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Canadian Fitness Industry Leadership Award 2018


Congratulations to Chuck Lawson BY TRISHA SARKER


Leadership Award recipient. Chuck Lawson entered the fit-


F


ness business in 1987 by purchasing a Gold’s Gym in Langley, B.C. New to the industry, Lawson struggled to get the business started. He was all about lifting weights and training, but even- tually he had to figure out a way to sell memberships. Fortunately, other Gold’s Gym owners assisted and men- tored him. Once he hired a sales force, things started looking up. He eventual- ly built the club up to $25,000 a month in dues while paying $2,000 in rent. A few years later, Lawson heard


about the success of some women’s clubs in Texas and was inspired to open his first women-only club in Abbotsford, B.C. called Just Ladies Fitness. It was a huge success, leading him to open three more clubs in White Rock, Surrey, and Delta over the next 30 months. Over the years, Just Ladies Fitness expanded to 13 locations in B.C. Lawson and his team had to fight many trademark and copyright issues as many other women’s clubs were popped up and tried to use the Just Ladies Fitness name.


itness Industry Council of Canada is proud to announce Chuck Lawson as the 2018 Canadian Fitness Industry


In 1999, a 20-year-old named Radha


Johal joined the team. She applied to be a babysitter at one of the clubs but was convinced to join the sales team. She eventually became the top sales- person, then managed a club, then moved to regional management and finally became COO of the company (her current position). Lawson gives Johal great credit for much of the chain’s success. In 2004/2005, Lawson faced the


largest legal battle thus far in his ca- reer. A man wanted to join one of the Just Ladies Fitness clubs and pursued it through the Human Rights Tribunal. At first Lawson thought it was a joke, but he quickly learned otherwise. The company hired specific counsel to handle the issue and also a media company to be sure everything was perceived correctly by the public. The battle, which the company won, cost over $200,000 and set a precedent within B.C. legislation confirming that women have the right to exercise in private. In 2006, Lawson heard about a trend


in the United States: value-priced clubs. After researching the new niche, he im- mediately began thinking about cre- ating his own value-priced club. With Johal, they determined a way to lower services, drop dues and sell more mem- berships at one of their Surrey locations. Its success convinced them to con- vert and rebrand all of their Just Ladies Fitness clubs into value-priced clubs. In 2007/2008, B.C. legislation was


suddenly changed, without consult- ing the fitness industry, and suddenly membership dues were not allowed to go beyond 24 months, meaning that members would need to re-sign their


30 Fitness Business Canada March/April 2018


membership agreements as they came due. Lawson immediately contacted Henry Polesky of Fitness World. The two men met with their local MLAs and explained how this change in leg- islation would not work for the fitness industry. After much effort and many legal bills, the result was the continua- tion of month-to-month memberships in B.C. Lawson gives Polesky immense credit in finalizing the details with the Solicitor General. Once Lawson’s women’s clubs proved


that the value-priced approached worked well, he decided to open a chain of co-ed value-priced clubs. While look- ing for possible locations, he mentioned to a friend the idea of working with retired hockey player Trevor Linden. His friend connected the two of them, and one month later they had a deal. In 2011, the first co-ed CLUB16 Trevor Linden Fitness was opened. In 2013, Lawson, his son Carl


and Trevor were introduced to Orangetheory Fitness at IHRSA’s Annual Convention and Tradeshow. That afternoon, on the tradeshow floor, they sought out David Hardy, partner and chief innovation offi- cer for Orangetheory Fitness Canada. The team purchased the rights to Orangetheory for Vancouver and the surrounding area upon returning from the convention. Over the past 31 years, Lawson has


been involved in building, partnering, buying or selling 35 different clubs. His business currently has nine CLUB16 Trevor Linden Fitness locations, four standalone She’s Fit! locations and six Orangetheory Fitness studios, with two more opening this year. Chuck Lawson’s accomplishments


have led to great success for his own businesses, but also for the entire fit- ness industry. He is truly a leader in the industry and an important advo- cate for fair legislation. FBC


Trisha Sarker is executive director of Fitness Industry Council of Canada. Contact her at www.ficdn.ca.


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