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FRANCHISE: Gold’s Gym

like franchisors. Most often they resem- ble licensors, companies that give per- mission (for a fee) for licensees to use brand names, logos, trademarks and sometimes advertising or marketing de- veloped by the licensor. They also allow the licensee to act on his/her own be- half when it comes to establishment of operating systems, local marketing and general business practices. This can be both beneficial and detrimental.

Franchisees closing stateside

In the U.S., many industry-publica-

tion-lauded franchisors from as little as two years ago have already disap- peared much to the chagrin of thou- sands of members and the franchisees who invested hard-earned savings in their businesses, most likely second- mortgaged homes and heavy credit card debt. Unfortunately, hundreds of franchi-

sees in U.S. operations are operating unprofitably, most notably studio-type clubs, single-sex express facilities and 24-hour key-access clubs. As one noted

32 Fitness Business Canada March/April 2009

FRANCHISEE: Skye Kaiss, Regina www.goldsgymregina.com

kye Kaiss was

working as a civil engineer in the oil fields when a family friend introduced the idea of opening a Gold’s Gym franchise in Kaiss’s home town of Regina. Aſter re- searching the compa- ny, he bought his first franchise for $40,000 (plus monthly royalty fees) in 2006 and is set to open a second location (also in Re-

S

gina) this spring. The first club has been so successful, it won the Gold’s Gym Best Inter- national Gym award for 2008, a peer-nom- inated award based on a club’s success in numerous categories. Kaiss appreciates the brand aware- ness and trust that the Gold’s Gym name gives his business. ”People sign up because they know

American fitness expert recently said to me: “Remember, Michael, the first premise of franchising is that the fran- chisor makes money.” There are a few U.S. franchisors who

truly act as franchisors in total sup- port of their franchisees. The best in

the company has been around for years,” he says. He also benefits from access to marketing materials, a variety of operations manuals and deep discounts on equipment. “But being able to pick up the phone and talk to other franchisees with more experience, far outweighs any of the other benefits,” he claims. “They remem- ber their early days, and they love to help the new guy.”

my researched opinion is the Planet Fitness operation based in Dover, New Hampshire, that supports more than 200 franchisees in 32 states. (As of last contact with the company, Planet Fitness has no plans to come into the Canadian market.) Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56