Not A Franchise
With a dealership, you’ll avoid many of the drawbacks, limitations, restrictions, and controls that most franchises DON’T want you to know about. Here are just some of the pitfalls you’ll encounter with a fitness franchise:
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In addition to GOVERNMENTAL REGULATIONS at both the federal and state level, many countries outside of the USA also regulate an exercise franchise. Such burdensome conditions drive the developmental costs of setting one up to an astronomical level. The only way for an exercise franchise to recover these costs is to pass them on through an insanely high fee structure, which is why you’ll encounter a whopping franchise fee, a staggering monthly royalty, and a shocking monthly advertising fee. Furthermore, an exercise franchise, to ensure that they’ll recover their costs, will often lock you into an ungodly, long-term contract, often running 5 or 10 years, or even longer. If there’s no escape clause, there’s no way out!
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Health franchises are so bogged down by BUREAUCRACY that they often encounter difficulties in gaining access to vital markets in many states, provinces, territories, and countries.
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Health franchises have been so riddled by litigation against their deceitful and deceptive practices that the business structure no longer holds the credibility it once did.
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A gym franchise will almost always FORCE you to use ONLY a particular brand or grade of equipment, and REQUIRE that it be purchased directly through them. In the process, they’ll drastically mark-up the equipment way beyond what you would normally pay given the opportunity to purchase it on your own! This margin, often a hefty one, is just another little trick, something that the gym franchise doesn’t want you to know they do…something that they use to create an additional revenue stream to help in recovering those astronomical developmental costs.
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Sometimes a gym franchise will even FORCE you to purchase all of your needs through them, including flooring, mirrors, televisions, office furniture, security systems, and more, all at a fat profit for them! And if that isn’t enough, they will sometimes even FORCE you to use equipment that’s painted with their corporate colors and decaled with their logos. This is another little tactic that only benefits the gym franchise, by further locking you in, making it next to impossible for you to get rid of your equipment, thus break away, in the event that you become dissatisfied or wish to switch to another brand.
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A health club franchise is set in a tightly CONTROLLED environment, whereby you're is FORCED to follow various rules, regulations, policies, procedures, and methods of operation. They must not be altered or varied from, and must be strictly adhered to at all times. It’s a very militaristic structure that not only requires an extreme willingness to comply, but won’t tolerate any lack of consistency or deviations from standard policy.
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When it comes to efficient and effective business management, a health club franchise offers plenty of assistance and guidance, but it’s NOT FREE! The franchise fee is used to recover costs associated with this function.
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A franchise fee can run as high as $50,000!
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A typical royalty is normally between 5% and 8% of gross revenue, which on sales of $10,000 means the fitness center franchise is going to snap up $500 to $800 of your hard earned money, month, after month, after month!
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A typical advertising fee is usually between 2% and 3% of gross revenue, which on sales of $10,000 means the fitness center franchise is going to swipe another $200 to $300 out of your cash register, each and every month!
In conclusion, when compared to a Muscle Beach® dealership, a franchise is undoubtedly the MOST EXPENSIVE way to start and run a fitness business!