662: Building Premium Fitness Empire - Lessons from Third Space London
The Business of Boutique Fitness
Release Date: 05/29/2025
The Business of Boutique Fitness
A thoughtful onboarding process is worth your investment of time and effort. Although you’re temporarily doing more work while also increasing your payroll, it’s ultimately a long-term gain. Get the essential ingredients with Coaches Caroline Plambeck and Matt Hanton in Episode 669: The First 90 Days: How to Set Up Every New Hire for Success. Stoke anticipation: generate good vibes with a personal note or small gift before day 1 Lay the foundation: review job description, KPIs, goals, mission, vision and values Cultivate connection: do meet & greets, assign a...
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Your people can make or break your studio. Building a standout team is critical to protect your business. And that doesn’t just happen automatically, y’all. Make sure you’re firing on all cylinders in Episode 668: The Secrets to a High-Performing Team with Coaches Caroline Plambeck and Matt Hanton. Prioritize prep: draft an org chart and job descriptions with specific KPIs Recruit selectively: hire for culture and train for skill – you can’t force fit Train to retain: templatize a comprehensive onboarding process Touch base: create agendas for...
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Y’all, the noise about tariffs in recent months has stirred questions and anxiety among the fitness industry (and many industries, frankly) about the effects on their business. Crediting Liz Clark’s and Mike Goscinski’s talk at the Health & Fitness Association’s Fly-In & Advocacy Summit, let’s dive into Episode 667: How Tariffs & Trade Can Impact Your Studio. Universal uncertainty: legislative, studio and consumer unknowns Lucky strike: service-based industries have an advantage Building up: construction costs jump due to...
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Y'all, Two industry powerhouses I'm absolutely fascinated by – Garrett Marshall and Debra Strougo! Garrett's been shaping our space for 22 years and just launched something that could change everything, while Debra brings her incredible insight from years of working with operators. Together they're solving the biggest challenge in fitness: how do we maintain our position of influence when 90% of our members are on their smartphones buying wellness products we don't offer? Tune in to our conversation with these two industry legends: Episode 666: The Big Picture with Garrett Marshall &...
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Y'all, Two industry leaders I'm absolutely fascinated by – Jennifer Maanavi, founder of Physique 57 (one of the best barre brands in the world), and Jack Thomas, creator of The Fit Guide (the gold standard for fitness excellence, like the Michelin Star guide for our industry). They're both revolutionizing how we think about hospitality in boutique fitness! Tune in to our new series of conversations with amazing industry leaders: Episode 661: The Big Picture with Lise Kuecker, Jennifer Maanavi of Physique 57, and Jack Thomas of The Fit Guide. ● Building boutique from scratch: Jennifer...
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Y’all, combining our high-touch approach with personalized client data is gold. Cue this fascinating conversation with software engineer, trainer and data nerd Jason Moore. Episode 666: The Big Picture with Lise Kuecker and Jason Moore of Spren left me with a feast of food for thought regarding what’s possible in our industry. Measurement & motivation: tracking progress through meaningful personal data Body image: capturing body comp, RMR and HRV with your phone’s camera Expanding access: adding value with on-brand, personalized, 24/7 AI...
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Y'all, when you've been in this industry as long as I have, you can feel the big shifts coming. But even I wasn't prepared for the Pilates explosion we're witnessing right now. It's unlike anything we've seen before, and if you're not paying attention, you're missing the boat on the biggest opportunity in boutique fitness. Tune in to our new series of conversations with amazing industry leaders: Episode 663: The Pilates Explosion - Global Growth with STOTT Pilates' Beth Gibbs-Bartel. ● Education empire: STOTT Pilates has trained 80,000+ instructors across 100 countries with unmatched...
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Y'all, For boutique fitness studio owners, scaling from a single location to a multi-club empire while maintaining premium standards seems impossible. But what if you could learn from someone who's done exactly that? Meet Rob Beal, Fitness Director at Third Space, who's helped grow them from 4 to 13 premium clubs across London and built the highest-valued fitness concept per square foot worldwide. Tune in to our new series of conversations with amazing industry leaders: Episode 662: Building Premium Fitness Empire - Lessons from Third Space London. ● Own your IP: keeping all training,...
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One brand I’m so excited to watch is LiveMetta – currently 11 yoga and Pilates studios (along with one spa) in Southern California. They’re truly bringing something different to our space! Tune in to our new series of conversations with amazing industry leaders: Episode 661: The Big Picture with Lise Kuecker and Chris Farnsworth of Live Metta. Mission critical: embodying loving kindness as a foundation and culture Competition killer: thoughtfully expanding to fully own select markets Golden Rule: prioritizing relationships, ensuring support, paying well ...
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Y’all may assume that because 77% of boutique fitness studio members are women, marketing to females is a no-brainer. They’re showing up anyway, right? Wrong. To grow, you must keep tweaking your outreach to this demographic. Learn how with Coach Rachel Prairie in Episode 660: Attracting & Retaining Female Clients in Your Studio. Get close up: know your client avatar’s age, interests, hobbies and more Give them something to talk about: capitalize on word-of-mouth referrals Create touch points: cultivate community with events, programs and...
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For boutique fitness studio owners, scaling from a single location to a multi-club empire while maintaining premium standards seems impossible. But what if you could learn from someone who's done exactly that? Meet Rob Beal, Fitness Director at Third Space, who's helped grow them from 4 to 13 premium clubs across London and built the highest-valued fitness concept per square foot worldwide.
Tune in to our new series of conversations with amazing industry leaders: Episode 662: Building Premium Fitness Empire - Lessons from Third Space London.
● Own your IP: keeping all training, programs and instructors in-house instead of outsourcing to freelancers
● Pilates leads the pack: Reformer Pilates is their #1 performing modality, now in 10 of 13 clubs
● Strength over HIIT: consumer demand has shifted from high-intensity to strength-focused programming
● Recovery revolution: spa, wellness and recovery services are essential for premium positioning
● Data-driven future: integrating wearable tech data and AI to enhance personal training
● Medical integration: longevity services and preventive health will dominate premium fitness
● Culture through growth: moving star performers to new locations to maintain standards and mentorship
Whether you're planning your second location or dreaming of a fitness empire, Rob's insights on team development, real estate strategy, and staying ahead of consumer trends will reshape how you think about growth. And meet Rob (who's about to become a dad!), after you hear from him in Episode 662
Catch you there,
Lise
PS: Join 2,000+ studio owners who've decided to take control of their studio business and build their freedom empire. Subscribe HERE and join the party!
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