Tess Luechtefeld

early stage in my life, it was clear that whatever path I took, dance would remain my ultimate passion,” she said.

Making her way to Bluffton in 2018, she looked around for a studio where she might continue her lifelong love of dance but couldn’t quite find the right fit. “There are a lot of really great options, but I was looking for something specific,” she said. That something specific turned out to be Carolina Collective Dance, a gorgeous studio right on Bluffton Parkway. “It was God’s plan to open this up. Going into our sixth season, we now have over 200 students and over 50 on our competitive team,” she said.

At the foundation of what Luechtefeld built at Carolina Collective Dance, you’ll find integrity and hard work. Supporting that structure is a fine-tuned technical curriculum, industrycurrent choreography, a hunger to compete at the region’s highest level and a nurturing philosophy of mentoring, positivity and connection.

Adding to the ‘ap-peel’ of the dance studio is a partnership with the Savannah Bananas that has launched Carolina Collective Dance into the national spotlight. Now in their second season as the official junior dance team of the Bananas, Carolina Dance Collective dancers have become an integral part of the “Greatest Show in Sports.”

“It’s so much fun. It gives them a completely different stage to perform on. You’re always on— rather than three minutes on stage, the dancers are signing autographs and interacting with fans,” she said.

Luechtefeld credits her teachers with helping create so many opportunities for these young dancers. “It took years to find the best teachers for our goals,” she said. “They all come from a diverse background which allows our dancers to get a wide breadth of experience no matter what path of dance they choose to pursue.”

Growing up in the world of competitive dance, Tess Luechtefeld learned early on how both success and character are built on that stage. Even as the “real world” pulled her toward a degree in business, she found that she couldn’t stop dancing. “Even at that

Working with her California studio coupled her business and dance experience, but as a mother of two, she found herself wanting a different quality of life. “I wanted to find a more wholesome place to raise kids, and we’d vacationed in Bluffton. Right after that first trip, there was no question that a cross-country move was the right decision for our family,” she said.

And ultimately, building that opportunity is what it’s all about.

“We care so much for the kids and want to create the most positive uplifting environment,” she said. “At the end of the day, dance lessons are also life lessons. We are here to use dance as a vehicle to teach hard work, integrity, community, teamwork, resilience, and support.”