Our Story: From Dance Hobby to Grand Rapids Dance Shop

Dance started as my hobby, became my passion, and is now my career.

I’m JoAnna — welcome to our shop. Forever Dance Apparel is family-owned and family-run, right here in Grand Rapids, Michigan. We opened our doors in July 2015 with a simple idea: dance families deserved a local shop where the fitting is honest, the advice is real, and nobody gets rushed.

More than a decade later, that’s still how we run the place.

If you’ve never been fitted for dance shoes before, here’s what it’s like at our shop. We take our time. We measure growing feet — and we mean growing, because we’ll size kids with room to grow when it makes sense, so you’re not back in three months. If something isn’t the right fit, we’ll tell you straight, even if it costs us the sale. Our customers tell us that’s why they keep coming back. Honestly, it’s why we opened in the first place.

We fit every dancer like they’re our own kid: careful, unhurried, and never pushy. We carry sizes up to 4X because every body should get to dance. And our tights program rewards the families who keep coming back — buy five pairs over time, get the sixth free, plus 10% off your dance apparel along the way.

Dancers aren’t our only regulars, either. Gymnasts, dance teachers, and studio owners across Greater Grand Rapids and Kent County trust us for the same reason: we’ll help you find what you need, and if we don’t have it, we’ll tell you where to look — or order it for you.

So whether it’s your dancer’s very first pair of ballet shoes or your tenth season of recital prep, come see us. We’re at 4336 Plainfield Ave NE in Grand Rapids, open Monday through Friday, 11am to 7pm.

One more thing — life gets busy sometimes. Don’t let that stop you from visiting us. Can’t make it during our regular hours? Just be honest with us. If your dancer doesn’t get out of class until 8:45 but you can be here by 9, send us a text at (616) 799-7587 and we’ll do our best to work with you. We really appreciate a day’s heads-up, or as soon as you can.

We can’t wait to meet your dancer.