The UK’s first Studio Pilates franchisee, Felicity Kelly, explains profit came quickly by focusing on the franchise’s four success factor
There are four main success factors behind Studio Pilates International – a franchise that has grown from a single studio in Australia to a global network of more than 89 locations. The company defines these success factors as passion, purpose, people, and profits.
Over its 21-year existence, Studio Pilates has continued to tap into an increasing client demand for unique, physiotherapist-designed reformer Pilates classes. In 2022, its studios recorded more than one million visits. It’s for this reason the company decided to rapidly expand beyond its existing markets in Australia, New Zealand, China, and the US – setting foot in the UK and Ireland. Here, 70% of UK fitness enthusiasts are now opting for Pilates over yoga, according to HFE.
Earlier this year, the first Studio Pilates franchisees began opening studios on British and Irish soil, applying the tried and tested success factors that the brand has abided by for the past two decades. As a result, franchisees are already earning an average of £40,000 GBP in their first 30 days of trade.
This includes Felicity Kelly, owner of Studio Pilates in Exeter. She discovered the brand while in Australia and knew it would be an instant hit with the UK market. Although Pilates is not a new concept, there was something about the workouts, the instructor, and the system at Studio Pilates that felt different to anything on offer back in the UK fitness scene.
“The Studio Pilates classes are a great combination of the low impact precision of Pilates with the intensity and buzz of a challenging workout,” says Felicity. “With guidance provided by the AV and voice-over supporting the personalisedhelp and motivation from the instructor, it’s a very consistent experience, and quite different from anything else on the market.”
Find passion and purpose
Feeling passionate and finding a sense of fulfilment has underpinned the success of Studio Pilates franchisees. For Felicity, this came naturally once she had experienced the brand first-hand, despite never having dabbled in fitness or business previously (neither of which are prerequisites to owning a Studio Pilates franchise).
“There’s a growing awareness around the effectiveness of low impact, high intensity reformer Pilates workouts, which are suitable for a diverse range of people,” says Felicity.
At the time, she was working in the creative communications field, having run several creative agencies. However, Felicity decided to trade in a corporate career to open the UK’s first Studio Pilates – and key to this was harnessing other people’s passion for Pilates and building a community.
“People are loving that Studio Pilates delivers a clinically backed and proven reformer Pilates workout but with the buzz and energy of a group class and a genuine community vibe,” Felicity says.
Building a positive community
Placing people at the centre of Studio Pilates’ offering is another vital pillar to launching a successful franchise. An executive team in the UK is currently helping to focus on people via marketing, operations, finance, and HR.
In Exeter, this has manifested in everything from the studio’s luxury aesthetics to the fun, fast-paced workouts which are fuelled by instructors paired with the latest Pilates technology.
“Each exercise can be followed on screens around the studio, with voiceover to emphasise key points, which allows the instructors to provide one-on-one client feedback, just as you’d get with a personal training session,” explains Felicity.
These classes combined with Studio Pilates’ recognisable hardwood floors, bespoke reformers and signature chandelier has helped build the special experience that the franchise aims to create for its customers. “For anyone wanting theultimate form of ‘me time’ this is definitely it,” confirms Felicity.
Gaining commercial opportunities
When it comes to investing in any type of business or franchise, one of the leading questions from potential investors is ‘how much will I earn?’ or ‘how quickly will I make a return on my investment?’. While there’s no one-sizefits all answer to this question, Studio Pilates franchisees earn an average of £40,000 GBP in their first 30-days of trade.
Felicity’s studio in Exeter marks the beginning of a big expansion across the UK, and she is set to be joined by six more studios in locations such as North London, Birmingham, and Leeds later this year.
The UK openings mark a long trajectory of growth. In 2010, Studio Pilates opened its first studio. The brand’s leap to having 89 studios open and operational places it in the top 17% of all franchises globally.
Passion, purpose, people, and profits have been an integral part of this franchise journey, and each aspect has fed into Studio Pilates’ determination to change the way people work out.
“Studio Pilates is a premium product that has 21 years of proven success because we transform more than just bodies, we transform lives,” explains co-founder Jade Winter. “Our mission is to change the way the world works out and every new studio we open gets us one step closer to our goal of one million people training in our studios each week, which we’re on track for.”
The global health club industry is set to exceed £83 billion by 2024, according to research from Koncept Analytics. If you’re interested in investing in a business with proven success, Studio Pilates has franchise opportunities available in the UK and Ireland.
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