Introduction to Snap Fitness 24/7

By Jon Cottam, CEO Liftbrands EMEA

Lift Brands is the parent company to Snap Fitness 24/7 and FitnessOnDemand as well as holding minority ownerships in the 9Round and Fitstop brands — we are unique in that we are the only Global fitness Franchise operator with dedicated regional support offices in each of the three key regions of the globe; The US, EMEA and Asia Pacific. This optimally positions us to be able to create meaningful experiences for our franchisees, employees and members alike.?

Here at Snap Fitness 24/7 we’ve been a leading global fitness franchise since 2003, with an estate now standing at 1,000+ gyms in 20+ countries. We’ve been active in the UK and Ireland since 2014, with 81 currently open, 40 further clubs in development inclusive of 17 on track to open through 2022 alone. Clearly we are brand with significant growth potential.?? ?

Like many other businesses, Covid temporarily slowed our ability to grow, however we’re proud to have still opened 8 clubs last year in the UK and Ireland, with record breaking presale performances further galvanising the energy around future opportunity. ??

At a global level Ty Menzies, previously CEO of Lift Brands APAC, took the reins as Global CEO. He has built an almost entirely new and stronger senior leadership team in all key functional areas from operational support, product development and marketing. The new approach saw us recognised as ‘The Best Fitness Franchise 2022’ in the Global Franchise Awards. ? ?

Here in the UK, we re-acquired the Snap Fitness business in 2020 from our previous Area Developer, and immediately set about building upon the solid foundations that were already in place. Since then my immediate focus was centred around ensuring we were optimally resourced to provide the best support and systems in the EMEA Fitness Franchise space. The building blocks of this being the recruitment of an Industry leading support team.???

In giving our Franchisees, both existing and new, access to the best operators (and systems) available, we ultimately empower them maximise the returns on not only their investments, but also efforts! This has seen us already enjoy record breaking and consistent membership trends since the eventual reopening from Covid. ? ?

Our business is centred around a ‘One Team’ ethos and we strongly believe that collaboration with our franchisees is integral in driving our collective success. To that end, we have broken our business into four key areas, expertly lead by an industry leading team;??

Development ?

Headed up by Bill Painter, our development function focuses on finding new franchisees, and supporting them, and existing franchisees, through the whole process of opening a club. We assist with business planning and financing, the sourcing of properties in locations that will deliver the best return. We then provide each franchisee with club layout and equipment plans, the aesthetics design and a managed fit-out process. ? ?

Marketing ?

Led by Sarah Townend, our marketing function supports franchisees in driving awareness and lead generation across the pre-opening period and subsequent ongoing operation. The team provide new club opening and quarterly marketing campaigns, plans and marketing assets that help to differentiate Snap Fitness from competitors. ? ?

We also operate an in-house digital advertising service, who manage ads on behalf of franchisees. This helps us to continually improve campaign performance, but, when combined with Club Performance analysis, it provides valuable insights for franchisees on how they can maximise memberships sales performance. ? ?

Club Performance ?

Headed up by Gary Linton-Walls, the Club Performance Team help with getting the right team in place and ensure they get the training needed to help drive in leads and sales. Each franchise is allocated a Franchise Business Manager with significant prior club management experience, whom use clubs data in real time to provide ongoing guidance and support on how to maximise performance. ?

Club Ops and Learning and Development ?

Paul Stephenson leads our Club Ops and L&D function, providing foundation systems as well as training to ensure our franchisee and club teams are empowered to maximise the results of their clubs. We’ve implemented a digital Learning Management System which provides continual access to training across all areas of club management, complimented by in-person training sessions. ? ?

With the above resource, an extremely engaged franchisee estate, and both member trends and new franchisee interest at an all-time high we are hugely excited and perfectly placed for what’s to come in the next few years. ?