Word-of-mouth and local reputation are the lifeblood of any small business. This is especially true in the competitive world of boutique fitness, where brands are only as strong as their members.

Body Fit Training (BFT), a strength and conditioning concept born in Australia and acquired by Xponential Fitness in 2021, is quickly striking a chord with North Americans not only for its science-based workouts but for its ability to foster connections among members, instructors, and franchisees.

BFT classes feature 50 minutes of strength and conditioning movements performed in groups of up to 36 people. Classes include compound weightlifting exercises like deadlifts, bench presses, and kettlebell swings, along with bodyweight movements and cardio work. Members can expect to use strength equipment including barbells, dumbbells, trap bars, power racks, kettlebells, rowers, SkiErgs and more

As the benefits of strength training continue to gain mainstream acceptance, fitness enthusiasts from all walks of life are becoming drawn to BFT’s blend of group camaraderie and effective, progressive eight-week programming. 

Under Xponential’s guidance, BFT has already sold nearly 300 licenses in North America, with more than 30 studios already opened. 

Athletech News spoke with some of the first BFT franchise owners in North America to get their thoughts on why they entered the fitness business, what their experience has been like with BFT so far, and how they’re building powerful communities of dedicated members. 

California Couple Finds Their Franchise Fit

Arjun and Rakhi Jagadish, a married couple from Yorba Linda, California, decided to go the franchising route in hopes of transitioning out of their corporate jobs. The couple wanted to start a franchise that would not only be financially viable, but would have a positive impact on their community and could turn into a family business they could one day pass on to their children. 

After meeting with a franchise broker, Arjun and Rakhi chose BFT due to their shared passion for fitness, and because their friends had a positive experience as franchisees of another Xponential brand, YogaSix. 

The Jagadishes celebrated the grand opening of their first BFT studio in Brea, California, in October 2023. While the pre-sale process wasn’t without its challenges, the couple says they’ve been blown away by how receptive the Brea community has been to BFT’s strength and conditioning workouts. They’ve quickly attracted members of all ages and fitness levels. 

“We have people in their 60s, we have people with disabilities, and they’re doing the workouts next to bodybuilders and college soccer players,” Rakhi says. “We have a lot of couples, too.”

“You’ll see a 20-year-old guy taking a class next to a sixty-year-old, and they’re both getting their butts kicked,” Arjun adds.

People also use BFT workouts to get through challenging periods in their lives, finding community along the way. One of the members at BFT Brea has used group fitness to help him overcome an alcohol problem, for example.

“He’s told us how BFT and being consistent in working out has completely changed his life,” Arjun says. “He looked so much happier and healthier in just a month.”

Other BFT Brea members use group fitness as a way to get strong for important life events, such as motherhood. 

“One of the members that we’re most proud of is one who joined us when she was eight months pregnant,” Arjun recalls. “She worked out until the day her water broke, which broke when she was walking back to her car after class.” 

Everything went smoothly during the delivery, and Mom was eager to get back into class.

From Healthcare Exec to Fitness Owner

Kevin Boesen, a successful entrepreneur in the healthcare space, felt the itch to get back into business ownership after selling his company to a larger firm. After identifying fitness as a promising sector, Boesen chose BFT due to Xponential’s track record in scaling other brands and because the BFT workout aligns with his own fitness interests as well as industry trends toward strength training. 

Boesen signed a deal to bring three BFT franchises to Tucson, Arizona. He opened his first studio in October 2023, with another in Pre-Sale and a third in the works. 

At his first location, Boesen’s experience has been similar to that of the Jagadishes: people of all ages, genders and fitness levels are attracted to BFT and love the workouts. 

“The biggest surprise is how much the membership loves it,” Boesen says. “I think it fits a niche, and it’s a good opportunity to pick up some (instructor-led) training in a group setting, which helps with accountability and effort. The group setting also offers a more attractive price point than personal training does.” 

BFT’s emphasis on strength training helps the brand stand out in the crowded boutique fitness market, Boesen believes. While strength training has traditionally attracted mostly men, many of BFT Tucson’s members are women; there are plenty of hardcore male athletes as well. 

“There really isn’t another group model where guys can come in and push each other on squats and bench press,” Boesen says. 

It’s not just powerlifters and bodybuilders, though. 

“We’ve got a huge range, from high school athletes to seventy-year-olds who are in it because they know the importance of bone health and cardiovascular health,” Boesen says of his clientele.

The Keys to Franchising Success

The positive experiences of the Jagadishes and Boesen shouldn’t be taken to mean that running a successful BFT is easy. The franchisees have credited much of their early success to hands-on involvement in running their studios, including during the Pre-Sale process. This then allowed them to ramp up effectively and step back into managing their team, who in turn manage the ongoing studio operations.

The Jagadishes, for example, held weekend workouts for two months before they officially opened. This helped members and instructors get to know each other and encouraged word-of-mouth to spread. 

“During the time between our soft opening to our grand opening, we had a lot of members who were referring to their friends and family, saying, ‘Hey, try it out with me,’” Arjun recalls. “It’s grown into what you would really want a boutique fitness gym to be about, the members, the family and the community that we’re building here.”

For Boesen, being aggressive in his marketing approach has helped spread the word in Tucson. This is especially important since BFT is still a relatively new concept in the States.

Boesen leaned into marketing resources provided by Xponential while at the same time hiring a social media manager to run campaigns on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. He’s also embraced the friendly competition aspect of BFT, launching a contest at the beginning of 2024 to encourage his members to set ambitious fitness goals for the new year.

“Over 100 of our members did it,” Boesen reports. “Some have posted super aggressive goals like reducing body fat percentage, some people want to lose 30 to 40 pounds. Others have pretty aggressive squat goals or bench press goals.” 

Both Boesen and the Jagadishes have an important message for potential franchisees: owning a BFT can be highly rewarding, but you only get out what you put in. 

“I would tell other people to remember your purpose and goal. If you’re just looking for fast money, play the lottery,” Arjun says. “But I think if you put in the work, if you persevere and you’re consistent, the rewards will be there for you.” 

The post BFT Franchisees Build Community Through Group Strength & Conditioning appeared first on Athletech News.

The boutique fitness space is exceedingly crowded, so how does a brand stand out to consumers, coaches and franchisees? 

It differentiates. 

MADabolic is the industry’s leading group strength and conditioning franchise. This sets it apart from the rest, but the discerning factors go well beyond the workout modality.

Athletech News talked to MADabolic franchisee, Adam McLeod, who launched his Plano, Texas, studio in 2022 and will open two more studios in the Dallas area very soon.

“I’ve aligned myself with a brand, workout and franchise that fills a need, and alongside my member’s remarkable results, I’m seeing great success,” he says. 

McLeod’s career is steeped in fitness. Having worked for 15 years in varied capacities for Gold’s Gym, followed by two years running operations for a Crunch Fitness Franchise group, he caught the entrepreneurial bug and began researching franchise options in the boutique studio space. 

“I looked at everything and started to see a “huge gap,” he said. “There was and is such a lopsided focus on HIIT and high cardio programs centered around calorie-burn only, and the pivotal piece of fitness – strength training – seemed to have been overlooked.”

He then discovered MADabolic.

“This looked different than anything else to me,” he said. “MADabolic has the strength, structure and accountability that are all missing from other brands and programs. This is no-frills, scientifically proven programming that works, and I knew it would resonate with fitness enthusiasts and athletes alike.”

Now, two years in, when asked how his work as a MADabolic franchise owner compares to his past experiences in fitness, he speaks to the relationships and the results.

“I am helping people to move better and feel better,” he says. “We have a close community here that is getting stronger and fitter together, and I have such a sense of pride in being able to do this through MADabolic.” 

Pushing Properly

In terms of the workouts, McLeod uses the words intense and elite level. He says they are designed to build lean muscle and speed up metabolism while focusing on form and injury prevention.

“MADabolic applies one-on-one coaching to a group setting, run by movement specialists that ensure proper form and technique,” he explains. “This is not about doing as many reps as fast as you can because that formula just breeds injury. We control time under tension, and the coaches push … but they push properly.”

There are five movements per class, which is a format that McLeod says allows the coach to govern the flow and offer personal attention and corrective feedback. 

There are three different class formats named Momentum, Anaerobic and Durability that are based on work-to-rest ratios. Momentum classes are endurance- and athletic-based. Anaerobic is about speed and power. Durability focuses on stamina with more time under tension.

“These are solid, performance-driven workouts delivered with education around proper movement,” says McLeod. 

Getting Gritty for Better Results

About the experience MADabolic delivers, Mcleod says it can be gritty.

“We don’t sugar-coat things here,” he explains. “These classes are about getting in and getting to work and getting better results than anywhere else.”

The brand’s motto is Work. Rest. Repeat. 

“We want every individual to achieve sustainable results,” he says. “Recovery is built into the programming and that is so important. We work hard to educate our members on the proper ways to train – and rest. The maximum number of days in the studio we recommend per week is four.”

First-Class Franchise Support

The MADabolic corporate team prides itself on the unabridged support it offers franchisees, and McLeod appreciates this.

“I work very closely with the corporate team and it’s crystal clear that they will do everything to ensure each location succeeds,” he says. “There is also a lot of thought that goes into choosing the right franchisees and the team is growing the brand methodically … not too quickly.”

Making a Difference

McLeod says the impetus behind his career in fitness is his desire to make a difference in people’s lives. It’s clear he feels that he’s found this with MADabolic. 

“I have members thank me every day,” he notes. “People tell me they can’t believe how they used to look compared to how they look now. The program really does that. It helps people move better, drop inches and feel stronger.” 

When asked about his future with MADabolic, McLeod says he sees great growth potential. MADabolic today has 32 units open and operating with another 80+ in development, and that growth is happening fast. 

“I’m glad I got in on the ground floor and can grow as the brand expands and as more and more people realize the amazing results they can obtain with MADabolic,” McLeod says.

The post Fitness Industry Vet Finds the Perfect Fit as MADabolic Franchisee appeared first on Athletech News.

From professional sports teams to blockbuster film casts, the term “dream team” can be used to describe prestigious groups in a multitude of settings. But when it’s mentioned in the fitness and wellness industry, specifically in the southeast corner of the United States, CR Fitness comes to mind. 

With over 150 years of combined experience, competition and friendship, Crunch Fitness’ most successful franchise group stands alone in its makeup and level of success. 

“We’re highly driven individuals,” said Tony Scrimale, CEO at CR Fitness Holdings. “Every one of us raises the bar for each other. A lot of times you see people in the industry who are absentee owners or they get into the industry (only) because they have a passion for working out. We just want to win. We’re record-breaking people who are all-in on everything that we do.”

What CR Fitness has done is build out the most successful franchise group in all of Crunch Fitness, opening 17 locations across Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Texas this past year alone to amass 62 clubs in total. Backed by private equity firm North Castle Partners, the franchise group recently announced plans to launch a Mega-Crunch club in Altamonte Springs, Florida, with 16 more locations set to open in 2024. By 2026, CR Fitness plans to own and operate 100 clubs.

Alongside Scrimale stands executive chairmen Vince Julien and Geoff Dyer. Jeff Dotson, chief financial officer, completes the “dream team.” How they all came together is equally impressive as what they’ve accomplished. 

Early Connections

Julien started in the fitness industry right after high school at around 18 years old. He was one of the first to recognize the growing market for women’s-only fitness and take advantage. He quickly established a go-to fitness center for women looking to exercise in a facility devoted to their unique needs. 

In 2011, Julien invested in his first Crunch with Dotson and Scrimale before teaming up with Dyer three years later, though the group had long been acquainted with each other by that point.

“I started in the business right out of high school, 17 or 18 years old,” said Julien. “When I was 24 or 25, I owned my first company called Shapes Total Fitness. I also started another company called Southside Athletic Clubs. I sold those clubs to Geoff Dyer, as they were trying to increase their footprint in Florida.”

Before Dyer joined CR Fitness as an executive chairman, he founded Lifestyle Family Fitness in 1982 with its first location in Lakeland, Florida. Under his leadership, Lifestyle grew to 55 fitness centers in Florida, North Carolina, Indiana and Ohio with about $135 million in annual revenue.

“We were competitors,” Dyer recalled of his early relationship with Julien. “But we weren’t directly competing. In fact, at one point, we actually did a promotion, gave away $1,000 in cash and split the leads up based on our territory, which was amazing. We continued that relationship, meeting every couple of weeks to guardedly share best practices. I learned a few things from him, and I think he learned a few things from me. That’s where the friendship began.”

After hearing of Crunch Fitness’ plans to get into franchising in early 2010 with an intent to create a nationwide high-value, low-price (HVLP) brand, which allied with what both Dyer and Julien hoped to achieve, the path forward became clear. They purchased rights to a few Florida locations and were off and running from there. 

Humble Beginnings

Julien, Dyer and Scrimale all started at the bottom of the food chain before rising to become sharks in the industry. Scrimale began his career at just 19 years old, selling club memberships and cleaning gyms. In 1997, he began working with Julien at Southside Athletic Clubs until it was sold to Dyer’s Lifestyle Family Fitness. By working with Julien and then Dyer, he received mentorship from each of his future executive chairmen and had a front-row view of this budding relationship that would one day serve as the foundation for CR Fitness’ success. 

“I was just an employee watching these guys and hearing the sidebar conversations,” Scrimale recalled. 

Not to be forgotten is Jeff Dotson, who rounds out the group as partner and chief financial officer of CR Fitness. He rose beside Julien, working as his financial arm for decades, first joining him at Shapes Total Fitness before coming on board with Scrimale in 2011.

“I worked for the accounting firm that represented Vince and his previous two partners,” Dotson recalled. “The greatest part of this group is that we’re very respectful of each other, and we’re very respectful of where our strong suits are, even though we all feel like we can step in and give each other input.”

Everyone Brings Something to the Table

While Dotson focuses on the financial side of things, he also takes on tasks that go beyond what a normal CFO role entails. Both he and Dyer keep a close eye on new sites, even going out into the field to do research. 

Julien oversees a variety of elements of the business, but keys in on the construction side of things and employee development. Scrimale heads the ship as CEO.

“We all have additional strengths that we take on as an ownership group,” Scrimale said. “If you have five point guards that are all talented in the same way, you’re not going to be able to tackle the game. We all offset each other. It’s a perfect synergy.”

That chemistry is rare not just in the fitness industry, but in all areas of business.

”We’re swift,” Scrimale said. “Anybody who has come into our company from another organization says that nobody can compete with our pace. We move fast on everything and we look at every opportunity.”

Blueprint for Franchising Success

Keeping one eye on their own line of gyms and another on the competition, all while keeping debt at a reasonable level and putting a strong focus on marketing, has combined to help the CR Fitness team find success.

With every five new gyms that CR Fitness adds, they make sure to go in and rebuild two existing ones. Equipment is always paid in full at the point of the sale when those new gyms are launched. The team spends well above industry averages in capital expenditures (CapEx) and is always adding new equipment to clubs, new amenities as they become available and frequently making repairs.

“When we started the first Crunch we made a commitment that we were constantly going to be in our clubs,” Scrimale said. “Geoff Dyer and I just went on site tours. If we passed a competitor I’d say, ‘Stop the car,’ and either Geoff or myself went in and got a quick tour of the club. It’s the same thing with our clubs. If we’re on a site tour and we see one of our clubs, we stop the car and we go in.”

This level of involvement gives CR Fitness a competitive advantage over other franchise groups, Scrimale believes.

“You have people that haven’t even visited some of their clubs,” he said. “There are competitors out there that are slowly lowering the bar and they don’t really know what’s going on within the organization. Personally, I cannot comprehend investing millions of dollars into a business, walking away and trusting somebody else to run it without inspecting it.”

The CR Fitness team also spends above industry standards when it comes to marketing.  They feel as if there’s no good in building out a great gym or remodeling existing clubs if it remains a best-kept secret, so spending is aggressive and consistent.

In terms of growth, the CR Fitness team adds 12 to 17 clubs a year without taking on any additional debt. With their goal of launching 100 clubs by 2026 well in sight, they’ve set 200 clubs as the next target. 

However, there are no plans to stop there. In accordance with the grit and willingness to go the extra mile which got them to where they are, the team preaches a continued desire to grow, not getting too caught up in the victories that might come along the way. 

“I’m the kind of guy that loves to have his back up against the wall a little bit,” Scrimale said. “I love having a challenge in front of me. I love doing something and every one of my partners is the same exact way. I think the growth is in front of us. I think that we have twice as far to grow. We’re just scratching the surface.”

The post How CR Fitness Became the Top Crunch Franchise Group appeared first on Athletech News.

Boutique fitness is more popular than ever, but the industry has at times been criticized for relying on fads and flash more than sustainable, effective workout routines. 

No one can level that line of criticism against Body Fit Training (BFT), the fast-growing boutique fitness franchise established in Melbourne, Australia, by Cameron Falloon, a decorated strength and conditioning coach who once served as Princess Diana’s personal trainer. 

Inspired by his time training professional athletes in the Australian Football League (AFL), Falloon created BFT in 2017 to bring strength and conditioning principles like progression, periodization and program design to the world of group fitness. The idea behind BFT, Falloon says, was to give everyday people access to the same elite-level strength and conditioning tools as AFL athletes, scaled for ability level and time constraints. 

“I found that there was a lot of sameness in the (boutique fitness) industry, and I didn’t see a lot of consideration around periodization or progression or really spending time on things like exercise selection for different individuals, like you would with an elite athlete,” Falloon tells Athletech News of market research he did before launching BFT. “How could I bring (my) knowledge and experience and make that accessible to the mainstream?”

Falloon was onto something. BFT has quickly spread across the globe with 290-plus studios open and 720-plus franchise licenses sold across several continents. Boutique fitness franchisor Xponential Fitness acquired BFT in late 2021 and has begun rapidly expanding the brand in the United States, having already sold almost 300 licenses in North America.

A lot of planning, technology and time has gone into making BFT workouts effective, scalable and engaging for members. But at the end of the day, Falloon believes the concept’s popularity is rooted in its focus on results above all else. 

“We get too caught up in trends as an industry, versus delivering the basic fundamentals at a really high level,” he says. “I think once you get that right, then you can start to explore and maybe get a little bit more experimental.”

Inside a BFT Workout

BFT workouts are modeled after the strength and conditioning programs Falloon devised for AFL clubs like Geelong, Port Adelaide and the Western Bulldogs, but scaled to be safe and accessible for everyday people. 

Currently, BFT offers 14 different strength and conditioning classes, each of which lasts 50 minutes and is scientifically designed to help members burn fat and build muscle while getting a full-body workout. Classes are performed in groups of around 36 people and include some combination of compound weightlifting exercises like deadlifts, bench presses and kettlebell swings, bodyweight movements like box jumps and pull-ups, and cardio work including running, cycling and rowing. The specific mix of exercises depends on class type.

Importantly, every BFT class is structured around an eight-week cycle, which allows members to measure their progress over time, just as pro athletes would during their training. Programming for each eight-week training block is carefully devised by BFT at the corporate level, and standardized programs are sent to every BFT franchise owner across the globe.

This ensures consistency, although Falloon says BFT empowers its coaches to modify or substitute certain movements to tailor the workout to the ability levels of individual class members. 

“If a member has poor range of movement in their shoulder or they’ve got some shoulder impingement, we’re not going to force them to do a military press like everyone else is doing in the class,” he explains. “We give (coaches) the tools to be able to scale that to the individual.”

Gamification Meets Strength Training

A highly calculated approach to program design isn’t the only thing that sets BFT apart from its competitors in the boutique fitness space. The strength and conditioning franchise is highly innovative in the way it uses heart-rate-tracking tech to gamify workouts, including strength training. 

Looking to drive member engagement, Falloon and his team created BFT³, a proprietary heart-rate tracking system that rewards members who get their heart rates to within specifically prescribed zones based on that day’s workout type. 

“There’s a lot of fantastic heart-rate products out there, but the gamification side of it is really lacking because they’re only ever rewarding a higher heart rate,” Falloon explains, noting that for strength-training exercises like a deadlift, the goal isn’t to get your heart beating as fast as possible, but to get to within a certain range that’s deemed optimal for the amount of weight lifted and reps being performed. 

“We’ve actually been able to use heart rate to gamify strength training, which is a world-first,” Falloon says.

During class, BFT members can see their heart rates displayed on-screen. Once class finishes, a leaderboard is displayed and members are rewarded with Gold, Silver or Bronze medals based on how close they got their heart rate to the target zone.

“It’s an instantaneous reward that creates community and a talking point,” Falloon says of BFT³ and the leaderboard approach. “You see people as soon as they finish a session, they’re high-fiving, staring at the screen waiting to see if they’ve got their gold medal.”

BFT also bakes other gamification features into its app to drive long-term engagement. For example, members earn status levels for in-class achievements, starting out as a rookie and progressing all the way to immortality, a journey that takes around six years to complete. 

The gamification features seem to be successful at driving member engagement. On average, BFT members attend class four to five times a week, which is significantly higher than the average for the boutique fitness industry, which hovers around two to three visits a week.

Global Expansion Plans

Falloon tells ATN that when he launched BFT back in 2017, the goal was to build a global brand.

Today, BFT has over 720 locations sold and more than 290 studios open, with a presence in countries including Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Spain. 

In the U.S., BFT is well on its way to becoming a household name in boutique fitness. Since acquiring the brand in 2021, the Irvine, California-based Xponential has been rapidly expanding BFT’s footprint in North America.

Looking ahead, Falloon says he and Xponential share the same growth strategy in the U.S. and across the globe.

“We’ve got a common goal to have no ceiling on our growth but at the same time, don’t compromise the core product or the financial well-being of our franchisees,” the BFT founder says.

This article has been updated with clarifications on BFT’s expansion plans and global studio count.

The post How BFT Built a Global Strength Training Power appeared first on Athletech News.

Billy Haynes knows what it means to accomplish a complete transformation, having shed 50 pounds and going from lead trainer to multi-unit Burn Boot Camp franchise partner.

His positive attitude and growth mindset set him up for success, leading him to own Burn Boot Camp locations in Carrollwood, Florida, Pineville, North Carolina, and Denver, North Carolina, the latter of which is now celebrating its tenth anniversary. 

Haynes’ Burn Boot Camp journey started after meeting founders and husband-and-wife team Devan and Morgan Kline through mutual friends. First offered a trainer position in 2014, it was only one year later when Burn Boot Camp began to franchise. Haynes was then given the life-changing opportunity to buy the gym, transforming from lead trainer to franchise partner.

“That decision was easy,” Haynes said, reflecting on the offer. “I loved the members, and I just wanted to continue to impact the community at Denver in a really positive way for health and fitness. That’s why I was a trainer in the first place and so when the opportunity came to own it, it was just the next step.”

More Than Just Fitness

Passionate about fitness, Haynes had seen lives transformed by Burn Boot Camp with its results-driven, 45-minute workout sessions in weekly protocols consisting of alternating strength and conditioning days. 

Burn Boot Camp workouts feature an active and dynamic warm-up, a core workout scalable to all fitness levels, and a strong finisher at the close of the session. Throughout the 45 minutes and despite it being a group setting, a dedicated Burn Boot Camp trainer ensures a personal training experience. 

In a nod to its devoted fitness community, each camp ends with “two claps on two,” representing the hard work everyone endured together to hit their fitness goals. Since workouts vary, Burn Boot Camp members constantly challenge different areas of their body, which is meant to ward off plateaus.  

Despite his pivot from lead trainer to franchise partner, Haynes has never lost sight of his desire to help others and encourage those in his orbit to do the same.

“Wherever I have gyms, I just want to give back through health and fitness,” he said. “That’s my passion. I also want to create opportunities for my team to do meaningful, purposeful work that they can be proud of. That’s what attracted me to being a trainer — that’s what got me into it in the first place.”

With community being a core component of Burn Boot Camp, Haynes has seen people become not only fit and healthy, but connected to others.

“It’s fun to see the lifelong friendships that are created from total strangers,” Haynes shared. “You’re working out at 8 a.m. with the same women every day, and connections develop. So those lifelong friendships are really amazing to see.”

He’s also seen Burn Boot Camp communities rally around members during times of need. The franchise has positively impacted young children as well, leading PE classes at local elementary schools.

“The communities are incredible,” he added. 

The (Many) Benefits of Fitness Franchising

Reminiscing on his eight years as a franchise partner and helping countless people on their journey to health and wellness has been enriching, but Haynes notes his top highlight: meeting his wife, whom he met through Burn Boot Camp. 

“Nothing after that would have been possible,” he said.

With franchising providing a proven “business in a box” option for aspiring fitness entrepreneurs, Haynes has simple yet powerful words of wisdom for those looking to enter the fitness franchise industry: “Support your members. Whether you have 100 members or 500 members — just pour into those people, they’ll take care of you.”

While modest, Haynes is immensely proud of the previous decade, which motivates him to continue serving the communities of his gyms and become an even better franchise partner.

“For any business to be open for over ten years is a massive achievement. For a gym to be open for over ten years is even more improbable, so for people to show up every day in support is really all the gratification that we need,” Haynes said.

Burn Boot Camp has opened over 390 locations, with franchisees offered multiple revenue streams including activewear, nutrition and digital memberships. Looking ahead, Burn Boot Camp projects 10,000 global units by 2033.

The group fitness concept recently ranked on Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500 list as one of the leading fitness franchises. 

The post From Trainer to Owner: How Burn Boot Camp Breeds Franchise Success appeared first on Athletech News.

Eighteen years ago, when Scott Tobin embarked on his fitness journey as a personal trainer, he was fueled by a fiery passion to transform lives through health and wellness. Little did he know, he would help catalyze the expansion of one of America’s fastest-growing boutique gym franchises — Burn Boot Camp.

Burn Boot Camp offers a unique group fitness experience that blends strength training and conditioning high-intensity interval workouts in a 45-minute session. The boutique fitness brand emphasizes inclusivity and mental as well as physical strength, welcoming members from all backgrounds.

Tobin’s narrative goes beyond individual and career achievements; it encompasses the inspiration of others and the promotion of comprehensive fitness and community development. His contributions surpass routine gym operations; he plays a key role in defining the Burn Boot Camp essence and the brand’s profound effect on lives.

Passion & Purpose

Tobin’s initial steps in the fitness world were marked by a profound passion for personal training. This began with a focus on helping people achieve their fitness goals. His early career laid a solid foundation for his understanding of fitness, client needs and the dynamics of the industry.

“I love the results members get; that’s everything to me,” Tobin says.

His transition to Burn Boot Camp in Raleigh, North Carolina, eight years ago marked a life-changing moment in his career. Here, Tobin’s talents and dedication found a new avenue for expression. He played a crucial role in growing the Raleigh location from its early stages, showcasing his ability to inspire, lead and innovate. His success is a blend of personal training expertise and business acumen that he acquired along the way, studying, asking questions and learning from mistakes.

This success eventually led Tobin to become a franchise partner. His role expanded from managing a single location to being part of a broader vision, scaling the philosophies and practices that had brought him success on a local level. Now, he operates 12 locations.

While Tobin still considers himself primarily a personal trainer, he has learned to migrate his training philosophy to management. Currently, Tobin oversees about 215 employees, 32 in upper management positions.

“Now that I’m a franchise partner, I’ve transferred the energy I put into members to taking care of my employees as best as I can,” he says. “I am an advocate of top-down management and believe it starts with me and trickles down. If your employees are happy, they’ll bring that energy, excitement and passion to the members.”

Tobin admits it took some time to place the right individuals in each position.

“We grew rapidly and explosively, and I made multiple mistakes. Learning from these mistakes is crucial. Losing employees, for instance, is often a sign of a mistake,” he says. “Understanding what makes a good fit and then managing multiple locations effectively is about finding the right people for the right roles. Once you have a strong team, success is much more attainable.”

Tobin tells his team, from middle management down, that their success is as good as their weakest link and he uses a feedback loop to continually offer and receive constructive feedback.

“If I’m training at an A-plus level, I need all my trainers to be at that level too,” he says. “Otherwise, how can we succeed if a member’s first experience is subpar?”

Franchise Alignment

Burn Boot Camp’s mission, deeply resonant with Tobin’s beliefs, revolves around empowering members not just physically, but also mentally and emotionally. The brand’s philosophy extends beyond traditional fitness paradigms, fostering a holistic approach to wellbeing, evident in the supportive community that each location nurtures.

This supportive community is not just a byproduct of the training programs but a carefully cultivated aspect of the brand’s ethos. It’s a place where members motivate each other, celebrate milestones, and share struggles, creating an environment where fitness is a shared journey rather than an individual pursuit.

“I believe that as a member, you need to find what’s right for you,” Tobin says. “Some people love our approach, while others prefer different styles. Then there are those who dislike gyms altogether and prefer at-home options. In the fitness industry, our focus should be on working together. I advocate that if your gym is failing, it’s not because of your competition; it’s due to other factors.”

Tobin expresses deep-rooted commitment to Burn Boot Camp, crediting co-founders Devan and Morgan Kline for creating a supportive environment.

“They’ve created not just a business but a family – the kind of family I needed, not necessarily the one I wanted, which is a significant part of what makes Burn Boot Camp so special,” Tobin says. “This sense of loyalty and community is what fuels my passion.”

Facing Business Challenges Like an Athlete

Each new gym Tobin opens, including those during challenging times like the COVID-19 pandemic, reflects commitment and adaptability. Despite the challenges, Tobin’s leadership ensured that the Burn Boot Camp brand not only survived but continued to thrive and expand.

Tobin shares how he faced the challenges of opening new locations while managing existing ones during 2020.

“Back in April 2020, I was into triathlons, and I remember going on a bike ride. About 20 miles in, watching the sunrise, I had a moment of clarity. It was either make it or break it. I could either excel and continue growing at a fast pace or fail and face bankruptcy. It was one of those ‘aha moments’ where you realize you can’t stress about what you can’t control; you have to live in the now.”

Tobin focused on what he could do to remain successful.

“I decided to read some business books and take time for myself,” he says. “We shifted to virtual, merged gyms and ran about nine live camps a day through Zoom. Financially, it was a hit for me, but that was secondary. The key was that we could still offer the community the experience they valued, just in a virtual format.”

Tobin says this tough period highlighted, once again, that Burn Boot Camp was more than just a gym.

“We lost money, sure, but it wasn’t crippling. It allowed us to keep running and eventually reopen and grow. It took us a couple of years to get back to our pre-2020 levels, but it was a chance to be humble, to recognize that everything can change in an instant. It was also an opportunity to grow, to identify and fix flaws in our business system.”

The Future of Fitness

Looking ahead, Tobin’s vision includes continued expansion and deeper community impact. He’s focused on trends that appeal to members, such as strength training and the ongoing desire to train with others in a team atmosphere that fosters connection.

“We were ahead of the curve, promoting weightlifting, especially for women, in an industry where cardio was dominant,” he says. “We’ve been teaching heavy lifting without the fear of bulking up, emphasizing proper nutrition. And it’s incredible to see the transformations, especially in women who’ve become incredibly strong. Other gyms are now catching on to the importance of weightlifting for results.”

Fitness technology is also high on Tobin’s list, and he’s excited about Burn Boot Camp’s recent app, launched in October 2023.

“It’s live, on-demand, covering everything from our daily workout protocols to yoga, recovery, stretching and more,” he explains.

Tobin’s advice to others who want to own a fitness franchise is to focus on passion, resilience and the willingness to learn and adapt.

“Choosing the right franchise is crucial,” he says. “We often seek perfection, but reality is filled with imperfections, errors and challenges, especially when a business is growing rapidly. These growing pains are real, but the beauty is in growing together, facing issues both as a franchise and at the headquarters level.”

The post How This Personal Trainer Mastered the Art of Fitness Franchising appeared first on Athletech News.

Crunch Fitness has come a long way since Doug Levine founded the brand out of a basement in New York City’s Greenwich Village neighborhood back in 1989, but the company hasn’t forgotten its roots as it’s expanded across the globe.

With more than 450 locations open, 1,400 franchise licenses sold and over 2 million members, Crunch Fitness is in a high-growth phase. However, the brand still abides by its original “No Judgements” philosophy of making fitness fun and accessible. 

Thirty-five years ago, that meant creating gyms that didn’t scare people off in an era when fitness was far more hardcore and much less mainstream than it is today. In 2023, that’s still important, but Crunch’s conception of what “no judgements” means has evolved into also providing all the amenities, modalities and tools its members need to have a great experience, in whatever form that may take. 

“The big thing for us is to meet our members, or potential members, where they are,” Crunch CEO Jim Rowley says of the company’s philosophy as it expands. 

Rowley spoke with Athletech News about how Crunch designs its gyms in the modern era, the way it’s approaching digital fitness content and what’s in store for the company as it continues to expand. 

Open Floor Plans Are In, But So Is Community

It’s no secret that gyms are becoming more open, with large, turf-filled functional training areas increasingly taking the place of cardio and single-use weight machines. 

“The gym of today is so much different than the gym of five years ago, it’s incredible,” Rowley says. “Today’s gym-goer wants more free space and in that free space, they might bring their iPhone or their iPad and do a digital workout. They’re going to bring bands, dumbbells and kettlebells – different workout elements – and they’re going to work out in this tight, little space within a big, open space.”

In this new era, one of the biggest challenges for gyms is finding ways to give members the open space they desire while still fostering a sense of community at a brick-and-mortar location.

For gym owners who naturally want to maximize every square foot of their facility, opening up the floor and removing equipment may seem counterintuitive. But the Crunch team is working with its franchisees to design creative layouts that leverage open space for the benefit of members, which in turn boosts business. 

“That includes a lot more Olympic weightlifting racks, relax-and-recover areas, and open space that works for the members,” Rowley says. “It’s lighting that allows them to be socially connected as well, because lighting is critically important when you’re filming yourself or taking a selfie you want to share on your social pages.” 

Group Fitness Remains Vital

The increased emphasis on open space in modern gyms isn’t to say that closed-door group exercise classes are fading in popularity. Rowley says Crunch is as committed as ever to its group fitness offerings, which include a large catalog of proprietary classes that range from strength training to Pilates to boxing.

“We’ve (also) been spending a lot of time and energy on the meditative state and breathwork, and doing things that are about reducing your stress, improving your lifestyle and so forth,” Rowley adds of Crunch’s approach to group fitness.

Embracing Digital Fitness

While Crunch’s brick-and-mortar franchise business is thriving, the company is also investing heavily in digital fitness content. In early 2023, the brand launched Crunch+, an on-demand and live streaming platform that offers users access to a range of fitness and wellness classes including HIIT, yoga, cardio boxing, stretching, Pilates and meditation. Crunch is also creating short-form digital fitness content to reach members who are pressed for time but don’t want to miss their daily workout.

The idea behind Crunch+ isn’t to replace the traditional in-person experience but to supplement it with additional fitness and wellness content for members who can’t get to the gym.

“If we can increase (members’) workout volume by one to two times per week, when they’re at home on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, or on a rainy Monday morning, that’s all we’re looking for,” Rowley explains. “It’s a complement. We don’t look at it as replacing anything in terms of brick and mortar.”

However, with the digital platform, Crunch is also looking to reach consumers who don’t work or live near a physical location. 

“If you don’t have a Crunch near your home or work, we’d like you to participate with our brand digitally, because we’re coming to your town over the next couple of years. We’ve got another 1,000 of these plots to open,” Rowley says, noting Crunch’s many signed franchise agreements for additional gym locations.

Breaking New Ground With Amazon

The gym of the future also figures to be tech-enabled. Crunch seems to already have a leg (or hand) up on its competitors in this area. Earlier this year, the fitness brand made waves when it partnered with Amazon One to allow members at select Crunch locations to swipe their palm over a biometric reader to enter the facility rather than use a key fob. 

That type of keyless entry tech has been trialed at Whole Food Markets and sports venues, but never before at a fitness facility.

“I was a little concerned in the beginning that we were too small for this behemoth of a company, but they’ve treated us like we’re the biggest company in the world,” Rowley says.” There’s a true partnership with Amazon, and the spirit of that partnership is displayed in how they’ve rolled out the Amazon One product in our clubs side by side with us.” 

For Crunch, it’s another instance of meeting members where they are.

“It’s for the safety and security of the members, but it also allows us to run smarter in the gyms in terms of allowing members to have access, so that the person working the front desk can really be at the forefront of member service,” Rowley notes. 

Crunch and Amazon plan to bring the hand-entry tech to more gyms in 2024. 

“I would look at 2023 more as a test of what’s possible, and 2024 as a full rollout with Amazon,” Rowley shares.

What’s Next for Crunch

In 2024, Crunch will celebrate the 35th anniversary of its founding in 1989, but in some ways, the company is just getting started. It only began franchising in 2010, and has been on an expansion tear ever since, opening over 450 locations across the country, with a growing presence in the Southeast and Southwest in particular. Thanks to that success, Crunch earned a spot as the top-ranked fitness brand in Entrepreneur magazine’s 2024 Franchise 500 list, which ranks companies based on factors including growth, brand power and financial stability.

With more than 1,400 franchise licenses sold, a lot more Crunch gyms are in the pipeline

“Our plan for 2024 is to increase our growth rate probably by 20 to 25%,” Rowley says. “It’s going to be the biggest year of our company.”

Crunch is also aiming to reach 3 million total members at some point in 2024.

Looking even further ahead, given its current sales numbers, Rowley believes Crunch could one day reach 1,500 locations in the U.S., and double or triple that number when taking international expansion into account. (Crunch already has a presence in Canada, Spain, Portugal, Costa Rica and Australia). 

As Crunch continues to pursue its expansion plans, Rowley has some friendly advice for onlookers. 

“Hold on to your hat for what you’re going to see in the next five years,” he says.

The post How Crunch Is Building for a New Era of Fitness appeared first on Athletech News.

Gold’s Gym Thousand Oaks has undergone a substantial renovation catering to the evolving needs of fitness consumers, incorporating new equipment, unveiling a new Posing Room for fitness content creators and debuting an exclusive private Escape Fitness Room for more reserved gym goers.

When the opportunity to expand the Thousand Oaks gym’s upper level by 20,000 square feet presented itself, Gold’s Gym SoCal, a franchise group that owns 23 locations in the Southern California area, pounced at the chance — with plans to revamp additional locations in due time.

“In the Southern California market alone, which has 23 health clubs in total, Gold’s Gym has approximately another ten clubs that will be remodeled and re-equipped while reinvesting $15M in those clubs over the next 30 months or so,” shared Brian Morris, senior vice president of Gold’s Gym SoCal.

Seeing a growing demand for Gold’s Gym memberships, particularly in a post-pandemic environment, Morris called it a “no-brainer” to expand and enhance the Thousand Oaks location.

“We want to ensure we react to the needs of our communities and grow our spaces accordingly,” he said. “We also used this moment to bring our entire club up to speed with what consumers are demanding today, which is the crème de la crème of fitness equipment and sleek, spacious settings.”

Inside the Remodel

In addition to its indoor lap pool, the Thousand Oaks Gold’s Gym location now has an expanded weight section, a group workout room, a new turf zone with functional training equipment, an outdoor fitness area and the latest equipment from Life Fitness, Freemotion and Gym80.

With fitness influencers continuing to carve out notoriety on social media, the Gold’s Gym SoCal’s Posing Rooms allow amateur and professional gym goers to create content in private.

In this respect, Gold’s Gym SoCal is ahead of its time. Morris noted it’s one of the club’s heritage trademarks that began at its Venice gym in 1965. Gold’s Gym SoCal plans to eventually implement the immensely popular creator content rooms in all of its clubs.

While content creators have a special space of their own, Gold’s Gym was also mindful of fitness enthusiasts hoping to avoid the crowds with a new Escape Fitness Room, which offers a more secluded yet fitness-serious zone bathed in serene blue mood lighting. 

“Our dedication to creating a great member experience for every workout led to the creation of The Escape Room,” Morris said. “We wanted to create something fun and new to keep members engaged and excited for their gym sessions. The Escape Room is state of the art with top-of-the-line equipment, which allows us to provide our top-tier members with a first-class fitness experience in a more private environment.”

Trends To Watch

Looking ahead, Morris predicts the fitness industry will continue to see a rise in heavy-weight training for all ages and fitness levels, along with another form of strength training.

“Body weight training continues to be on-trend, as it provides options for all endurance levels or those wanting to tailor their sessions for lower impact routines,” he said.

Morris also noted a surge in demand for open-area fitness spaces, indicating that some future renovations will entail repurposing space used for swimming pools and other gym equipment into open fitness areas.

“As a mainstay in Southern California’s fitness scene, we will keep leading the way for 2024,” Morris said. “By having the most up-to-date equipment, programs and products, as well as best-in-class trainers and instructors to lead the charge, we will continue meeting people where they are in their fitness journeys.”

The post Gold’s Gym SoCal Embraces the Future of Fitness appeared first on Athletech News.

Planet Fitness continues to win big with Gen Z, with the gym franchise owning the eighth spot and being the only fitness brand named on a top ten list of leading companies that young consumers are eyeing with their purchasing power.

The Morning Consult, a business intelligence company, analyzed 1,586 brands and ranked them by measuring the growth of consumers who say they’d consider purchasing from a brand over the year. The company noted that the nation’s ongoing economic uncertainty also shaped its report’s rankings, underscoring the opportunity Planet Fitness has with young consumers by touting its low-cost, high-value model.

Last month, the fitness chain reported strong revenue numbers and new member growth for Q3 of 2023 despite the executive upheaval that saw CEO Chris Rondeau’s sudden departure.

Planet Fitness is currently under the leadership of interim CEO Craig Benson, a board member and Planet Fitness franchisee, as the fitness brand seeks a permanent successor with expertise in a global perspective. 

On a call with investors last month, Benson indicated he wanted to see improvement in the fitness franchise’s branding and promotional marketing while remaining mindful that Gen Z consumers are after not just a deal but a clear mission statement that shares the generation’s values.

How Planet Fitness Wins With Gen Z

Jameson Miller, a 19-year-old Planet Fitness trainer at the Seaford, Delaware, location, credits the fitness brand’s affordability, accessibility, and inclusive “Judgement Free” zone as reasons why Planet Fitness is making its mark with his generation.

Miller also says the fitness franchise’s active presence on social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat also resonates with Gen Z consumers, who are avid users of such apps.

A former Planet Fitness member, Miller joined the Seaford team as a front desk associate until he earned his personal training certification. He opted to stay with the brand and assist members in a new capacity.

“It was a club that I was already working at, and I knew it was a great opportunity as a trainer to get to meet a lot of different types of people with unique fitness goals,” Miller told Athletech News. “I really enjoy working with members to find solutions to the restrictions or reservations they might have about working out so they can reach their goals.”

Although the fitness brand has successfully introduced High School Summer Pass, a yearly initiative that invites teens to workout at any Planet Fitness facilities in the U.S. and Canada for free from mid-May until the end of August, the franchise has created an ethos where young fitness consumers can work out in an inclusive space year-round. Now in its third year, the High School Summer Pass program saw over 400,000 more teens join Planet Fitness this past summer, 70% of whom were first-timers.

“Our clubs are also known for providing such a friendly atmosphere,” Miller said. “The environment is very welcoming, which makes it a lot easier for younger people, 13 and up, to feel comfortable, especially if it’s their first time working out.”

The brand’s low-cost model also drives cost-conscious Gen Z consumers to sign up for Planet Fitness memberships, says Miller.

“It’s more affordable than many other gyms,” he said. “A Classic membership is just $10 a month. So that helps a lot for younger people who are just joining the workforce and have a limited budget.” It should be noted that the fitness franchise recently acknowledged exploring a pricing adjustment being tested in several markets, justifying the possible increase by pointing out that it hasn’t raised the price of its $10 Classic Card in 30 years.

It also helps that the fitness franchise touts many locations that are open either very late or accessible 24/7, providing young fitness consumers with increased flexibility to hit the gym.

While Miller says the fitness brand is a great option for beginners, he notes that anyone can get a solid workout at Planet Fitness with its cardio and strength equipment, free weights, resistance bands and TRX straps. 

“No matter if you’re on day one or year ten, you can find everything you need to achieve your fitness goals at Planet Fitness,” he said.

Future Franchisee Pipeline?

As seen with Miller, who transitioned from a Planet Fitness member to a dedicated-to-the-brand fitness trainer, the fitness franchise could be laying the groundwork to not only appeal to Gen Z consumers but one day integrate them into their expanding franchise model.

The fitness chain has said it is working on a new growth model to reduce the capital requirements for opening and operating a Planet Fitness Franchise, which includes new changes to its franchise agreement, adjusting the timing for cardio and strength re-equips based on usage and reducing capital expenses for new build and remodels.

The post Why Planet Fitness Is Winning the Race for Gen Z appeared first on Athletech News.

Discovering untapped markets is key to any successful business venture. For aspiring boutique fitness franchise owners, finding an open field is becoming increasingly challenging as copycat and cookie-cutter concepts proliferate.

Boutique fitness franchisees are often faced with a double-edged sword: if you find a truly innovative concept with room for growth, it’s usually filled with risk if the brand is not fully proven out. On the other hand, if you go with an experienced franchisor, there’s typically fierce competition for territory.

There are always exceptions, though, and Body Fit Training (BFT) stands out as one such outlier. 

Originating in Australia in 2017 and acquired by Xponential Fitness in late 2021, BFT has been rapidly expanding in the U.S. over the past 18 months. This unique positioning offers American BFT franchisees the advantage of partnering with two established brands – Xponential, a leading boutique fitness franchisor with over 3,000 open studios, and BFT, which is already very popular in Australia and other parts of the world. Moreover, franchisees enter the market at an opportune time, capitalizing on the rising popularity of strength training in the U.S. among men and women of all ages. 

“You’re hitching your wagon to Xponential with our leadership and experience in this space, along with what I would call a mature brand (in BFT), but you get pretty open territory in the U.S.,” says Lance Freeman, Xponential’s President of Franchise Development. “It’s just a phenomenal opportunity that you don’t get a lot.” 

BFT offers group-style strength and conditioning classes led by expert coaches and split into eight-week training blocks so members can measure their progress over time. Classes include some combination of compound weight lifting exercises like deadlifts, bench presses and kettlebell swings, bodyweight movements like box jumps and pull-ups, and cardio work including running, cycling and rowing. BFT also leverages heart-rate tracking tech to gamify workouts and keep people engaged in class.

According to Freeman, BFT essentially fills the gap in the boutique fitness market between a brand like Orangetheory Fitness on one end, which offers group-based classes and gamification but is mostly focused on HIIT and cardio, and CrossFit on the other, which uses functional strength training movements but is highly competitive and thus only accessible to a small percentage of the population. 

“It truly is white space, there’s not really another nationally franchised model doing what BFT is doing on this level with a progressive eight-week program, and this amount of IP, science and technology, all wrapped into a community-centric brand with the backing of a parent company like Xponential,” Freeman says.

BFT Is Growing Fast

Freeman’s comments are backed up by BFT’s performance in North America so far. Since Xponential began franchising the brand, BFT is enjoying early franchise sales growth that’s on par with or better than Xponential’s other brands, including top performers like StretchLab.

“It exceeded our expectations in terms of the growth trajectory,” Freeman says of BFT. “It’s our fastest-growing brand today.” 

So far, Xponential has sold just over 300 franchise licenses for BFT in the U.S., with 20 studios already opened. 

Freeman says the total addressable market, or TAM, in the U.S. for most Xponential brands, including BFT, is around 1,000 locations initially, with further potential growth as the brand matures, studios open, and follow-up analysis takes place. BFT is almost one-third of the way there already, but it still has a ways to go and with the current demand for strength training, that’s exciting. 

Franchisees Embrace Strength Training 

There’s still time for franchisees to get in on the action while large swaths of territory remain open across the country. Freeman says that while BFT is seeing high demand from franchisees who already own other Xponential brand locations, there’s also very strong interest from those who are new to the Xponential system. 

Those looking to own a BFT tend to show a genuine interest in strength training, which speaks highly of the modality’s popularity in the fitness community and American culture at large. 

“We hear so much from investors looking at BFT who will say, ‘That’s the workout that I do,’ so they really relate to the brand and connect with it,” Freeman says.

While it’s good to have a passion for and connection to strength training, Freeman says BFT franchisees don’t need to have prior fitness industry experience. In fact, that situation is rare, as Xponential franchisees tend to have corporate and managerial backgrounds.

What Franchisees Should Know

Besides the requisite financial resources  – around $500,000 in net worth and $100,000 in liquidity – Xponential looks for franchise owners with strong business acumen, leadership and management skills. 

“We don’t want our business owners to be an employee in the business,” Freeman says. “We expect our owners to be able to manage the manager well and manage the business by the KPIs, that’s the seat that we want them in. The ability to build a winning team culture in the business is key, as is having good people skills in general.”

Systemwide, around 85 to 90% of Xponential franchisees opt to become multi-unit owners and purchase the rights to open a “three-pack” of locations in a given area. That trend has held true for BFT.

“We will award a single, it’s just we don’t see a lot of them,” Freeman says. “Most people are looking to scale over time and really control where they do that.”

For franchisees looking to get into boutique fitness, especially those with a connection to or passion for strength training, Freeman says there isn’t an opportunity out there that’s better than BFT.

Besides the ability to get in on the ground floor of a top strength training concept with the proven ability to grow in other markets, Freeman notes that many of Xponential’s company-wide KPIs are at an all-time high, including average unit volume (AUV), top-line gross revenue per studio (systemwide sales), and memberships. 

“We’re really pleased with where our business is today,” he says. “We have some big tailwinds at our back right now and are excited about 2024 with new things coming down the pike.”

The post BFT Franchisees Find Boutique Fitness White Space appeared first on Athletech News.

Self Esteem Brands (SEB) is best known as the parent company of Anytime Fitness, a highly popular gym chain with over 5,000 locations worldwide, but the franchisor is also building a burgeoning portfolio of boutique fitness and wellness brands as part of an ambitious global expansion plan. 

The Chuck Runyon and Dave Mortensen-founded Self Esteem Brands has set itself the lofty goal of opening 10,000 fitness, health and wellness clubs worldwide by 2030. Part of that plan will include scaling SEB’s boutique studio brands including The Bar Method, Waxing the City and Basecamp Fitness (along with Basecamp’s Australian sister brand, Sumhiit Fitness). 

Basecamp, which offers HIIT-style group fitness classes, has 21 locations already opened along with nearly 70 franchise licenses sold in the U.S. as of August. Basecamp is in what Self Esteem Brands calls “a high-growth phase,” recently becoming the first of SEB’s studio brands to offer franchising outside of the States. The Bar Method, meanwhile, has around 80 open locations; SEB plans to restart its expansion efforts for the Barre-inspired group fitness brand, which is now fully recovered from the pandemic. 

On the wellness side, SEB had much success with Waxing the City, which offers waxing services along with skin and beauty care products. Already the second largest waxing franchise in the U.S., Waxing the City has more than 150 locations open across the U.S. and is on pace to end 2023 by opening twice as many locations as it opened the previous year. 

Still, as Self Esteem Brands looks to build its boutique brands into household names, the company will lean on the power of its already established brand: Anytime Fitness.

The SEB Franchise Network

“One of the things that’s great about being a franchisee of any of our brands at SEB is that you have access to our global franchise network, which includes many resources across all of our brands,” says Nick Herrild, president of studio brands for SEB.

While some larger boutique fitness franchisors may also have several brands under their corporate umbrella, they don’t have access to the data of Anytime Fitness, a big-box gym with thousands of locations and nearly three million members spread across the globe.

“We really are a unique platform in that way,” Herrild says. “Because of the size and scale of AF and the resources of SEB, we have a level of sophistication each of the brands couldn’t have if they stood on their own.”

Self Esteem Brands is actively investing in offering its boutique franchisees access to the same data and insights Anytime Fitness franchise owners have. For example, SEB has compiled robust consumer segmentation metrics that it uses to help inform its franchising strategy for each individual brand. That data helps SEB and its franchisees evaluate the opportunities and likelihood of success for different boutique brands in different areas. 

“Basecamp may tap into that segmentation differently than The Bar Method, but the segmentation is still consistent, so we know where there’s overlap and where there isn’t,” Herrild says.

SEB also offers “analytical scoring sites,” giving franchisees intel on how potential locations would perform based on attributes like population, income and gender distribution, among other demographics.

The advantages of franchising with a big brand like SEB extend across the board, Herrild notes, including marketing, development, real estate and even preferential access to vendors. 

“We can get better pricing and better technology opportunities because of our scale,” he says.

Brands Are Complimentary, Not Competitive

As SEB looks for ways to continue growing its boutique fitness and wellness brands, expect the company to lean on its already established network of Anytime Fitness franchisees.

SEB is starting to see interest from Anytime Fitness franchise owners who are drawn to the community-driven atmosphere of boutique studios and want to get in on the action.

“We have Anytime Fitness franchisees who are highly interested in the studio concepts for that reason,” Herrild shares. “There’s a lot of opportunity, particularly for brands like Basecamp and The Bar Method, to target sophisticated owners that want to look at a multi-unit portfolio.” 

Right now, most cross-company franchising interest is between Anytime Fitness and Basecamp, Herrild says, but he expects interest to grow among franchisees who want to try other SEB combinations.

For franchisees looking to get adventurous, there are benefits of owning two different boutique brands under the SEB umbrella, since concepts are complimentary in terms of the types of customers they attract but not competitive in the services on offer.

“A Waxing the City and Bar Method location could literally be sharing a wall yet have complete insulation from each other in terms of what they’re offering,” Herrild notes. “But they would still have access to each other’s consumers because they’re similar.”

Sharing Best Practices

Operationally, having multiple brands under the same umbrella allows SEB to test new things, finding what works for one brand to bring those learnings over to the others. 

For example, SEB has been rolling out several new tech innovations at Waxing the City, including mobile POS systems, geofencing and automated check-ins and check-outs for members. Herrild says it’s all part of the company’s overall philosophy of leveraging tech to lower labor costs and streamline operations at its studios, which makes things easier for franchisees and customers alike. 

The team at SEB chose Waxing the City to pilot those innovations because of the brand’s relatively large size with 150-plus locations, but it’s transporting those same tech learnings to Basecamp and The Bar Method. 

“Using Basecamp as an example, we’ve re-worked how we coordinate the start of the workout with the lighting, the music and the monitor, so each member knows exactly which group they’re in and which workout they’re doing,” Herrild notes.

Inter-brand collaborations are important, but the team at SEB also works hard to ensure it’s supporting its franchisees down to the individual level, including with monthly check-in conversations.

“By brand, we have franchise business consultants and franchise business coaches,” Herrild says. “They work with franchisees to help them look at their business and benchmark different pieces of their P&L to help them understand where they have the opportunity to drive profitability from the top line to the bottom.”

The robust approach to the business of franchising is likely why the team at SEB feels confident it can meet its goal of 10,000 clubs by the end of the decade. Post-pandemic, the company assures it’s doing better than ever, with a healthy franchise culture to match.

“We’re having a really great 2023, and we had a really great 2022 fiscal year,” Herrild says. “Our brands are all in the process of looking for ways to bring franchisees the best performance they can and grow, so we’re excited about where all of our brands are and where they’re going.”

The post How Self Esteem Brands Drives Boutique Studio Growth appeared first on Athletech News.

MADabolic, a strength-driven interval training franchise, held its second annual owner’s conference in its home base of Charlotte, North Carolina, celebrating its continued and rapid franchise growth as it looks ahead to a new year.

The fitness franchise has carved out a truly unique space in the crowded fitness industry, offering an intense full-body workout that’s “barbell-free” and instead uses kettlebells, dumbbells and medicine balls with movements led by expert coaches. MADabolic isn’t for the passive fitness enthusiasts; it’s geared to committed 25 to 45-year-old “high-performing” fitness consumers who want to push their boundaries as they hit personal goals. 

It’s a concept that has resonated not only with dedicated fitness enthusiasts but also with franchisees. MADabolic currently has 29 open locations and 83 in development. 

Just this autumn, a lease was signed to bring MADabolic to Philadelphia, and multi-unit deals were inked for Fort Lauderdale and Cincinnati. Additionally, MADabolic facilities recently opened in Sarasota, Florida, Alpharetta, Georgia, and Raleigh, North Carolina. A lease was also signed last month to open a MADabolic in Lexington, Kentucky. 

Customer-First Approach

Attendees at MADabolic’s second annual conference watched a TED Talk titled “Unreasonable Hospitality,” based on the book of the same title that demonstrates how surpassing a guest’s expectations can elevate service-based businesses.

After the inspiring talk, Brandon Cullen, co-founder and chief concept officer of MADabolic, shared personal moments and times he’s had with every attendee at the conference and gave curated gifts to every MADabolic franchisee and corporate team member.

“It was a gesture that I thought not only led by example but was something that truly embodies what we need more of in this fitness industry,” reflected Stuart Brauer of WTF Gym Talk, a speaker at the MADabolic conference. “And that’s leaders who put their money where their mouth is and whose actions reflect the change they want to see in their companies.”

Brauer added that it was one of the most stand-out things he’s seen a franchise do, noting that Cullen leads by example.

The attentive and personalized approach towards MADabolic franchisees underscored the conference’s theme, “Origins.”

“We focused on the little things that made this brand what it is today,” Cullen said,

“We were founded in 2011, operating on the basic framework that we would be disruptive and innovative,” he added. “We would offer a world-class training system complemented by world-class hospitality, a concept that would reject trends for the sake of being trendy, a concept that would, instead, be rooted in structure and distinctively anti-average. These themes still ring true today.”

The Future Looks Bright

As MADabolic continues to grow, Cullen says the brand is amplifying its core tenants that continue to set MADabolic apart in the industry, with the conference supporting the fitness brand to lock in on its direction and strategy as it moves ahead to 2024.

Cullen has previously told Athletech News that MADabolic’s goal is to isolate the top 50 markets in the U.S., or North America more broadly, and place two to five units in each. That would get the brand to around 200 locations, but Cullen believes MADabolic can grow even bigger than that if things really take off.

“It has been highly rewarding to work with our franchise owners from the time they begin their discovery journey and see them continue to grow as business owners throughout their tenure with the brand,” added Al Mendoza, MADabolic’s chief development officer. “Our annual conference has become an important tradition within our franchise network, and undoubtedly our conference attendees learn as much from the educational sessions and breakout discussions as they do from the personal connections formed and informal conversations they have amongst each other over our time together.”

The post MADabolic Is Growing Fast Amid Fresh Approach to Fitness & Franchising appeared first on Athletech News.

When Christopher Pena got started with BODY20 back in 2017, electrical-muscle stimulation (EMS) workouts weren’t popular in the United States. In fact, the concept of EMS itself wasn’t well known in America outside of a select few in the medical community and a handful of hardcore fitness enthusiasts and brave entrepreneurs. 

By the summer of 2023, BODY20 celebrated the opening of its 30th EMS fitness studio, with just under 300 franchise locations sold and more in the pipeline. The vast majority of that growth has happened over less than two years.

“We just started scaling the brand,” Pena, BODY20’s president, says of the expansion. 

The fast-growing boutique fitness concept puts members through 20-minute long workouts while wearing an FDA-cleared EMS suit. EMS works by using electrical stimulation to create frequent muscle contractions, mimicking the natural action potentials your body sends to your muscles to tell them to move. Essentially, BODY20 takes your brain out of working out.

The whole-body EMS technology used by BODY20 produces over 150 times more muscle contractions than a conventional workout. That allows users to build muscle and burn calories in a fraction of the time, all while promoting better recovery through increased blood flow and other advantageous physiological responses.

“It’s biohacking you and your body,” Pena says. “That’s where we get our tagline, ‘Every.Body.Unleashed.’”

During a typical BODY20 workout, members perform compound strength-training movements like squats, without weights, while wearing an EMS suit. BODY20 offers some cardio as well, but it’s primarily designed to replace lifting weights, not your weekly spin class. 

Among several benefits, BODY20’s whole-body EMS workouts are designed to increase blood flow and circulation in the lymphatic system. That helps you recover quicker from the body’s natural inflammatory response to strength training. Whole-body EMS has also been shown to increase the amount of testosterone and human growth hormone (HGH) your body produces in response to strength training, which has muscle growth and recovery benefits. 

Persistence Is Key to Growth

If BODY20 today stands as a pioneer in the burgeoning EMS space – the fitness concept was listed on Entrepreneur Magazine’s Top New and Emerging Franchises list – it wasn’t always smooth sailing for the franchisor. 

In the years between his first foray into EMS workouts and BODY20’s current status as a leader in the modality, Pena and the BODY20 team have been hard at work building a business infrastructure from the ground up to support its growing list of franchisees.

That started with Gregory Breitbart buying out Pena’s original partners and becoming BODY20’s CEO in 2019. Pena and Breitbart knew it was important to start slowly and methodically, putting the right procedures in place and hiring the people that would position BODY20 for the explosive growth it’s now enjoying. 

“Using the skyscraper analogy – we dug down first,” Pena says. “Greg and I have always had the idea that we should be over-prepared for scaling this brand.

Despite the careful approach, BODY20 proved to be a hit with franchisees faster than either Pena or Breitbart expected, with prospective partners from around the country lining up to get in on the recovery and muscle-building benefits of EMS. 

The brand experienced some early growing pains, but the BODY20 team stayed the course, and to great effect. BODY20 ranked as the 292nd fastest-growing private brand in the U.S. on the prestigious Inc. 5000 list for 2023, better than any other franchisor in all industries, not just fitness.

“The first few years were tough, and we had just about everything thrown at us, including a once-in-a-100-year global pandemic, which surprisingly was probably our easiest challenge,” Breitbart has said of scaling the brand. “We didn’t have overnight success, but our patience and determination to do things the right way, even if it meant going slower, ultimately paid off.”

Pena and Breitbart stuck by their original plan of building a solid base before focusing on growth. BODY20 recently appointed Lisa Donohue as its Chief Marketing & Experience officer and has hired several other fitness and franchising industry vets.

“We were really focused on getting the right executive team in place,” Pena says of the additions. “We’ve hired people who understand not just fitness but how to work with franchisees, because franchising is a very specific industry.”

The Future Is Bright

Fast forward to 2023, and BODY20 is all-in on growth, looking to continue to sell franchise licenses across the country and support its existing franchisees with best-in-class resources. 

Expect to see more BODY20 studios pop up in spots around the country soon. The EMS brand is on pace to have 100 locations open by the end of the first quarter of 2024, with specific plans to expand or increase its presence in locations including New York, Chicago, Seattle and throughout California. 

While BODY20’s core customer base is approximately 70% women – the average member is a 40-plus-year-old female – EMS training is proving popular with people of all genders, ages and fitness levels. 

“We walked into our studio in Boca Raton one day, and there was an NFL pro athlete training next to a 92-year-old woman, and they’re getting the exact same workout, doing the exact same movements,” Pena notes. “Where else can you find that?”

What Franchisees Should Know

As it continues to expand, BODY20 is looking for franchisees with strong business management experience. Having a strong sales background is also a plus for potential franchisees. 

“Ultimately, fitness will always be a sales business,” Pena says. “You’ll always have turnover and you’ll always have to generate more membership.”

Franchisees who join the BODY20 family can expect support from a corporate team that has created a system, or “playbook,” it knows will help business owners grow their EMS studios.

The BODY20 team is constantly working the numbers to give franchise owners helpful business insights based on data. Pena shares the example of he and his team pouring over KPIs in a recent quarter to figure out what top-selling franchisees did better than their lower-selling counterparts. While most would assume the top-selling studios were simply better at closing deals, Pena said the numbers told a different story: the best and worst-performing studios during that quarter had a less than 2% difference in their closing ratio, but their difference in following up with leads was 20%. It wasn’t that the higher-performing studios were naturally better at selling, they were just more persistent.

“When you’re a franchisor, you have a responsibility to not make things arbitrary or emotional,” Pena says of BODY20’s numbers-first approach. “If you’re a franchisee at BODY20, you’ll find that we focus heavily on providing proof first.”

That said, the BODY20 team is more than willing to listen – and take action – to help franchisees who need it, especially when pain points or weaknesses in the current system are brought to light.

“If you’re following our playbook completely and you come to us and say something doesn’t work, we have more time, effort and resources to throw at that problem than you do, and we’re going to,” Pena says. “Chances are if you’re in Sacramento and something doesn’t work, there’s a place in New Hampshire that’s going to run into the same problem, so we need to figure it out.”

The post How BODY20 Became the Top EMS Fitness Franchise appeared first on Athletech News.

For Matt Gordin and Brendan James, franchising is more than just a business endeavor, it’s a family affair.

The brothers-in-law are responsible for bringing some of the biggest brands in boutique fitness to Australia, and they’re just getting started. Through Boutique Fitness Studios (BFS), Gordin and James own the master franchise rights in Australia and New Zealand to four Xponential Fitness brands: Club Pilates, CycleBar, StretchLab and Rumble Boxing. BFS currently has 91 locations sold, with 38 studios opened and several more slated to open by the end of the year.

Virtually all of that growth has come over the last two to three years, and Gordin and James aren’t stopping any time soon. Their goal is to open between 100 and 150 studios Down Under for each Xponential brand in their portfolio.

“If we can hit 500 across the four brands, as far as the Australian market goes, that’s extremely successful,” James told Athletech News.

All in the Family

Gordin and James owe much of their success to sound business acumen and some good fortune, but they also draw from childhood experience. Even before they became brothers-in-law, the pair were exposed to franchising from an early age; Gordin’s father owned bike retail stores and James’ parents ran a card-and-gift franchise group. 

After attending university together, the two eventually relocated to different parts of the U.S., with Gordin pursuing cycling-related entrepreneurial ventures in Los Angeles and James working in options trading in Chicago. Eventually, they both decided to head back to Australia to pursue something new – boutique fitness. 

While he was still living in the U.S., Gordin identified CycleBar as a lucrative brand to bring to the Australian market. As fate would have it, Gordin was living near Xponential’s headquarters in Irvine, California, so he set up a meeting with the boutique fitness franchisor, which just so happened to be searching for international expansion partners. Gordon was the perfect fit, and in 2020, he inked a master franchise deal to bring CycleBar to Australia. 

“They took a bit of a leap of faith in us, and we took a bit of a leap of faith in them,” Gordin says of his first deal with Xponential, although he notes neither side had to do “too much convincing” given their compatibilities.

James embarked on a boutique fitness journey of his own around the same time. Having just moved back to Australia, he was inspired to get into the Pilates business after witnessing the modality’s ability to help his wife recover from a car accident.

“I was in the Sunshine Coast essentially looking for something to do, and I saw how popular Pilates was getting (in Australia), but I also saw that there was a big hole in the market from the style of Pilates my wife had done when we lived in the in the U.S., which was what Club Pilates was doing,” James recalls. “We thought there was definitely a missing piece in the market.”

The Power of Franchising

James initially decided to start his own Pilates brand rather than go the franchising route, opening three locations before deciding to transfer them under the Club Pilates umbrella due to business challenges exacerbated by COVID lockdowns. 

Given his experience, James advises other boutique fitness entrepreneurs to become a franchisee rather than start their own business from scratch.

“I made a lot of mistakes I wouldn’t have made if I’d gone with Club Pilates from the get-go,” James says, noting that prospective franchisees shouldn’t be put off by franchise fees, since they’ll likely make that money back once the business is up and running.

“I spent far more money in covering up mistakes I wouldn’t have had to make had I been part of a group like Xponential (from the start),” he says.

Gordin agrees with James’ assessment, noting that it’s a lot harder for entrepreneurs to start their own franchise brand today than it was in their parents’ days, especially in the current international business environment. 

“It’s almost impossible to do it on your own now,” Gordin says. “I think joining Xponential has fast-tracked us probably five years compared to trying to do it ourselves and prove our own concept.”

Gordin and James both praised Xponential for the brand’s franchise “playbook,” or system of processes and resources that franchisees can use to be successful, including help with real estate, sales, marketing and recruiting staff. 

“There’s nothing left to chance,” Gordin says. “It’s all there for franchisees if they follow the right play.” 

From Franchisees to Master Franchisees

Gordin followed the Xponential playbook to a tee, proving that boutique fitness can work overseas just as effectively as it can in the States. After finding quick success as a CycleBar master franchisee, Gordin grew his Xponential portfolio, picking up the exclusive Australian rights to StretchLab and Rumble Boxing in 2021.

James, meanwhile, steadily grew Club Pilates in Australia, making good on his initial hunch that Pilates was ripe for disruption in his home country.

As brothers-in-law and close friends, Gordin and James kept tabs on each other while they were building up their respective Xponential brands. They decided to team up in January 2023, establishing BFS and creating a four-headed monster with Club Pilates, CycleBar, StretchLab and Rumble all under one umbrella in Australia.

Now, Gordin and James are focused on rapidly scaling those four brands to one day hit the 500-location mark. As master franchisees, the pair essentially operate as franchisors on the ground in Australia, entrusted by Xponential to recruit and manage individual franchisees in the country.

“Our focus is not on running studios, we want to be working on teaching other people how to run studios,” James explains. “We’ve made businesses successful with these brands, so we know how to do it.” 

For James and Gordin, success now comes down to teaching their franchise partners in Australia to trust in the magic of the Xponential playbook. 

“Realistically, what works? Exactly what Xponential said works,” James says. “So we try to push those same learnings (to our franchisees).”

That’s not to say it’s easy. Gordin and James are quick to point out that boutique fitness, like any business, is full of setbacks, challenges and learning curves. Asked what the most important attribute is to be a successful franchisee (or master franchisee), the brothers-in-law have the same word: resilience.

Fortunately, Gordin and James have developed a helpful way of staying calm in the franchising storm.

“We’re like ducks. We keep a nice, cool, calm head up top, but underneath, we’re pedaling like crazy and doing as much work as we can to try and drive these brands and make it as big as we can in this country,” James says. “Every time something gets hard, we just look at each other and go, ‘Just be a duck. Move forward.’”

The post Brother-in-Law Team Brings Xponential Fitness to Australia appeared first on Athletech News.

If you think of “Rocky,” “Creed,” and old-school gyms filled with testosterone when you hear the word boxing, it might be time to update your view on the sport, especially as it relates to group fitness.

Boxing has quickly become a favorite fitness activity of women across the U.S., especially among those in the Millennial age range. More and more, women are making the once-male-dominated sport their go-to workout routine, shattering long-held notions of what’s masculine and feminine.

Rumble Boxing, the boxing-inspired group fitness brand acquired by Xponential Fitness in 2021, is emblematic of this cultural shift. A whopping 73% of Rumble’s fast-growing member base is made up of women. Perhaps even more notable, approximately 40% of Rumble franchise owners are female, higher than the national average of 31%. 

A Rumble workout is challenging but accessible, featuring 10 rounds over 45 minutes divided evenly between boxing drills like shadowboxing and bag-punching and resistance training including bodyweight circuits and dumbbells. 

There are a few reasons why Rumble has become so popular with women: part of it stems from the growing popularity of boxing itself, part of it is due to the increased interest in group fitness post-pandemic, and some of it is thanks to the franchising might of Xponential, which has ten boutique fitness brands under its umbrella including giants like Club Pilates and StretchLab.

“Boxing and HIIT are hot modalities in the boutique fitness space and with the right team in place, we’ve been able to rapidly expand through franchising the concept in 2021,” Shaun Grove, Rumble’s President, says of the brand’s growth. “We’ve also been able to capitalize on the heightened consumer demand for community-based fitness as more and more people are dedicating more time to their health and wellness, especially as people are defining ‘wellness’ in broader terms since the pandemic.”

Rumble’s blend of boxing and group fitness not only offers a great workout, it presents an accessible entry into strength training, which has become ultra-popular post-pandemic. For women who understand they need to strength train for better overall health but may have trepidation about jumping into the weight room at their local gym, boxing at Rumble presents a fun and relatively easy way to get started. 

“Trends have shown that females, and not just athletes, are starting to understand the importance of weight training for overall health and wellness, but they want a program that’s fun and that they can stick to,” Rachelle Dejean, Chief Marketing Officer at Rumble, explains. “At Rumble, we take that up a notch with the unique pairing of boxing and strength for killer results.”

It helps that boxing also offers many cardio benefits, so Rumble members get a lot of bang for their workout buck. 

Susie Grobler, who opened the first Rumble franchise location, was encouraged to become a studio owner due to her love for the workout more than anything else.

“Cardio is important but I can’t say I personally love running,” notes Grobler, who opened her Rumble location in Anchorage, Alaska, on New Year’s Day 2022. “I fell in love with boxing because it gives me the cardio push I need. Rumble takes it to the next level by also adding in the strength component. The mixture of rounds on the bag and rounds on the floor is amazing and the results speak for themselves.”

Importantly, Rumble classes can be taken by people with no prior boxing experience. That’s an intentional choice on the part of Rumble and Xponential to promote inclusivity and attract a wider clientele. 

“We always aim to be accessible, and our ‘don’t take ourselves too seriously’ brand approach helps us maintain a fun energy,” Dejean says.

Another key reason for Rumble’s growth is the power of community. The boutique fitness brand has been able to combine the fitness benefits of boxing with the allure of group fitness, which has become even more desired post-pandemic as people seek to regain in-person connections they lost out on during lockdowns and social distancing.

“When Rumble propelled into the NYC market in 2017, it was really one of the first of its kind to offer boxing-inspired group fitness,” Dejean notes. “Everyone can benefit from community and connection, and even more so after years of on-demand and virtual workouts.” 

Rumble’s popularity among female franchise owners has been the result of organic growth rather than any strategic decisions on the part of Xponential; the boutique fitness franchisor seeks capable business partners regardless of gender. 

“We simply look for energetic individuals who want to own their own business and ideally, are passionate about fitness,” Grove says. “Someone who has business acumen, sufficient financial resources, the ability to manage and motivate a team, and the ability to follow our proven systems.”

For Grobler, the decision to open a Rumble studio was a natural choice, driven by her love of the brand’s boxing-inspired workouts as well as Xponential’s famous “playbook” for franchise owners.

“Xponential provides guidance in all departments. The sales and marketing team work very hard to provide a play that works,” Grobler says. “This frees up a lot of time to work on how to execute the play. The training team has been invaluable in providing not just a great workout but truly being mentors.”

Grobler, who also owns a Pure Barre franchise that she bought in 2017 before Xponential acquired that brand, believes franchising can be very rewarding – she left a career as a mechanical engineer in the oil industry to gain more control over her schedule – but it’s not without its share of challenges, like any business.

“I’ll have to quote (franchise expert and author) Scott Greenberg and say, ‘If you don’t like roller coasters, you probably won’t like franchising,’” she says. “A big part of my success is that I’ve just kept going through all the ups and downs.”

Overall, Rumble has over 65 studios open and 375 franchise licenses signed as of Q2 2023, impressive growth given the brand only started franchising after being acquired by Xponential in 2021. As Rumble looks to continue opening studios across the country and world, it will focus on markets that meet its criteria in terms of demographics and real estate. 

But more than anything, where Rumble heads next will be driven by franchisee demand.

“While we do target key markets in our marketing approach, our expansion strategy is driven by where our franchisees want to open a studio,” Grove says.

The post Rumble Boxing Is a Hit With Female Franchisees appeared first on Athletech News.

Randy Hetrick knows a good fitness business opportunity when he sees one. He also knows how to build a company from the ground up. 

Hetrick, a former Navy SEAL who started TRX from his garage and turned it into a functional equipment giant, believes he’s found the next big white space in the fitness market: outdoor workouts enabled by modern tech.

A couple of years ago, Hetrick started OutFit Training, a concept that offers interval-style strength training workouts led by expert instructors, all staged out of vans parked in the great outdoors and packed with TRX functional training gear, flat-screen TVs and thumping sound systems.

“Think of OutFit as a world-class gym on wheels,” Hetrick tells Athletech News about his new company, which just started franchising. “Each unit has enough equipment to train up to 100 people at a time, although most classes are similar to other group fitness classes, so around 15 to 25 participants.”

Hetrick first got the idea to start a mobile outdoor fitness company around a decade ago, when he was still running TRX. Around that time, the equipment maker did a brand activation called “TRX On Tour” in which trainers drove a van around the country and conducted outdoor group fitness classes to promote TRX products and workouts.

“Every time we ran it, we had people coming up asking us if they could work on one of the TRX On Tour units or asking if it was a franchise,” Hetrick recalls. “I was really intrigued by the opportunity, but if you think back 10 years ago, there was none of the tech that would be required to scale that kind of business.”

Over the next decade, as direct-to-consumer apps proliferated and business software became ever more impressive, Hetrick grew convinced that technology was advanced enough for him to run and scale his outdoor training idea.

When the pandemic came and caused outdoor fitness to become more popular than ever, Hetrick knew the timing was finally right to go all-in. He created OutFit in 2021 and spent much of that year forming a team and building out all of the assets needed to launch the business to the public, including, most notably, a highly sophisticated tech stack. OutFit’s secret sauce is its sleek and functional consumer-facing app, which allows customers to find a training van in their area, book classes and browse workouts all on their smartphone. 

“If you think about OutFit’s tech, it’s kind of a mashup of the capabilities of a rideshare service like Uber – that’s the geolocation and mapping piece – and also something like Mindbody where you have online registration, scheduling and billing,” Hetrick explains. “We’ve (also) brought some social engagement features into our app, although we’re in the early stages of personalization.”

OutFit plans to add features to its app including gamification, status rewards and the ability for users to look back at their workout history.

With the tech in place, OutFit went live in the South Florida area in 2022, launching a corporate-owned fleet of vans to test its outdoor training concept before opening it up for franchise sales.

“My feeling after having been in the industry for a long time is you can’t be a great franchisor until you’ve been a franchisee and eaten your own dog food,” Hetrick explains. “We ran the corporate market for about 18 months and it’s been great, we have unbelievable subscription metrics. Our members are crazy about the service.”

Encouraged by that success, OutFit started selling franchise licenses at the beginning of Q2 of this year, so it’s still early days for the brand. Hetrick shared that OutFit recently sold its first multi-unit deal to a group in Atlanta and has several other agreements in the pipeline, including one with a group in Northern California. 

The early success comes despite OutFit having yet to spend any money on marketing.

“I’m looking forward to ramping up our marketing spend as we begin to scale,” Hetrick says. 

OutFit’s chief selling point to consumers is that it’s an affordable way to engage in group fitness classes or personal training sessions in an outdoor setting while being coached by top instructors. OutFit’s signature membership option features unlimited group classes for just $100 a month. 

“You could come 30 times if you wanted to and pay $3.50 a class for expertly coached outdoor boutique group fitness,” Hetrick notes. “Even if you only come a few times a week, you’re looking at something under 10 bucks in class, which is pretty phenomenal for a boutique experience.”

OutFit also offers more expensive private memberships for small group training and personal training classes. It further offers a “custom” service where large groups like businesses, schools and sports teams can essentially rent out a van and engage in a workout of their choosing. 

For franchisees, OutFit is a relatively low-cost way to own a fitness business. Franchisees can get started with their own Outfit van for a total buy-in of less than $100,000. That’s far cheaper than the start-up costs for most boutique fitness brands, which can stretch into the many hundreds of thousands and even top $1 million.

Due to OutFit’s low-cost model, Hetrick anticipates that many of the company’s franchisees will be fitness professionals and/or veterans, who are often entrepreneurial but are usually priced out of modern-day fitness businesses. 

“Most of the groups that own fitness franchises are investor groups with pooled capital from LPs,” Hetrick says. “There’s nothing wrong with that, and we certainly expect that we’ll have some of those in our system. But I started TRX out of my garage after a career as a SEAL with no money, so I have a real affection and respect for entrepreneurs that want to build businesses for themselves and their families.”

OutFit projects that each van has the potential to do around $400,000 in top-line revenue a year, which would allow franchisees to quickly break even and start earning a profit given the low initial buy-in and what Hetrick says are relatively low operating costs. 

“The economics are pretty incredible because the expenses are so low from buy-in to your monthly operating expenses,” he says. “It’s a relatively low-risk deployment of capital, rapid breakeven and then you’re investing in a unit that has impressive revenue potential.”

Another important aspect of OutFit’s mission as a brand is to give back. Taking a page out of the TRX playbook – the functional equipment brand offers discounts and other deals for active and former military members – OutFit will offer free memberships for first responders and their families.

“It’s an organic, authentic way to get members of the police service, fire service and EMT out there working out with the citizens in the communities they serve,” Hetrick says. “It’s something we think is pretty special and we’re excited to continue it as we scale.”

As it looks to scale, OutFit plans to focus on growing its franchise footprint in the Southern and Western parts of the U.S. (and potentially Canada) for at least the next few years, where the climate is more hospitable to doing outdoor fitness year-round. 

That’s not to say OutFit won’t ever expand to the Northeast and Midwest, but snow-heavy locales aren’t in the cards just yet.

“We’re going to start with everything south of the Mason-Dixon Line and then look north on the Western side of the country,” Hetrick says. “There’s a couple hundred million people in that area, so you can build a decent-sized business on that.”

The post A ‘World-Class Gym on Wheels:’ Randy Hetrick Has Big Plans for OutFit Training appeared first on Athletech News.

As demand for boutique fitness experiences swells and time becomes an increasingly precious commodity, Body20’s ‘train smarter, not longer’ concept is appealing to fitness enthusiasts looking to get fit in less time. 

The science-backed Body20 uses electro-muscle stimulation (EMS) to deliver what it says are the same muscle-building benefits of a complete strength-training program in a single 20-minute workout. Members sport an FDA-cleared EMS suit, which uses electrical stimulation to create recurring muscle contractions, producing over 150 times more muscle contractions than a conventional workout. 

Gregory Breitbart, CEO of Body20, spoke with Athletech News about the interesting backstory behind the EMS brand, his experience leading a popular and rapidly expanding franchisor, and why he believes Body20 can change people’s lives.

Athletech News: Tell us a bit about Body20 and how you got involved with the brand.

Gregory Breitbart: Body20 is a boutique fitness franchise that combines personal training with breakthrough whole-body electro-muscle stimulation technology over the course of 20 minutes to provide the same benefit of hours of strength training at the gym. Our members consistently are able to gain muscle mass while losing fat in just 20-40 minutes per week, according to aggregated body composition data across our full memberships base. We currently have over 40 locations open or in presale across the United States, with 200 in development.

I am the CEO of Body20 but not the founder. We have an interesting backstory that starts in South Africa. The original founder came to the United States about five years ago to open a Body20. At the time, there were around 40 locations in South Africa and the United States market for whole-body EMS was ready for takeoff (as the devices we use were just starting to get FDA clearance.) He met my current partner Christopher Pena in South Florida, and they ended up opening up the first Body20 together in Fort Lauderdale and partnering to franchise Body20 in the United States. That’s when I got introduced and ultimately became CEO.

My father and I had just finished building and selling, ironically, an electricity company, and he had just moved to Florida to retire. We built the company over seven years to over 125 employees and over $400,000,000 a year in revenue and had a successful exit, so I think he probably thought he was done, but then he tried Body20. He started as an obsessed customer, networked his way into Chris and the original founder and eventually ended up becoming their partner. That’s when I ended up joining and taking over as CEO. 

I’d say the rest is history, but that would downplay the ridiculous amount of hard work, ups and downs and work still to do. We ended up buying out the original partners, rebranding the business, reconceptualizing the physical space and experience, and changing just about every other aspect of the business to make it what you see today. We didn’t have overnight success, but our patience and determination to do things the right way, even if it meant going slower, ultimately paid off. Today we have over 225 Body20 locations open or in development and happy franchisees.

ATN: What was it like growing Body 20 over the last several years?

GB: Part one of our journey was just plain hard. We didn’t have a 20-year struggle to find success but we condensed about 20 years of struggling into 3 years at Body20. Basically, the first few years were tough, and we had just about everything thrown at us, including a once-in-a-100-year global pandemic, which surprisingly was probably our easiest challenge.

Part two of our journey has been much easier, more fun and more rewarding. Over the past couple years, Body20 has had a lot of serendipity where we’ve been able to find some of the most amazing franchisees, employees, executives and even some new business partners that have all helped take Body20 to the next level, and they’re making this part of the journey incredibly exciting.

ATN: What is your greatest strength? 

GB: This probably sounds funny, but I think my greatest strength, at least in this endeavor, has been a lack of franchising experience. It’s certainly been a weakness at times as well but it’s forced me to probably over-hire experience on our executive team. It’s also allowed us as an organization to think more outside the box than your average franchisor because we didn’t just go with the solution we used last time. As we brought in more and more experienced executives, we realized how unique we were doing things. Mostly for the good, but of course, we reinvented a few wheels that were not as good too.   

ATN: What motivates you? 

GB: It sounds cliché, but it’s true. I am motivated mostly by two factors. The first one is that I know that our workout has the ability to change people’s lives and not just from a fitness standpoint but from a therapeutic standpoint, and I want to make sure everyone who needs this gets to try it. Secondly, I am motivated by a desire to deliver for our franchisees. 

Being the CEO of a franchisor is a heavy job, and I never have and never will take my responsibility lightly. Our franchisees largely decide to open Body20s because of financial goals, and while a lot of their results are on their own shoulders, I want to make sure that Body20 does everything it can possibly do to make this as easy and automatic for them as possible.  

ATN: What is your greatest accomplishment? 

GB: Keeping the lights on at Body20 in the early days. The story still has more to be told, but we are in a great spot as a business today, and it wasn’t always the case. We had some really low points in our early days, and it would have been really easy to give up, but I didn’t, and my partners didn’t, and I am very proud of that.

I tell our franchisees that if there was a magic red button in business ownership that makes it all disappear and it never happened, there will be a moment that you would press the button, but 10-15 years from now, you will be so glad that that button didn’t exist. Starting a business is in many ways an act of “burning the boats” and when you burn the boats, it’s amazing what you can accomplish with a little extra motivation.

ATN: Who is your mentor?

GB: My mentor has been my father, who has indirectly and directly been teaching me business since I was about five years old.  I always was fascinated with it as a kid, and I realize now that I’m older how much I learned through osmosis during my childhood.  We also have now owned two companies together and worked together for 10+ years, so I’ve learned a lot directly as well. We have a lot of complementary strengths and weaknesses, so I’m not a mirror image, but from a business philosophy and ethics standpoint, we are cut from the same cloth. He’s also a great dad.

ATN: How do you see fitness evolving in the future?

GB: Less dumbbells, more Body20. Our workout and our electro-muscle stimulation technology allows our members to build muscle without lifting weights. Body20 puts almost no strain on tendons, ligaments or joints, and you can build muscle in a fraction of the time.  Our vision statement as a company is “A World without Dumbbells”. It’s somewhat sensationalized, but we truly believe what we are doing can change fitness forever.

The post CEO Corner: Gregory Breitbart on Body20’s Franchise Success appeared first on Athletech News.

Crunch Fitness has been redefining the gym experience since 1989. Starting as the original “No Judgments” gym, Crunch has carved a distinctive niche for itself in the fitness landscape. Since the pandemic, Crunch has been expanding rapidly; the company already has 430 gyms open worldwide and is on pace to open 65 this year alone.

Crunch Fitness CEO Jim Rowley spoke with Athletech News about how Crunch drives growth for its franchisees, its approach to evaluating real estate and its push into hybrid fitness.

The following conversation has been lightly edited for clarity and length.

Athletech News: What differentiates Crunch from other gym chains?

Jim Rowley: Crunch has always been different. We started in 1989 as the original No Judgments gym, and our offbeat brand has a fun, diverse offering that includes awesome group fitness classes, miles of cardio, tons of weights and rockstar personal trainers.  

We knew our success during our first 20 years could be adapted to work in the growing high-value, low-price space that would make us unique and special in that extremely competitive and crowded place. Since launching our model in 2009, we’ve been among the fastest-growing concepts in the country. Crunch Fitness offers a different model than its competitors – more reward, training and ongoing support for our franchised club owners and the best value for members, including proprietary classes, group training and personal training included in one membership.

ATN: How does Crunch support franchisees with signing leases?

JR: Crunch was named one of the nation’s top retail tenants signing new leases in 2021 and 2022 by CoStar. This growth will continue to pick up speed in the coming years. Crunch supports its franchisees in the lease process in several ways. We have an internal support team that provides lease opportunities through our real estate network, we help evaluate sites for excellence and we work with several third-party vendors (including Buxton) to supply the franchisees with an arsenal of information to help support their decision. If there are specific lease questions, we provide experienced feedback as well. Ultimately, the selection, evaluation and final decision rests with the individual franchise owners.

ATN: How does Crunch support franchise growth overall?

JR: Once leases are signed, Crunch continues to provide actionable training, development and support to the franchise network. We aim for as many check-ins or touch points as possible once a franchisee signs a lease, including when they move into pre-sale and buildout and when running a fully operational gym. 

We offer a training program called The Crunch 10 Protocol, a comprehensive, 10-step training process for new franchise owners and executives to all systems, policies and procedures leading up to the opening of their first gym. Through Crunch 10, franchisees learn about real estate, financing, equipment, gym development, group fitness, personal training, training and development, sales, and gym operations and policies. The Training Protocol includes over 200 hours of training delivered through a variety of learning methods like eLearning courses delivered through our world-class learning management system, Crunch Connected, webinars, in-person classroom-style training and hands-on, in-gym training designed to deliver content at the appropriate time and increase retention. Topics cover real estate, financing, equipment, gym development, marketing, branding, pre-sale, group fitness, personal training, training and development, sales and gym operations.

Additionally, there is a social community platform where franchisees can connect and learn from other Crunch team members and content experts throughout our international network.

Moreover, we recently invested in our National Training Center in Jacksonville, which significantly increased the support offered to our franchise partners and teams. As part of the Crunch Harbour Village location, the Training Center provides an in-depth curriculum covering gym operations, including planning, pre-sale, construction, marketing, sales, operations, group fitness, personal training and fitness education.

ATN: What are Crunch’s biggest areas of opportunity?

JR: Crunch has a solid track record of club openings, including more than 430 gyms worldwide, currently in 37 states, the District of Columbia, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Portugal, Puerto Rico and Spain. Crunch is rapidly expanding across the U.S. and around the globe with commitments to open an additional 1,000+ franchise locations.

With the state of the economy and major retail closures like Bed Bath & Beyond, in addition to thousands of businesses that have already sadly closed due to the pandemic, landlords and developers are looking to rebuild these emptied retail spaces. This is an opportunity for Crunch as fitness centers not only successfully fill these vacant spots but drive an impressive amount of foot traffic to the surrounding areas, making them a sought-after tenant. In fact, according to CoStar, gym visits were up 17.6% last summer compared to 2019 — the biggest increase of any retail or business establishment type in the survey.

ATN: What have been Crunch’s biggest recent successes?

JR: Crunch is a leading fitness brand and one of the fastest-growing companies in the industry. In the three-and-a-half years since the start of the pandemic, we’ve seen our membership base grow by more than 76%. To see this growth during a challenging time is a testament to the great offerings and service provided by Crunch and the ongoing support, enthusiasm and engagement of all franchise owners.

This member growth, a compounded annual growth rate of 17.4%, is unmatched in the category.  And we’re on pace to open over 65 clubs this year. Our growth hasn’t gone unnoticed. Entrepreneur named us to their Franchise 500 10+ Club honoring an elite group of franchisors. Additionally, Entrepreneur listed Crunch at number 30 on their Top Global Franchises list among those successful franchises with international opportunities.

Last year, Crunch was named by CoStar as one of the Top Retailers Signing New Leases.

ATN: What’s next for Crunch?

JR: Crunch is continuing to grow in membership and gym locations across the world and we’re always exploring ways to bring our unique fitness programming and classes to everyone, everywhere — especially as the world has moved into, and will remain operating, in a hybrid world of virtual and in-person fitness and work. With this in mind, we elevated our online platform this year with the introduction of Crunch+, a new platform to access on-demand and live-streamed workouts at any time and on any device. It brings to life our expertise in creating “Entertainment Fitness” with HIIT, Sculpt, yoga, Cardio Tai Box, stretching, Pilates and meditation, in addition to episodic content that follows a storyline format allowing users to build upon new skills week by week. 

We are continuing to build out Crunch+ and will look to other ways to keep our members connected in a world of hybrid fitness. 

The post Crunch Fitness CEO on Franchise Growth, Real Estate ‘Opportunity’ for Gyms appeared first on Athletech News.

The boutique fitness space is hyper-competitive and dynamic, but it can also be highly repetitive, with a seemingly endless string of Pilates, yoga, spin and bootcamp brands that are often hard to tell apart. 

MADabolic, the barbell-free strength and conditioning concept founded by former professional hockey players Brandon Cullen and Kirk Dewaele, is many things, but it’s certainly not a knockoff or offshoot of an already established group fitness modality. 

The brand bills itself as the only strength-driven interval training franchise in the fitness industry; a typical MADabolic workout features full-body fundamental movements performed with tools like kettlebells, dumbbells and medicine balls, relatively short rest periods and expert coaches that are drilled on the finer points of human movement.  

If that sounds intense, it’s because it is. According to Cullen, MADabolic primarily targets a specific demographic: 25 to 45-year-old “high-performing professionals” who enjoy strength training and want to push themselves to the limit. MADabolic’s male members tend to span the 30-45 age range while females skew around five years younger. 

“It’s not an athletic capability, it’s more of a mindset,” Cullen says, adding that the typical MADabolic member is someone who “demands a little bit more out of life.”

“They’re conscious of their eating habits, their sleeping patterns, they’re drinking the best coffee in their neighborhood and they enjoy all the great things life has to offer,” the MADabolic co-founder adds. “They’re chasing something more than your average consumer.”

MADabolic’s target demographic is smaller than many of its competitors, but Cullen believes that gives his company an advantage over boutique fitness brands that tend to go after the same “very crowded pool” of customers.

“Taking more of that sniper approach versus a shotgun approach has worked very well for us,” he says. “That niche is easier to prioritize and once you identify it, you can cater your entire offering toward that specific population.”

The strategy is paying off. Buoyed by a strategic investment from ZGrowth Partners in 2019 as well as the rising popularity of strength training, MADabolic currently has 27 units up and running with another seven to eight set to open by the end of the year. An additional 70-plus franchise units are under contract or in development.

“By the end of next week, we’ll probably have even more deals in that pipeline,” Cullen says, adding that much of the brand’s growth has come recently. 

Finding a ‘Sweet Spot’ in Boutique Fitness

Cullen and Dewaele started MADabolic back in 2011 after the two were searching for a way to put the strength and conditioning expertise they gained during their time as hockey players to use in their post-playing careers. 

Cullen said that when he and Dewaele were deciding which modality to pursue, they noticed a void in the boutique fitness space. On one end of the spectrum, there was barbell-heavy, sport-specific training featuring movements like Olympic lifts and powerlifting exercises. On the other, there was the bootcamp-style approach popularized by big-box gyms and at-home fitness companies, which includes cardio, bodyweight exercises and some light weights, but not the type of high-quality strength training movements that lead to serious results for serious people.  

“There was a sweet spot right in the middle, for people that wanted a little bit more and were open to strength training,” Cullen explains. “They may or may not have been intimidated by the barbell, but they wanted more out of their fitness experience, meaning they craved results.”

Cullen isn’t inherently against the barbell, but he and Dewaele feel that it carries an unnecessary risk of injury for non-athletes and is significantly harder to scale in a group fitness environment than training that includes kettlebells, dumbbells and explosive bodyweight movements like jumping. It’s part of what MADabolic dubs its “fitness for life” approach to training, rather than “fitness for sport,” the latter of which is suboptimal for people who are no longer playing or competing, the company believes. 

“If you look at a complex movement like a barbell snatch, essentially you’re trying to demand explosive hip power,” Cullen offers as an example. “We can safely do that in any environment with a well-taught kettlebell swing.”

Another important part of what makes MADabolic unique is its trainers. Cullen explains that, rather than typical group fitness classes where instructors are there more for the motivation and “cheerleading” aspect than to actually coach movement, MADabolic’s trainers offer something more akin to “one-on-one personal training,” albeit in a group setting, usually of 20 to 25 people. 

MADabolic’s trainers undergo a rigorous, weeks-long education program. They’re coached on aspects including how to help members perform the brand’s strength-training movements with proper form and how to spot and prioritize class members who need the most help. 

“At times I get frustrated being looped in with our competitors (in the group fitness space) because what we do on the training floor doesn’t really have an equal,” Cullen says. “Our trainers are charismatic, but ultimately they’re there to train you and make you better physically. They’re not there to entertain you.”

Inside MADabolic’s Expansion Plans

MADabolic’s type-A approach to fitness and wellness extends beyond program design and influences how the company presents itself to consumers and prospective franchisees. 

“People might say, ‘Oh, those guys have a chip on their shoulder,’” Cullen says. “We do a little bit, but it’s because we’re marketing to people that relate to that. If our tone is off-putting, it’s okay, we’re not marketing to you.”

Cullen believes that approach will help MADabolic grow, not slow it down. Despite catering to a relatively niched-down customer base, Cullen can see MADabolic getting at least as big as 200 locations.

“Our primary goal is to isolate the top 50 markets in the United States or even maybe North America,” he explains. “If we were to drop two to five units in each, based on our psychographics, that gets us to 200 very conservatively.”

Right now, the company is seeing the most success expanding into what Cullen calls “powerhouse B-plus markets,” up-and-coming cities with slightly smaller populations than huge metro areas like New York, LA, Miami or Chicago.

In addition to a strong presence the brand already has in areas like Charlotte, Austin and Raleigh, MADabolic is set to open studios in similarly sized cities including Denver, Philadelphia and Tampa.

Not only are those secondary markets growing in popularity amid post-pandemic migration patterns, they also tend to be highly receptive to MADabolic’s unique approach to training. Bigger cities, by contrast, tend to be more celebrity and influencer-driven and less focused on results, Cullen has found. 

That’s not to say MADabolic won’t look to gain a foothold in America’s top cities– it already has a studio opened in Brooklyn – but the brand will be deliberate and strategic about its expansion plans in those areas. 

“If you’re going to do Manhattan, you want to do Manhattan right, with Mr. or Mrs. Manhattan,” Cullen says. “LA, Chicago and Miami are no different. Part of that requires capital and celebrity, in my opinion.”

While reaching the 200-location number would be nothing to sneeze at, Cullen says there’s a chance MADabolic could become even bigger than that if it’s successful in building itself into a brand name among fitness enthusiasts. 

“That might give us the runway to start exploring markets outside of the initial goal,” he says. “If you look at some of the bigger brands, they can open anywhere and people know they’re coming. We’re still creating that storyline.”

The post How MADabolic’s Unique Approach to Fitness Is Driving Growth appeared first on Athletech News.

Heather Rhyu got into the fitness business almost by accident. In 2015, she moved from San Francisco to New York with her husband and baby daughter. Armed with both an MBA and a CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) certification, she had made it in the world of finance, but felt she was missing out on life.

“I worked really hard to get where I was but wasn’t really that happy to just be sitting at a desk all day,” she said. “I felt like I was missing time with my kid, and had another one on the way.”

One day she got a cold call from a franchise consultant.

“I was skeptical to take her call initially, but was in a place in my life where I was ready to make a change, so I thought, why not. Let’s go for it.”

Rhyu, who was born in southern California but grew up mostly in Westchester, told the consultant about being bitten by the fitness bug during college and her longtime desire to own her own business. A month later, she was presented with three fitness franchise ideas. Although the cycling and kickboxing options weren’t particularly interesting to her, the third idea, Pilates, caught her attention. The franchisor was headquartered in southern California.

“I had a trip to LA planned to visit family, so we tacked on a trip to Irvine. I met the Club Pilates team and really fell in love with the concept, and thought they would be great to work with, even though I didn’t know a whole lot about Pilates back then.”

After doing some research, Rhyu realized that Westchester County, the suburb of New York City where she now lived, was an untapped market for the exercise modality that was beginning to increase in popularity elsewhere in the country. There were a few small studios in Westchester with one or two reformers, which limited their offerings to private sessions or duets (two-person classes). The Club Pilates layout with 12 reformer stations could serve a larger audience and make reformer Pilates more accessible.

Rhyu signed her licensing agreement in the summer of 2016 and a lease a few months later, finally opening her first studio, in Scarsdale, in March 2017. Over the next two and a half years she would open two more, followed by a Rumble boxing gym this year that she co-owns with one of her instructors.

The appeal of the Pilates modality, according to Rhyu, is its stickiness.

“When someone gets into Pilates, they can’t just stop and move to a different form of exercise. Many of our members have been with us since day one. It is the only thing that works forever. It’s such a good thing to be doing for your body, and it makes your body actually feel better and work better. I play a lot of tennis. I like to stay active. But when I don’t do at least two Pilates classes a week, I definitely notice the difference with my back. I think you’re just more injury prone without that core workout.”

Getting Started

Rhyu got a lot of support from the corporate Club Pilates team in Irvine to help make her dream a reality. She was assigned a commercial real estate broker to work with and given a list of recommended vendors, including a lease attorney and architect. Although franchisees can select their own contractors, they have no say in how the studio is set up.

“All of the Club Pilates have to look exactly the same, and I think that makes a lot of sense for the brand,” she says. “The main studio must have 12 Balanced Body reformers stations, or more if you’re doing a double studio. You must have the TRX, the Bosu ball, the Balanced Body bar and springboard. Xponential makes it very easy. In the private room, you have a little more flexibility depending on how much space you have.”

To run the front and back ends of the business, clubs use an app called Club Ready that is provided by and supported by Xponential. Franchisees don’t need to worry about the tech part.

Pilates was less known when Rhyu was starting out than it is today.

“People were commenting on our Facebook posts saying ‘I don’t even know what this is,'” she recalls. “It took a while to really ramp up Scarsdale. And then by the time I opened Ardsley six months later, the local Pilates community was growing, and that created excitement about the opening. We had a little bit of cannibalization at first, but not too much. And then a couple of years later, when I opened New Rochelle, I think Pilates was more popular.”

Rhyu’s three Club Pilates studios have an extremely active and engaged membership and a full slate of classes that almost always have wait lists. Although she doesn’t do any paid advertising, she receives about 5-10 leads per day that result in the membership growth to replace the 4-5% per month attrition her studios experience (which is lower than the 6% average for the Club Pilates system).

She was able to recoup her investment (which, according to Sharpsheets.io, is typically around $300K per studio) in fewer than the three and a half years it takes the average Club Pilates franchisee.  Rhyu said that margins at her studios are strong and financial performance has exceeded her expectations.

For the past several years, her clubs have ranked among the highest in the company for revenue from private sessions. Part of this may be due to the affluence of Westchester County, where median household income is 30% higher than the country as a whole.

Social media is another factor, she says.

“I think all the reformer Pilates studios got a bump in demand and revenue because people were posting about it on TikTok. So, it’s kind of nice because I wasn’t personally posting on the platform, but a lot of others, including celebrities and athletes, were doing so.”

The Advantage of Business Experience

Before Anthony Geisler and Xponential took over Club Pilates in 2015, many of the brand’s franchisees were Pilates instructors. Although they knew how to teach, they didn’t really understand how to run a business. Rhyu feels her business experience has played a major role in her success as a franchisee.

“I was a business major in college, and then right out of college was working in operations for Universal Studios in LA. It was not glamorous at all, but it was an entry point into corporate America. Later, I went back to business school and got into finance. Understanding the business side, the numbers side, really helped. Also, I’ve been on the sales side, too, which obviously is important when you’re in a customer-facing business.”

Although many of the original Club Pilates franchisees stayed for a few years after Geisler bought the company, Rhyu said that as Xponential grew, some of them decided the new business model wasn’t working for them.

“For some of the core crew, it wasn’t the same relationship. It was a different dynamic, and I think some people didn’t like it and decided to get out.”

Many sold to a new breed of franchisees who, like Nashville-based David Schuck, were beginning to accumulate large portfolios of fitness studios. Schuck’s company Spartan Fitness Holdings, backed by private equity firm Snapdragon Capital Partners, is now the largest Club Pilates franchisee with around 40 Club Pilates studios in Texas, North Carolina, Missouri, Ohio and Kansas.  

Rhyu is open to buying more Club Pilates franchises if the territories have potential and are conveniently located. But it’s getting harder and harder.

“I feel extremely lucky about my timing because now you can’t even find a Club Pilates if you wanted to open one,” she says. “You’d have to purchase one from another franchisee, or settle for one in an area you don’t want to be in.”

Tradeoffs

Rhyu enjoys some aspects of the business more than others.

“I don’t mind doing payroll, and I enjoy doing the reporting stuff. People are always joking about Excel, but I’m an Excel wizard. Anything that’s related to reporting and numbers, that’s my thing. And I love to be able to go in and take classes and see members.”

Marketing, however, is a side of the business she has not yet acquired a taste for.

“It’s extremely time-consuming, you have to spend a lot of time on social media, email marketing, things I don’t love but that I understand are a key part of the business. There’s a lot of detail in marketing now that it’s gone digital. It’s no longer as simple as you approve this campaign and then it launches.”

Her studios have monthly goals, and part of the managers’ compensation is a bonus tied to results like revenue and member retention. Rhyu feels there’s always room to run the business in a more professional way, however.

“There’s a franchisee who owns five studios in Chicago and has an entire management team of eight or 10 full-time salaried people, including a lead instructor and a district manager. As you open more studios, you can’t be as involved as you were with number one. And I find that the hardest thing for me is to figure out the balance and try to delegate, to empower my managers to take over the things that I was once doing without checking back all the time.”

When asked what the biggest challenges are on an ongoing basis, Rhyu was unequivocal.

“Staff turnover is always a difficult challenge, especially if you lose an instructor who’s teaching a lot, because it’s just so hard to find Pilates instructors. We conduct teacher training every year, but there still aren’t enough of them right now.”

How does she retain talent? “Obviously, compensation matters for everybody, but I also think it’s hard to build and maintain a culture the way our work environment is set up,” Rhyu says. “It’s not like an office where you have interactions with multiple people throughout the day. I have close to 40 employees across the three Club Pilates locations and many of them don’t know each other. I try to organize at least two social events a year.”

As is always the case in life, there are tradeoffs that come with being your own boss.

“I tell people who are thinking of making this move that you just have to have a strong backbone and be able to deal with the small fires because there really is never a dull day, there’s always something going on, whether your toilet’s clogged, or there’s a leak, or somebody quit, or an instructor didn’t show up, or a member is angry and wants six months of refunds,” Rhyu says.

These “small fires” pale in comparison to the pandemic, however.

“It was crazy, because we were in the heart of it,” Rhyu recalls. “New Rochelle was Ground Zero for COVID-19 in the U.S. I remember having a call with Anthony (Geisler) because I had a staff member in New Rochelle who had tested positive. We thought we could just close that location and keep the other two open. And then within a week or two, the whole world was shut down. We got very entrepreneurial, creating content for streaming and online classes. Luckily, we only had to close the studios for 6 months.”

About that fateful day in 2015 when she took the franchise consultant’s call, Rhyu says, “I’m so happy I made the decision that I made. I can’t imagine still working in the corporate world. I love the life that I’ve built. It’s really allowed me to have so much flexibility and time at home with my kids. If I want to make time to play tennis, I can do it. I think not reporting to someone has been nice, too.”

“Although I give all the credit to my amazing instructors for helping members move and feel better, I feel like I’m doing my part to give people access to something that will improve their lives. I feel like this was what I was meant to do.”

The post Club Pilates Franchisee Finds Her True Calling in Boutique Fitness appeared first on Athletech News.