HENDERSON (KTNV) — Women who paid about $200 for what was advertised as a luxury Pilates experience at Henderson Executive Airport say they arrived Friday expecting Pilates, gifts and refreshments. Instead, they say there was no event.
Tiffany Parker, who runs Spa Girl in the City, purchased a ticket while celebrating her birthday. Her business focuses on helping women find local wellness, spa and fitness experiences worth trying.
“I'm here to report for my spa babes, and then all of a sudden, I become the news,” Parker said.
Parker said she and other women arrived at the advertised location Friday but could not find the event. She said the organizer later directed them to a different address, leaving attendees trying to figure out what was happening.
“It took about 20 to 30 minutes for us to all realize...OK, this is not happening,” Parker said.
Videos documenting the women's experience later circulated on social media and helped bring the situation to Channel 13's attention.
What Sweatpals says
Channel 13 reached out to Sweatpals, the platform where tickets for the event were sold.
A Sweatpals spokesperson told us the organizer was an independent business and had previously hosted events on the platform without reported issues, but that the company began investigating after attendees contacted its support team.
Sweatpals provided Channel 13 with the following statement:
“Sweatpals is a platform that independent fitness and wellness hosts and businesses use to run their business. Every host who sells tickets on Sweatpals goes through identity and payment verification, and this host had hosted events on Sweatpals before with no reported issues.
The host is an independent business that organized and ran this event. They are not employed by or affiliated with Sweatpals.As soon as attendees contacted our support team on November 6 about this situation, we began investigating, tried to reach the host, and unverified the host’s account so more tickets couldn’t be purchased.
As of today, the host has not yet resolved the situation, and we don’t want attendees who booked through Sweatpals to bear the loss, we have refunded every affected attendee in full, including our service fees, and we’ve contacted each of them directly.We’ve also suspended the host’s account while we continue to look into what happened.
Millions of people book fitness and wellness experiences on Sweatpals, from run clubs to Pilates classes to puppy yoga, and situations like this are extremely rare on our platform.
We’re very disappointed for the experience the attendees had and if any affected attendee hasn’t heard from us, they can email support@sweatpals.com and we’ll take care of them right away."
Parker confirmed to Channel 13 that she has received her refund.
What Sky Jet Pilates says
Channel 13 also reached out to Sky Jet Pilates seeking an explanation for why the event did not take place as attendees expected.
The company said refunds are being arranged and attributed the cancellation to an issue involving its venue partner.
Sky Jet Pilates provided the following statement:
“Thank you for reaching out. Refunds are being arranged for the canceled Las Vegas event, and we will communicate processing details directly to attendees.
Our venue partner informed us that she could not fulfill her contractual agreement with us, and our team was no longer permitted on the property. We asked her to notify attendees directly and explain why the event could not proceed.
We understand guests’ frustration with the cancellation, communication, and delay in refunds, and we are working to resolve this. We appreciate the opportunity to share our account."
Channel 13 has not independently verified Sky Jet Pilates' claim regarding its venue partner or the contractual agreement.
How can consumers protect themselves?
The experience raises a broader question for consumers: How can you protect yourself when an event advertised online appears credible?
I asked cybersecurity professional Dr. Mack Jackson, Jr. what consumers should look for before spending money.
“What scammers and fraudsters do, they practice every day on vulnerabilities of the public. It's the human hacking event, right?” Jackson said.
Jackson said even convincing advertisements deserve a closer look and recommends independently researching the person or company behind an event before making a payment.
“And be suspicious, but also vet the source before you make any financial move,” Jackson said.
He also recommends contacting your bank or credit card company immediately if you believe you've lost money.
For Parker, the experience reinforced the importance of speaking up when something doesn't seem right.
“Don't be afraid to advocate for yourself. If something feels off, you know, speak up,” Parker said.
Sweatpals says anyone affected who has not heard from the company can contact its support team at support@sweatpals.com.
