OPERATOR PERSPECTIVE
I’ve seen a lot more boutique brands turn to franchising recently and I’m not convinced that all will succeed.
standards. You’ll need sophisticated systems in place, and it’s a long road: our experience is that you need around 100 sites open before you reach operational breakeven at head office. Understand that each new market takes time, too. Spend time on the ground to appreciate the nuances and don’t be arrogant. Once you launch, be careful who you take on as franchisees, focus on their success and don’t spread your head office team too thin, with multiple countries but only a few sites in each. Our approach is always to invest early: we’ve just hired someone to deliver franchise and operational support in the UK and Spain, even though we only have two studios open in the UK and haven’t yet got the first one off the ground in Spain. My final piece of advice, if you have a boutique studio product you think could work as a franchise, is to develop your IP and not be in a rush. Take longer than you think you need. Make sure your product is ready and know your DNA: you don’t want to do early adopters a disservice by launching a product that keeps changing. Know what your next five years looks like and what it’s going to take to get there.
One thing we won’t do is be distracted by notions of bolt- ons or brand extensions. Could we make more money by launching these? Very probably, but there’s no future in the churn and burn of following trends. We have a model that works, with a core product – rooted in tried-and- tested strength training – that we can personalise around the individual to deliver results. We’re happy to stick to our knitting, focusing on what we’re good at as the best way to drive success for customers, franchisees and our business. Is franchising the future for boutique fitness? We’ve shown it can be a good model, but I’ve seen a lot more boutique brands turn to franchising recently and I’m not convinced that all will succeed. You really have to do your homework, and that starts with understanding who you are. Does your brand bring a genuine USP to the market or is it a copy of something else? Are you a single studio where success is really down to a passionate, hands-on founder? You have to be honest and open with yourself as part of your due diligence. If your concept passes that initial test, you’ll need to get your back-end in order: your legals, your supplier partnerships, your training and education, your brand
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LONDON BOUTIQUE STUDIO REPORT 2023
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