Archive for January, 2010
Friday, January 29th, 2010
For More Information:
David Sedbrook
1-877-427-2615
Franchise@illuminategym.com
www.illuminategym.com
illuminate gym is opening its second Franchise Unit in Colorado
DENVER—January 28, 2009—illuminate gym, affordable personal training featuring unique High Oxygen Training (HOT), announcing publicly that as a company they are opening their second franchise location in the state of Colorado. illuminate gym and ‘High Oxygen Training’ was founded by David Sedbrook who began his fitness career alongside The ‘Anti Gym’s’ Michael Karolchyk. Today illuminate gym is offering franchises nationwide but plans on growing to at least 3 more locations in Colorado within the next year.
“Fitness has been really great to me and my family here in Colorado and we’re really excited to start replicating our business model across the state and then across the country,” CEO and founder David Sedbrook said. illuminate gym is opening its next location at the Orchards Shopping Center at 600 S. Holly Street Greenwood Village, Colorado. “At illuminate gym we are committed to creating a different ‘gym culture’ and fitness experience for our clients. That’s what separates us from our competitors and that’s why we’re growing even during these tough economic times,” CEO and founder David Sedbrook said when asked about the difference in their business model compared to their competitors. illuminate gym currently has a location at 700 Colorado Boulevard Denver, Colorado and is working to get another location opened in Centennial, Colorado sometime in the Spring.
illuminate gym was founded on the basic principle of creating a private and personal boutique gym with state-of-the-art exercise equipment where people can pursue their fitness goals in a safe environment. illuminate gym is also close to opening in national markets such as Michigan and Florida. Thanks for reading and have a healthy day!
Tags: Colorado, Fitness, fitness experience, fitness franchise, Greenwood Village, gym, gyms, personal trainer, personal trainers
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Thursday, January 21st, 2010
Banks are overloaded with defaulted loans and repossess property from small businesses and homeowners. The issue right now individuals are not able to get financing even on proven business models because banks are so concerned that individuals will default on loans and they will be stuck with exercise equipment. Now this issue with financing is not just impacting fitness franchises because other food and service franchises are also being impacted by the banks lack of financing. I know at illuminate gym we have problems getting financing done for individuals who have stellar credit on loan amounts that are less than $40,000 which in the world of business financing is nothing. However, because of the nature of the business loan people are having trouble getting their business doors open…Or so the banks say. I believe at the end of the day banks are still in gridlock over the crash of the market in 2008. Our nation’s government made the decision to bail all of these banks out of their immanent financial collapses in order to free up the credit markets. However, our nation’s politicians made some calculated errors in letting the banks borrow our tax dollars. When you go into a bank to get a loan for an illuminate gym franchise (as an example) the bank is going to want to know exactly where every single cent is going to go in order to determine if the investment is good for the bank or not. It’s called good business however, our government made the decision to sign over billions and billions of dollars to save banks and re-open credit markets only to find that the banks re-invested the money in China and are still not offering credit to worthy entrepreneurs. This unhealthy chain of events could cause more problems for Americans as entrepreneurs are no longer able to grow their businesses, provide jobs, and essentially produce revenue.
These new issues with banks can be a very tricky hurdle for franchisors. However, at illuminate gym our fitness franchise team are making adjustments to how we set up franchisees’ fitness facilities. In the future we are hoping that our franchisees never have to go to banks for financing on equipment as we will take on the bulk of the risk in regards to equipment because we believe in our franchise model that much. If you’re interested in hearing more about the franchise opportunities at illuminate gym and how our business model is changing due to the change in banks then please check us out at www.illuminategym.com/franchises.php. Thanks again for reading and have a healthy day!
Tags: Add new tag, bailout, bank loans, banks, business loans, fitness facility, fitness franchise, fitness franchises, government, gym franchise, illuminate gym, risk
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Thursday, January 14th, 2010
If you’re a perspective franchisee looking into opening a franchise unit there are many things to consider such as, overall cost, your passion for the business and what their existing franchisees are saying about the business model. At illuminate gym our franchise model is one that is new to the franchise world which means there are definite pros and cons to examining a newer franchise opportunity. Some of the pros are usually when dealing with a newer franchise model you find that you are dealing with the people who founded the original concept meaning their closer to being on the floor of your business then a staff of people who have been hired by a larger franchise to sell the model. Many times when you speak to people at a larger franchise you will find they themselves have never owned the business you’re looking to get into. The other pro of getting into a younger franchise is ‘USUALLY’ newer franchises are the innovators of our industry and they are the future brands of America. Sure there are franchise brands like MacDonald’s that are going to stand the test of time however, new concepts can pave the way for a successful future for franchisees as they carry the brand into new regions. That being said a major con of getting into a smaller less known franchise is that the brand is not developed in most regions. If the brand is not as developed you as a franchisee have to make sure the franchisor has a plan to ensure the brand is pushed in the community you are looking to open in. At illuminate gym we’re well aware that a lot of markets in the United States are not familiar with our brand and that’s why we take our marketing so seriously.
That all being said it’s hard for a franchisee to look at a model he or she is not familiar with and determine if it’s a solid business model or not. At illuminate gym we think we have an answer for you as a perspective franchisee looking in the fitness world. Conversions…. What is a conversion franchisee you ask…. A conversion franchisee is an existing similar independent business that makes the decision to re-brand itself as a franchise unit. Today in Denver, Colorado illuminate gym is negotiating with one of our fiercest competitors to convert them to an illuminate gym. This should show franchisees that a franchise model is in fact a good business model. If competitors in a region are looking to re-brand themselves to become a part of the franchise model as a whole then you know that business model is on to something. At illuminate gym we definitely feel like our business model has some superior aspects over most of our competitors.
Thanks for reading and we hope you have a healthy day! If you are interested in hearing more about illuminate gym please check out our website at www.illuminategym.com/franchises.php.
Thal
Tags: business, business model, conversion franchise, conversion franchisee, fitness facility, fitness franchise, franchise, franchise opportunity, franchises, illuminate gym, marketing
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Tuesday, January 12th, 2010
I can only speak about the fitness franchise world when I tell you that entrepreneurs are starting to see the power of a successful franchise unit in the Middle East. Over the past 2 months we have been contacted by quite a few firms and individuals in the Middle East who are interested in how illuminate gym could translate into the nations and cultures of the Middle East. At illuminate gym our brand and logo were created with international growth in mind which makes us a perfect model to replicate abroad. Our main focus as a franchise is to find qualified and driven franchisees in other countries to ensure that our brand is represented and grows properly. At illuminate gym we are also committed to the core of our business which has always been the personal fitness of individuals. Our business model is a success because we change people’s lives for the better by modifying their diets, giving a personal touch to their fitness and modifying their lifestyles. It’s exciting to explore the prospects of moving forward in a foreign country but we always have to keep our original principles in place to ensure the success of our future franchise units.
If you are interested in hearing more about illuminate gym please check us out at www.illuminategym.com/franchises.php or you can call us at 1-877-427-2615. Thanks for reading and have a healthy day.
Tags: diets, Fitness, fitness franchise, foreign franchise, franchise, franchisee, franchises, illuminate gym, Middle East, Middle Easter Franchises, personal training franchise
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Sunday, January 10th, 2010
There is no doubt that a fitness franchise is very different from most of the traditional franchises like burger and pizza franchises. First off most fitness franchises do not have a proprietary product or service. Also the nature of a service related industry always makes for an interesting franchise experience. Here at illuminate gym we know that those looking into the franchise industry and specifically the fitness franchise world need to look for a few key components to ensure that they get into a franchise model that makes the best sense for them. Below I have listed a few of the most important things a franchisee should look for when looking into a fitness franchise.
1. You need to make sure when getting into a service related franchise like fitness that the franchisor has a marketing plan to push as many customers into your facility as possible.
2. You need to make sure that you have a logo and a brand that will attract customers in your market. This should be a part of your initial franchise search. What brand will help you connect with your community?
3. Try and find a franchise that offers something different than anything that is currently offered in your community. In the fitness industry we believe that many membership franchises offer the same services as many larger corporate gyms like 24 Hour Fitness and Bally Total Fitness which can be dangerous for a new entrepreneur. At illuminate gym we have watched as many of these franchises have gone out of business around us because of the growth of 24 Hour Fitness however, an illuminate gym has co-existed and even thrived right down the street from a 24 Hour Fitness because we don’t sell the same thing.
4. Make sure you also trust that you will be supported by the franchisor because in a service related franchise nothing is more important than the standard that made the original franchise units successful. Make sure and ask your perspective franchisors guarantee their support to you.
5. Make sure the franchisor is always open to learn how to make their unit better. If a franchisor isn’t willing to listen to your ideas then they probably haven’t listened to their other franchisees ideas either. Make sure you are a partner with your franchise unit rather than a slave to it. Work together to make you and them as successful as possible. That’s the real magic of the franchise business model.
Thanks for reading and if you would like to read and listen to more about the illuminate gym franchise model please check us out at www.illuminategym.com/franchises.php.
4.
Tags: Add new tag, fitness franchise, fitness franchise opportunity, fitness industry, franchise, franchise model, franchisee, franchises, service industry, service related franchise, What to look for in a fitness franchise?, What you should look for in a fitness franchise?
Posted in Fitness | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, January 6th, 2010
For More Information:
David Sedbrook
1-877-427-2615
Franchise@illuminategym.com
www.illuminategym.com/franchises.php
Real Estate Deals get completed at illuminate gym
DENVER—January 2, 2009—illuminate gym, affordable personal training featuring unique High Oxygen Training (HOT), announcing publicly that as a company they have finished 2 real estate deals on new illuminate gyms in the state of Colorado. What makes these deals so incredible is the leverage that illuminate gym has been able to generate with new franchisees.
“It’s a sign of the times. The economy has been down for the last couple of years and because of this we are having great success in negotiating some pretty amazing real estate deals,” CEO and founder David Sedbrook said. illuminate gym has a real estate team in place that helps franchisees locate future sites and negotiate lease terms. This powerful combination of people have proved to be a powerful source for upcoming franchise owners as currently they have negotiated leases as low as 1/6 of the original asking price of the landlord. “Now is a great time to invest in a business because almost everyone is willing to make a deal. I look at business like the stock market. You’re always going to find more profit when the market is down a bit compared to when it’s at its peak. Just think of the future opportunity our franchisees will have because they are signing 5 and 10 year leases today in our current market. They are getting better deals than we were 5 years ago,” David Sedbrook said.
illuminate gym has plans to have at least 4 facilities open in the state of Colorado during 2010. If you would like to read about illuminate gym or the future of our franchisees please check us out at www.illuminategym.com/admin.php and have a healthy day!
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Saturday, January 2nd, 2010
Over the past week we have three inquiries about changing a current facility into an illuminate gym. Many people wonder what is the reasoning behind converting an existing facility into an illuminate gym. After all, all these facilities have a current leases and equipment in place. The answer is simple for us. First of all bringing an illuminate gym to a current facility will change the branding of the gym and its personal training. Also illuminate brings the highest standard to the fitness industry which ensures that the fitness experience that each and every client has at an illuminate gym is up to our standard. Also illuminate gym also brings proven marketing tactics to ensure that illuminate gym gets in front of as many perspective clients as possible.
You see the problem in the fitness industry is many personal trainers and other fitness professionals get into owning their own fitness facility without any business sense. We see it all the time at illuminate gym and we find many people who are very capable inside of the facility but they lack the business savvy to get people in their doors. You have to remember that a fitness facility can be a very intimidating place when someone is in need of a personal trainer or a fitness professional. At illuminate gym we attempt to break down these walls of insecurities making our facilities inviting and accepting to everyone.
Also our brand of personal training (High Oxygen Training) makes our job much easier to not only market our personal training but also to get serious results for our clientele.
Converting a current facility into an illuminate gym can prove to be a profitable move for a gym owner as we can use our business experience and savvy to help them create a more successful business for themselves. At illuminate gym we like to tweak current facilities with a little design work and marketing and then we let our ‘High Oxygen Training’ do the talking. We also connect franchisees with our preferred vendors which will undoubtedly save our franchisees lots of money in the future.
Thanks so much for reading about illuminate gym as a viable fitness franchise. If you want to see more about our exciting fitness franchise please contact us at www.illuminategym.com/franchises.php where you can fill out a franchisee application or contact us. Thanks again.
Tags: business, business savvy, conversion franchise, conversion franchisee, fitness facility, fitness franchise, fitness standards, franchise, franchisee, gym, gym franchise, illuminate gym, personal trainer, personal training
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