casey conrad, president, geoff dyer, founder and ceo, lifestyle
communication consultants, inc., family fitness, st. petersburg, florida
Wakefield, rhode island
“The IHRSA convention is a ‘must-see’ for every club
Conrad has been attending
operator every year,” insists Dyer. “It’s the place where
IHRSA conferences for 16 years,
new programs are introduced and the latest, most excit-
and she notes, “I wouldn’t miss
ing lines of equipment are unveiled. For me, it’s also the
one! Aside from speaking at
place where I can connect, and share best practices,
them, there are several reasons
with my peers. Every year, I walk away with new
that I attend: First, to stay on
information and fresh ideas about the emerging trends
top of the latest trends in prod-
that will provide Lifestyle Family Fitness with an ongo-
ucts and services. Second, to
ing competitive advantage.”
learn about anything new and/
Dyer observes that the con-
or different club operators are
vention also serves as a unique
doing that’s helping them to
lens that allows one to see how
perform better. Finally, to con-
the industry’s history informs
nect with colleagues whom I see
and interacts with recent shifts
only at the show.”
in technology, providing a per-
This year, Conrad cites the economy as a special,
spective on where things are
particularly compelling reason to attend. “In a challeng-
heading. “The industry has
ing economy, the convention is more important than
experienced quantum leaps in
ever, even if it’s just for psychological reasons,” she
the past 10-20 years,” he
says. “Going to an IHRSA show is inspiring and uplift-
explains, “with the introduction
ing. As operators, we live in the ‘cave’ of our club and
of new cardio and strength lines,
our towns. When we interact with a lot of other opera-
personal training, month-to-
tors, we frequently hear fabulous stories about how
month options, EFT-dues-only memberships, etc. The
they’re remaining competitive. If you discover just one
IHRSA show permits us to consider these changes
or two ideas that can help you perform better and, in
within the context of the next wave, so we can stay on
the process, are also inspired and have some fun, the
top of the trends that will drive traffic into our clubs in
conference is more than worth the investment.
the future.”
“If you came to my office, you’d see an entire wall of
audio tapes, CDs, and MP3 files of past seminars,” Con-
rad continues. “I’m an information junkie, and attribute
My ‘WOW!’Moment:
many of the ideas I’ve brought to fruition to some speaker
“My good friend Tony de Leede, the former
I saw at an IHRSA convention. In any consumer business,
head of Fitness First Australia, introduced
you’d better stay on top of the trends and the changes,
and now, more than ever, the consumer is changing.
me to some of his friends who were members
The way we need to do business is changing. Operators of a roundtable group that I joined nearly 20
simply cannot afford to not come to the conventions.”
years ago. That simple step led, eventually, to
my becoming a member of IHRSA’s board of
My ‘WOW!’Moment:
directors. Taken together, those two events
“In 2008, when I heard business author Seth
helped me to ‘leapfrog’ my company to a
Godin speak, I was further convinced that
much higher level.’
technology and the Internet were things that
our industry had to begin to embrace and
use. But, generally speaking, I can say that
the connections I’ve made at IHRSA over the
past 16 years have given me an incredible
Rolodex of contacts; when I’m looking for
information, I don’t have any trouble finding
it—that alone, in and of itself, is invaluable.”
www.ihrsa.org | JANUARY 2010 | Club Business International
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