Anytime Fitness


Connor Thorne is based in Jersey and owns Anytime Fitness franchise sites acoss soth coast of ngland and hannel slands


Tell us about your journey from single unit/ territory to multiple unit franchisee… We opened our first site in 2018 in our local area and quickly rolled this into our second club six miles down the road. We were viewing the second site for a different business but knew straight away it would make the perfect gym so went for it! Now these two clubs are performing excellently. Then the Channel Islands came calling, firstly the


purchase of an independent facility in late 2020 in Jersey which we converted into an Anytime Fitness – the first 24-hour gym on the island, and decided swiftly to open in Guernsey the following year.


What attracted you to this franchise opportunity? The structured support in areas such as health and safety, supplier negotiation, brand image and marketing but also the possibility of being part of something bigger that continues to provide the opportunity for rapid growth – to really build something that can create generational wealth whilst making a difference to the health and wellness of a community.


“Look for a franchise that aligns with your values”


Tell us about training and support It’s excellent – firstly four days of in-depth training about operations and the brand itself, followed by a point of contact who is always available to answer questions and provide support. Ongoing, there’s eLearning platform access for continuous development and you also benefit from a franchise performance coach who is assigned following business opening to support in every way possible.


How was trading in the beginning and how is business today? Everything with fitness clubs is about getting to your magic number of members, where you are positive the business will not only survive but prosper. Therefore, the beginning is hectic, exciting and completely sales and service driven. You want to onboard as many members as possible but more importantly in the right way. Retention is the secret to success in the fitness


industry, the longer you keep members, the better – and that all comes down to quality of service through experience. It was all-hands-on-deck at the beginning,


 Connor Thorne


including myself as franchisee, manning the front desk, calling leads, performing tours etc whilst also doing everything behind the scenes to ensure the business opens on time. That’s why it is not a hands-off franchise but that’s the fun of it and what we wanted – something that we can be proud of. Since approaching our first opening in this way, all clubs have became profitable within the first year and continued to grow to a number which has allowed us to reinvest and grow the portfolio year on year.


What qualities does someone need to a successful franchisee? Ability to delegate: it is impossible to operate absolutely everything across multiple sites; find people you trust and grow together.


Any advice for aspiring franchisees, particularly those with their eye on growing an empire? Look for a franchise that aligns with your values as much as potential profits. It is really important because you will become immersed in the culture and vision – it always helps to be selling something you believe in and keeps morale high! 


anytimefitness.com/en-gb/own-a-gym


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