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Snap Fitness CEO Chris Caldwell on how teamwork keeps the gym chain in good shape

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When Australia went into lockdown early in 2020, gyms were among the businesses hardest hit. “Every gym, regardless of brand, was impacted by COVID-19,” says Chris Caldwell, who was appointed CEO of Snap Fitness in the midst of the pandemic in August 2020.&nbsp;“When I got here, we were just starting to reopen, but there was a lot of change and shock,” says Caldwell. “And then we went into subsequent closures in some states.”But it’s testimony to the strength of Snap Fitness – Australia’s second-largest 24/7 gym network with 250,000 members – that the brand continues to grow. Despite the pandemic, Snap opened 15 new clubs in 2020, and has another 25 launches planned for 2021. “A lot of our clubs are performing stronger than they were before COVID.”&nbsp;

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Caldwell credits Snap’s decisive action in the face of the pandemic as helping the gym chain bounce back. Early on, Snap released a series of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.snapfitness.com/au/coronavirus/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">updates and videos</a>&nbsp;to drive awareness around the cleanliness of their gyms, and the network’s online 24/7 ‘virtual’ fitness classes, at&nbsp;<a href="http://my.snapnation.com.au/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">my.snapnation.com.au</a>, kept the brand at the front of its members’ minds.&nbsp;For customers, 24-hour gym access and strategically chosen sites are critical factors.&nbsp;For franchisees, Snap offers a host of built-in support structures, from marketing assistance to gym design services. “Our franchisees have all those business resources at their fingertips,” explains Caldwell. “They can tap into operational support, IT, human resources and access to subject-matter experts on everything from Facebook marketing to property. That level of support makes it a compelling offer.”

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“Our franchisees have all those business resources at their fingertips”

For Caldwell, this is the true appeal of the franchise business model, which unites a corporate head office – with its expertise and experience – to an army of highly engaged and motivated business owners. “Franchising to me is the ultimate team sport,” he insists.A demonstration of this collective spirit in action came during the pandemic, when Snap made the decision to waive franchise fees in Victoria during the lockdown to help those gyms weather the downturn. “When, due to no fault of your own, your business suddenly has zero revenue, that can be very, very stressful…” Caldwell says of the decision.&nbsp;While teamwork can be a nebulous concept, Snap strives to weave it right into the fabric of the company. Franchisees are encouraged to share findings and requests at a state level via a central advisory council (a group made up entirely of franchisees), who meet monthly with the corporate leadership team. “This creates a formal two-way communication platform to supplement and complement the daily conversations between all members,” says Caldwell.

Another reason for the network’s strong growth? A focus on innovation, says Caldwell, who cites the new partnership with Afterpay as an example of this.&nbsp;

Introducing Afterpay means that Snap Fitness members can sign-up to gym contracts, paying only 25% upfront and the rest over 6 weeks. The partnership will help Snap attract younger members, says Caldwell. “Which ties well to our offer. The younger demographic like to have flexibility and convenience – they want to work out when they want to work out. Being 24/7, convenient and having a national footprint appeals to them. So, we thought, ‘well this actually could work out quite well’.”It’s another weapon in the armoury of an expanding company which, true to its fitness offering, is in great shape heading into 2021. But, whatever your line of work, Caldwell believes the following principles can also help your business grow this year.

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Read SNAP Fitness CEO Chris Caldwell's take on how teamwork keeps the gym chain in good shape, along with his 3 principles for ongoing success.

Read SNAP Fitness CEO Chris Caldwell s take on how teamwork keeps the gym chain in good shape, along with his 3 principles for ongoing success

Snap Fitness' Secrets to Success | Afterpay Access

“To me, franchising is the ultimate team sport” 

How investing in systems and tech paid off for <a href="https://www.backinmotion.com.au/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Back In Motion</a>

Jason Smith was just 24 when he launched a physio business from his garage, and today, it turns over $50 million a year.But the Back In Motion Health Group founder insists he was initially a ‘reluctant business owner’ – or at least an accidental one.“I didn’t really consider myself entrepreneurial,” says Smith, who barely had enough money to afford the first few hundred dollars’ worth of tapes, gels and creams when he launched the business in 2000.What Smith did have was a desire to approach physiotherapy in a new way. He’d spent his early 20s working in public health, and felt disillusioned by the “reactive” nature of the system. “We waited until people got hurt, injured or sick and then we tried to fix them,” he says.Smith believed in a more holistic approach, so he quit his public health job and started treating friends and family with this philosophy in mind. “It was never meant to be the beginnings of a long-term business.”

Two decades later, Back In Motion has 150 locations in Australia and New Zealand, with 70 franchisees and an average growth of 10 to 15 per cent growth each year.<h2>Setting up strong systems</h2>One of the keys to the businesses’ success, says Smith, was setting up strong systems early on.“Even when I only had one practice, we systemised everything,” says Smith, who explains that there was a checklist and a system for every task, from opening and closing the practice, to staff inductions.Early on, Smith formulated strategies and processes for everything from dealing with complaints to driving value for local sporting clubs.&nbsp;These processes were “simple, straightforward and repeatable” which offered the perfect foundation to launch franchises.

We spend a lot of time adopting our business model and format and that wasn’t because we were franchising, that was because it just made our lives easier,” he says.“We had it all documented. The systems worked, they were proven, and the next guy just had to follow the model.”<h2>Launching a franchise model&nbsp;</h2>The first franchise was sold to one of his senior clinicians for $2000, and when business boomed it paved the way for other staff to buy franchises. (Today, a franchise costs $60,000 for the licence fee, plus around $200,000 for fit-out and equipment.)Looking back, Smith believes that investing in systems and technology has been vital. Initially, he says he underestimated the importance of technology and customers’ readiness for it.“We tried to do it on the cheap and we spent probably five years chasing our tail in the first decade, really getting that wrong.”Finally, Back in Motion decided to spend over $1 million building its own system. That included client management systems for record keeping, appointments and online bookings, and a customer relationship management software.<h2>How Afterpay helps Back In Motion grow</h2>Today, Back in Motion is quick to adopt on new technology, including Afterpay.“I guess we’re more and more recognising our services are like other products and services, that is, they’re not always essential services – they’re discretionary purchases,” says Smith. “We didn’t want money to get in the way of people making good decisions about their healthcare”.

“Test it over five or six locations and really hone it before you scale it,” he says. “A lot of people try and scale fast, but if you outgrow your systems, it’s like building a house of cards and it’s going to collapse.“In hindsight, I think where we were very fortunate is that we did five or six practices ... and we just consolidated them. We made a lot of mistakes and things that we wouldn’t want to repeat and then that meant the next six were so much stronger, and then the 10 after that so much stronger.”But the key ingredient to Back In Motion’s success? The business’ philosophy of lifelong health and wellness – rather than just injury management, says Smith.

Discover how investing in systems and tech paid off for Australian physio empire Back In Motion on Afterpay Access.

Discover how investing in systems and tech paid off for Australian physio empire Back In Motion on Afterpay Access