Well,
the recent survey from Forbes Health asked people for their top resolutions
for the new Year and the top spots include improving mental health.
That was number three,
bettering our finances was number two.
And the top resolution was boosting our fitness.
So what better person to talk all things fitness with?
And the CEO and co founder of Orange Theory, Fitness, Dave Long uh Dave,
Happy New Year to you.
Happy New Year.
What are you expecting to be some of the top fitness trends this year?
You know, I think, you know, you mentioned the top trends, I think mental health is,
is more than ever related to improving fitness levels.
Like you're seeing more and more, there's that connection point.
And so it's not just about
losing weight or losing body fat. It's this,
you know,
holistically get getting better in life and feeling better throughout the day.
And this connection between fitness and mental
health I think is stronger than ever.
That combined with, you know, the continued um
use of wearables and in all types of circumstances and how people are
understanding how to use the data from wearables to improve their lives.
Both physical and mental health. I
think consumers more than ever want to find results from a fitness program.
And when you think about it being prescriptive, you know,
somebody being told what they should do for the
best results as well as it being personalized.
Um, folks get value out of the, out of their spend,
whether it be digital or in a brick and mortar studio or, or gym.
So,
how does Orange Theory fitness come in and help people reach their fitness goals?
You know, I think,
I think fortunately we were very leading edge 14 years
ago in launching a very science and technology backed program.
We're using heart rate monitors to track every second of the workout.
So even back in 2010 and to today, every second of the workout is,
is personalized to each member within the class.
So when you think about where, where the trends are intersecting now,
it really sets up
uh to have, you know, tremendous both resilience and affinity for, you know,
current and future members.
Uh because they're looking for more, you know, personalized solutions.
And we can provide that even though it's a group setting,
it's a very personalized each member.
We've also launched two new products in the last six months to
um supplement the cornerstone orange 60 total body workout, one strength 50.
So the whole class is focused on strength, which we also know
is very top of mind for consumers.
And it's a really important part of a balanced fitness program.
And then we've launched Tread 50 for folks who want to do more of a specific cardio,
uh, based workout, focus on power walking, jogging or running.
So, now we have three products that, uh,
a member can completely personalize their routine throughout the.
Now, uh,
what about plans to expand the footprint in 2024 if someone's watching
this and they don't yet have an orange theory fitness near them.
Are you planning to add ones in the New Year?
We are, we're, we're eyeing about 100 locations, uh, globally,
about two thirds of that will be domestic.
Obviously, we have a huge domestic footprint already.
We have about 1350 locations in the US. But there are still a lot more locations.
We know convenience is almost top of mind and number one,
the consumers to stick with the routine.
So we know our locations need to be convenient to where they work or live or both.
And in international, we're going to double our growth from 23 and, and open about,
uh, 35 to 40 locations in a number of key markets.
So we're excited about the, the growth that's actually gonna come across the globe.
All right.
So you're schooling us in some of the ways to boost
our fitness here in the new year for business owners,
people who want to start a business who are watching this, I know, one of the,
probably the key milestones of your career is Franchising
an operation. How did you successfully do that?
And what are some of the takeaways for our viewers?
You know, I think, I think be,
be being really centered on the product or service you're
gonna deliver and make sure that it adds value.
I think that's the foundation because I think consumers today are,
are more in tune whatever to whatever is gonna really drive value or, or, you know,
fulfill a need for them.
We're massive into um our service delivery and sweating every detail.
I think the consumer again, really wants
a great service offering.
I think, no matter what it is, that's, that will help a business owner stand apart.
I think small business owners when they start up can
do a fast fantastic job with that if they're at
a smaller scale and then it's mastering the art of
scaling that that service delivery as a business grows.
But I think really staying focused on the fundamentals out
of the gate will create the discipline that business ends up
being bigger or multi or multi location.
You know,
it's been quite impressive that the consumer has held up throughout this pandemic,
right?
They continue to spend
the stock market finally did have a double digit year of gains
last year after what was a bit of a rough 2022 as inflation
really soared and peaked in June
of that year. What impact have you seen on your business?
And how are you forecasting business to play out this year?
You know, what, what we found.
And like, if you look back historically across the fitness industry,
you look back to 2008,
there was double digit membership growth during that time period.
So when consumers have always
chosen to make fitness a priority, uh, as long as the value is there.
And so as, as we go in into the future, that's, that's really how we see it.
We look at specifically what we're calling Gen w this generation Wellness,
which is really both millennials and Gen Z that spend a lot more on,
on wellness in total
and really targeting those consumers, that one
uh have the ability and desire to spend and to align with,
with the value of the product that we offer so that, you know,
that that's where we target.
And of course, we've got to deliver a fantastic experience every day.
We know that when we do that and play our own game,
the consumers have a massive affinity for Orange Theory around the globe. OK.
Heres to good fitness and better business in 2024 Dave
Long co and co founder of Orange Theory Fitness.
Hi, Dave. Thank you.