400 and counting: F45 conquering US
THE co-founder of Australian gym chain F45 says relationships with US sports franchises such as the Brooklyn Nets basketball team and Miami Dolphins NFL team have helped it sign up its 400th US franchise.
Rob Deutsch said F45, a gym chain he helped found seven years ago, had sold 1300 franchises across 36 countries in just three years.
And he said the tie-ups with major sporting bodies, such as basketball teams the Philadelphia 76ers and the Dallas Mavericks. were just a part of the US growth strategy. “We haven’t scratched the surface,” Mr Deutsch said.
The former Sydney equities trader who worked for a stint in London, in 2012 cofounded F45 with a mate and franchise expert.
“Statistics spurred me on; I wanted to know why people were paying for gym membership but not showing up,” Mr Deutsch said.
This approach led him to treat the gym like a sports team and redesign much of the regular circuit training into a series of intense, 45minute workouts which combine interval, cardiovascular and strength training.
The move to snare tie-ups with US sports companies was a refinement of the Australian model which includes celebrity endorsements from sportspeople including Sydney Swans AFL player Jarrad McVeigh, former Hawk Josh Gibson, former Australian cricketer Brett Lee, rugby union player Adam Ashley Cooper and former Melbourne Storm player Nate Myles.
Mr Deutsch said while the chain had about 670 franchises in Australia and New Zealand, the goal for the US was 10,000 franchises.
The most popular cities for the gyms are Los Angeles, Miami and Houston.
About 70 per cent of F45 clients are female between the ages of 25 to 40.
Mr Deutsch is focused on using technology to keep in touch with gym users.
He introduced a smartphone app which helps users achieve their fitness goals.
It has been downloaded 480,000 times.
He has also introduced a food-ordering system for home delivery.
Mr Deutsch said the F45 model was flexible enough to adapt classes to take up the latest trends.
And despite approaches from interested private equity investors, Mr Deutsch said he was hesitant to take parties aboard unless they were the “right” partner.
Mr Deutsch lives in Los Angeles – about a 1km from the Venice Beach F45 gym – but has been travelling across the US examining franchises.
He said he knew progress was being made when the brand succeeded in New York’s up-market Tribeca neighbourhood. “(That market) was really competitive and really saturated,” he said.