties, Single Column, Blender, Open Source, etc. It’s going to be the best rope deal in town. Other events and sessions will be priced fairly and accordingly, and those who rent the studio to host their groups will still be free to charge whatever they like.
What about my membership? Don’t worry, members still have accounts that can (and should) be used to register as normal. Your membership simply won’t renew anymore, but everything else stays the same. Any membership and scholarship credits are also still active and good.
*There is a glitch affecting only a handful of members: If your membership was purchased by someone else, it may still renew automatically. If this happens to you, simply reach out and you’ll be refunded ASAP.
Thanks for understanding & please don’t freak out when your membership doesn’t renew!
-Riker