Judi Sheppard Missett is a fitness and business icon, having grown Jazzercise, Inc. from a class of 15 women in 1969 to today’s largest dance fitness company in the world. Dancing since the age of 3, Judi turned her passion into a successful career as a professional performer and choreographer. At age 25, however, she discovered her purpose — blending the art of dance and the science of exercise to make dance fitness accessible and fun for everyone. Five decades later, Judi and her daughter Shanna Missett Nelson continue to manage and motivate 8,500 Jazzercise franchisees to achieve their dream of independent business ownership, who in turn inspire millions of customers worldwide to live happier, healthier lives through fitness.

In June 2019, Judi released her third book, BUILDING A BUSINESS WITH A BEAT, Leadership Lessons from Jazzercise — an Empire Built on Passion, Purpose, and Heart. Judi has received numerous national awards and recognitions such as: the Harriet Alger Award for Entrepreneurship presented by Working Woman magazine, a U.S. Presidential Commendation for Top Woman Entrepreneur, four fitness Hall of Fame inductions, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the President’s Council on Fitness and Sports, Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the National Foundation for Women Legislators and Empowered Women, the IDEA Lifetime Achievement Award, the Committee of 200’s Entrepreneurial Champion Luminary Award, and the President’s Award from Women Presidents Organization for the №1 Woman-Owned Business.