Meet Denise Watkins

Today we’d like to introduce you to Denise Watkins.

Hi Denise, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
My parents, Vernon and Pauline Holder built our skating rink in 1958. My brother, David Holder, and I operate the rink today. September is our Anniversary month, and we have been rolling for 64 years. We will celebrate our 65th Anniversary with a giant skate party in September 2023, and you’re invited.

We are a local icon providing recreational skating for the whole family. Because of the business’s longevity, we are currently skating third and fourth-generation families.

January 2022 presented us with the necessity of temporarily closing the rink for floor repairs. The expense of the floor repair was greater than we thought we could handle. We started a crowdfunding campaign to raise the necessary funds. Our patrons, community leaders, skate enthusiasts, and other skating rinks supported us financially. On August 5, 2022, we reopened and welcomed our skaters, who returned in large numbers. We are blessed to be so loved and supported by our community.

Roller skating is a very fun and healthy activity. Skaters of all ages enjoy lacing up the skates and rolling around the floor while listening to music that makes them want to move. Many young people become regular patrons during their middle school years. Skating at the rink gives them a feeling of independence. The rink provides a supervised activity in which they can participate with friends. Roller skating is the original social network.

I enjoy teaching people how to skate. Once they understand how to find their balance and how to move their skates, they are well on their way to roller skating. My job is to assist them in gaining confidence in their skill of balancing on skates. Once they have just a bit of self-confidence, they will soar. Then it becomes a matter of learning all the basics, using their toe stop, doing crossovers around the curves of the rink, learning to squat down, and how to spin, skating backward.

Skating rinks are a real asset to communities. They give families and young people a place to gather with friends and participate in a healthy activity. The cost to skate is cheaper than other entertainment options. The activity of roller skating has never gone out of style. Many families have a history of skating at their local rink. Once children are old enough to learn to skate, many former skaters return to the rink with their children. It’s the fun and memories they want to pass on to their children. It’s like stepping back in time to your childhood. I often hear the comment from former skaters, “some of my best memories are here at the rink.”

One of my favorite comments to our patrons is, “everyone needs a fun job like mine.” When you open the door for your guests to enter, they are happy to be at the rink. They quickly lace up their skates and hit the floor skating to the upbeat music. Participating in skating games takes the experience to the next level. It doesn’t take long to be a good roller skater. Skating weekly makes you a great skater pretty quickly.

You don’t stop skating because you get old; you get old because you stop skating.

We love to create fun celebrations and memorable experiences for everyone. We open for public skating times on the weekends, Friday and Saturday. We add additional hours when school is out for holidays and the summer. Private skating times are also available. We offer private rentals for churches, schools, scouts, and youth organizations. We can help you celebrate your birthday or your family reunion. In 2018 we added STEM field trips for schools. Eight county school systems have attended our STEM field trips.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Roller skating as an industry has always had good years and lean years. Changes in the economy, demographics, and popularity of other entertainment options are factors of influence.

Just the cost of doing business provides struggles for skating rinks. As owners, we know money can be tight for the families we serve. Many of us delay in passing these costs on to our guests. As our profit margins shrink, we have problems with cash flow. Our industry is declining because the rink’s property is often more valuable than the business. Due to the cost of building a facility as large as a skating rink, new entrepreneurs are discouraged from building a new rink.

We closed for six months to repair our skating surface. Our community assisted us with the funding. The Rocky Mount Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting for our grand reopening. Our Mayor, along with many supporters, community leaders, skaters, and friends, attended the celebration.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I graduated from Piedmont Bible College in Winston-Salem, NC. Directly out of college, I taught high school health and physical education and coached girls’ sports. I never planned to return to the family business. As my parents aged, I saw the need to return. The time had come to pass the baton.

I’m high energy and all about entertaining our guests. I called myself the Limbo Queen until age 48. Today I call myself the CFO, Chief Fun Officer, of Sky-Vue Skateland. I enjoy my yearly physical with the Dr. He always asks me if I’m still skating. My reply is, “of course. If I don’t skate, who will teach the children how to skate?” Ending the visit he always says, “keep on skating!” I’m banking on skating keeping me young for a long time…. young in my body and young in my mind.

BTW, I’m 67 years young. Do you know the age test about falling? If they scramble to see if you’re okay, you’re old, but if they laugh, you’re still young. My guests scramble when I fall roller skating (I still do occasionally), but my family still laughs. And age is just a number.

Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs, or other resources you think our readers should check out?
About five years ago, I entered the world of digital marketing for the rink. The slogan if it’s not on the internet, it didn’t happen, is true. Everyone expects to find out what they want to know in a nanosecond.

I’ve attended many seminars and webinars on social media and digital marketing offered by the NC Small Business Centers. I also received a Certificate for Social Media Management from the NC State Continuing Education in 2017.

Sky-Vue Skateland can be found on the world wide web at skyvueskateland.com. Our social media channels include Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, and YouTube.

Technology is a good friend when promoting roller skating online. I use a gimble to capture videos for promotions and live broadcasts on social media. I use numerous apps for creating assets for our digital marking. Some of my favorites are Canva, Snapseeed, Clips, iMovie, Videoshop, and Capcut.

Pricing:

• Evening sessions: Admission $13, skate rental $4
• Afternoon sessions: Admission $8, Skate rental $4
• Private sessions start at $480 for 2 hours

Contact Info:

• Website: www.skyvueskateland.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/skyvueskateland
• Facebook: faceebook.com/skyvueskateland
• Youtube: youtube.com/skyvueskateland

Image Credits
Kevin Newsome, Garry Hodges, and Devan Bolding