Customer experience can make or break a brand. As Judy Turchin, founder of JPT Partners LLC and former COO of Eqinox puts it, “if you are not in touch with your customer, you've lost your way on the journey.” Today on The Business Side of Fitness Podcast we chat about all things related to customer experience including: What separates an outstanding customer experience from an okay one How organizations can measure their success (hint: it’s not just about revenue) How often businesses...

Gyms and studios can be hesitant to work with aggregators and marketplaces. The concern is often cannibalizing their current membership base, when really the role of these marketplaces is audience development. Today on The Business Side of Fitness Podcast, Massimiliano Sardi, Vice President & Head of Partnerships at Gympass shares, “90% of the time, it's a new customer, a new member going to them.” Gympass helps the fitness and wellness industry access a new group of people while...

We’ve all heard that content is king, but let’s face it; content without a solid strategy behind it is just noise. Erika Shannon-Hathaway knows all about laying out a content strategy that works.  On todays episode of The Business Side of Fitness Podcast, Erika shares the same methodology she used, which helped to take MYXfitness from 0 to favorable acquisition by BeachBody and then public via SPAC  in under two years.  Wow! Tune into today's episode to learn more about the relationship...

Every startup dreams of becoming a global brand, but not many make it. Today on the Business Side of Fitness Podcast, Star Sage, Director of Business Development at Hyperice shares what it’s been like to go from startup to megabrand over the last 8 years. Star attributes some of the success to relationship selling.  She says, ” I think in our industry,  we have such a luxury that we are selling something that is good for people. I think we forget that sometimes. And that's something that I...

“Life is a game. And the best storyteller wins. That simple. If somebody tells me that their sales are slow, then I tell them, well tell a better story. “ Storytelling really is the name of the game - in business and life! And nobody tells a better story than today's podcast guest, Roger Harvey. This man has impacted so many people and molded many careers in the fitness industry including mine. We have known each other for over 20 years and I’m still learning so much from him! Today’s...

The fitness business is a passion fueled business, but…there's a big difference between a hobby and a business. Not many people can turn their passion into a viable business, but Eric Posner, CEO and Co-Founder of Swerve is one of those people. Today on The Business Side of Fitness podcast, Eric shares the grit that got him and his team within striking distance of their 10th year in business.  While several virtual fitness brands are laying off workforces and recalibrating projections,...

“There's this terminology that sounds cool to talk about: series A series B, who cares? Build a product that changes the world.” Hot diggity dog.  Brian Chappon, CEO & Founder of CENTRED just gets it. Today’s podcast episode of The Business Side of Fitness is worth your time! Sugar coating is so lame. “I lost the weight by chasing my kids around” “I build this business with hard work and determination” Oh, come on….YOU KNOW there’s got to be more to the story. Today, Brian peels...

What or who would you say is the biggest underdog in fitness? In my opinion, it’s pilates. Pilates is incredibly versatile, effective and valuable, but it hasn’t really gone mainstream. Today, Kim Maugeri,  co-founder and CEO of Skōp joins us on The Business Side of Fitness.  Kim and her team are on a mission to redefine Pilates as a category and introduce it to the world in a new and exciting way. Tune in to the conversation to hear Kim share: -Connecting the dots between form and...

Looking to get that competitive edge? Partnerships are a great way to offer more value to end users without stressing over high acquisition costs. Today, on The Business Side of Fitness, Sean Turner, CEO of Les Mills US shares tips on how to create partnerships that are built to last. He gives us the scoop on: -How partnerships can solve retention problems -Corporate wellness, the Les Mills way -How the US market is different from other international markets -The uncommon KPI that his...

The anti-aging market sure is huge right now.  Is your business missing out? Doesn’t it blow your mind to think of how much money people invest into botox, fillers, plastic surgery and more to look younger? (p.s. no judgements here) But what about… feeling better? Fitness and wellness is the true bio-hack to ant-aging, right? Today on The Business Side of Fitness, Jonathan Freeman, the Founder and CEO of Club Active, a chain of fitness clubs dedicated to the 50+ over population shares how...

How many businesses were made during the pandemic, but won’t survive another year? Time will tell who is built to last and who isn’t. Today, on The Business Side of Fitness Podcast, Rab Shanableh, Co-Founder & CEO of OxeFit pulls back the curtain to bring us behind the scenes.  He shares: -Leveraging science to help athletes and every day people perform better -How the technology minimizes injuries for users -The thought process behind integrating multiple modalities in one piece of...

We’ve all heard the saying “the riches are in the niches”, yet niching down can be scarier than it seems. What about the revenue opportunities we’re leaving on the table? Let’s face it…FOMO stops a lot of business leaders from making bold decisions. Ultimately, when we think this way, what we’re really missing out on is our edge; the chance to craft messaging that deeply resonates with the client we best serve. Rachel Katzman, Co-Founder and Julie Cartwright, President of P.volve know all...

Does company culture impact profitability? Even though it may be difficult to quantify, Amber Martinez, COO of Pound believes there is a direct correlation between people and profits and I have to agree with her! Today on The Business Side of Fitness podcast, Amber drops 2+ decades worth of fitness business knowledge on us including: Her favorite acronym: REPS: relationships, experiences, processes, and success metrics Building a reputation as “the fixer” Tips for organizations that...

Amy Boone Thompson, Owner & CEO of IDEA Health & Fitness says it best, “Every fitness professional needs to hone their business skills.” Yes, we do!  The learning process never ends! To advance in business we need to: - Surround ourselves with people who elevate and inspire us - Invest in continuing education - Network with peers & mentors in our field Today on The Business Side of Fitness podcast, Amy shares the story of her career, along with numerous actionable tips on...

“Real businesses in the coming years are going to be franchise businesses that have strong sales and marketing, have systems in place and are part of a larger entity, because I think you have an advantage in that. And they're gonna have unit economics that continue to be replicated.” Pete Moore, Founder and Managing Partner of Integrity Square puts it all out there on todays episode of The Business Side of Fitness podcast. He drops so many gems in this conversation, you might need to...

Do you roll your eyes when you hear the word “personalization”? I’m kind of over it since a lot of what’s passed off as personalization is not in fact personalized, but more of an algorithm at play.  As a marketer, I get that this buzzword is a way to get attention in today's market. After chatting with Jason Moore, CEO & Founder of Spren, it’s clear that he and his team really get it.  They’re helping the everyday person decipher data (from wearables and smartphone cameras) and most...

Am I the only one that feels lost when it comes to the Metaverse, NFTs & Web 3.0? Honestly, I have been pushing off learning more about this “new world” because it felt like the future…something I can learn about in a few years, but it turns out the future is NOW. I tapped into expert Andy Hall, Head of Commercial at OliveX where he and his team are building the fitness metaverse to learn more. Check out today's episode of The Business Side of Fitness podcast to learn the following...

Our lives are shaped by our everyday habits. This is commonly known, but are we using behavioral psychology to really move the needle in the business of fitness and wellness? Today on The Business Side of Fitness Podcast, Laura Munkholm, Co-Founder and President of Walla shares how she’s using personality typology to help studios retain their clients and more. Tune into this episode to learn: -The biggest surprise Laura came across when launching Walla -Why businesses continue to rely on...

A truly skilled salesperson makes it look easy. They are the kind of person that seems totally at ease and watching them interact with people is like poetry in motion. It’s true artistry. They just always seem to close the sale, but… how?! Sales and marketing is the fuel that drives the machine of every business including yours, yet marketers and salespeople don’t necessarily have the reputation of being the most loved people on their teams. Am I right or am I right? Today...

Growth comes from stepping outside of your comfort zone and today I’m trying something I’ve never done before…. Surprise, surprise. Today’s episode of The Business Side of Fitness is a solo episode where I’m taking a deep dive into all things SALES in the context of fitness and wellness.  If you’re in the business of fitness and or wellness, this episode is a must listen for YOU to look at sales in a whole new way. Buckle up because we’re covering: Reframing our mindset around sales ...

Retention is the name of the game. Once we’ve acquired a client, we’ve got to have a strategy to hold on to that client.  A tight onboarding process gets things started off, but we’ve got to continue to deliver value to increase the lifetime value of each client. Aaron de Jong, Founder & CEO of movr had developed a great tool for connected fitness companies to improve retention. Today, on the podcast, Aaron shares his thoughts on: -Contributing factors that lead to his radically...

Just because something is available on the internet doesn’t mean it’s free for us to use any way we want. An example of this is music. We wouldn’t want someone swiping our proprietary workout videos to use for their gain, BUT…. We do this to musical artists all the time when we use their music in our offerings. Lots of us aren’t even aware of the legal implications of music licensing. I wasn’t!  It’s complicated! Today on The Business Side of Fitness, Kurt Debique, CEO and Founder of...

How many times have you heard the phrase, “you can’t out train a bad diet”? Probably a million or more. Some people never achieve the results they're looking for.  It’s not the fitness facilities fault. There’s a missing link. That missing link is nutrition. You’re probably nodding your head because you knew that already. Why then are fitness and nutrition typically siloed into different offerings when we know these are two foundational pillars of health and wellbeing? Josh Rider,...

Is the fitness industry really innovating or just creating multiple versions of the same offering? How can we, as an industry, inspire more people to move their bodies? One way to reach and resonate with new audiences is to explore different concepts AND messaging. LIT Method, founded by husband and wife team Justin and Taylor Norris is doing just that.  Their low-impact training concept has grown by “building bodies, not breaking them”. On today's episode of The Business Side of Fitness...