RetroFit - A New Business Model Represents The Coming Golden Age Of Wellness - The Future Is Here

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Reading the Wall Street Journal today I noted an article on the upcoming Christmas holiday sales outlook, "Early Sales Pay Off, For Now, Retailer See Strong Weekend Traffic but Worry Spending Could Falter; Online Booms. Ahh the bricks and mortar retail business. Changing business models and the rise of online shopping have and will continue to recreate how people buy stuff. Its also changing consumer expectations about how they interact with brands using technology as I recently addressed in this post.

My theory is there are strong paralells between what retail has experienced and what's to come for health clubs. However, there is a difference between theory and reality . In sharing trends like my recent 2013 Health, Fitness and Wellness Trend Report (get your FREE copy here) examples of how technology is impacting the health club and fitness industry abound. In the recent report NEWISM, creative destruction is also cited as a key trend. One can only imagine how I feel when VC firms like Draper Fisher Jurvetson lead an $8 million Series A funding round for business models like Retrofit. Its as interesting and exciting as when I learned about WellnessFX . Seems the future is really here.

Retrofit crafts 12-month weight loss programs for customers based on data collected via wireless tracking devices such as a scale and pedometer. Clients consult with dietitians, behavior coaches and exercise physiologists via Skype. The company says its customers will lose at least 10 or 15 percent of their current weight, depending on the program they select, and keep it off for12 months.

Here is what a RetroFit client had to say about the product on the Retrofit web site:

"Retrofit is a game-changer for the weight loss industry," said Brad Feld, a Retrofit client and Managing Director of Foundry Group. "A private team of wellness experts helped me re-program some bad patterns so I could lose those 'last 20 pounds' I had been talking about for a decade. Retrofit provided a positive and powerful feedback loop for success. Not only does the program help you lose weight, but also it helps you establish the skills to keep the weight off for life."

New emerging business models like RetroFit represent the  "Golden Age" of fitness and increasingly wellness, as I call it . Technology, changing consumers and globalism are going to change the fitness and health club business greatly and RetroFit is a good example of how that will be done.

So what do you think ? Watch the video overview below and tell me , Bryan O'Rourke, does RetroFit represent an emerging golden future of wellness ? I'd appreciate hearing from you.

About the author:

Bryan O’Rourke is a health club industry expert, technologist, financier, and shareholder and executive in several fitness companies. He advises several successful global brands, serves as a member of the GGFA Think Tank and serves as CEO of the Fitness Industry Technology Council. To learn more contact Bryan here today .

3 Days In Sydney With Blue Fitness And Others - The Influence Of Australian and New Zealand Players On The Fitness Business Is Notable

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After visiting and meeting many industry friends and associates in Australia when I spoke at FILEX in 2010, I knew I'd enjoy visiting there again one day. FILEX is such a great event, and Nigel and Lisa Champion do such an outstanding job with the conference. I highly recommend it for anyone who can attend. Unfortunately for me I had only 3 days the week before our US thanksgiving recently and a lot on my plate with Ben Davies and Simon Hall of Blue Fitness, among a few other important tasks.

Among the many things Ben and his company does, supporting and distributing Star Trac Fitness products is one of the most important. With the approaching launch of the treadclimber and other products, the market for Star Trac is really starting to heat up there. With a background that started with YMCA operations in Auckland, NZ, another connection we shared because of his familiarity with New Zealand based Les Mills , Ben has a broad grasp of fitness and recreation facility management, operations and marketing. I'd also collaborated with Simon Hall before during his tenure at EZ Pay . It was great seeing them and others during the brief trip and it brought to mind an important question I had thought about during my previous visits.

What is really interesting to me is how incredible the NZ and AU fitness and health club market are. With a population of 23 million in Australia and another 4.5 million in New Zealand the impact of their marketplace is felt around the world. There are so many professionals and influencers in the club business that created brands and are a part of the global landscape of fitness and wellness its really amazing. Les Mills is one and leaders like Mark Smith, Tony de Leede, Geoff Dyer, Nigel Champion, Phillip Mills, Sarah Robb O'Hagan and many others (my friend Laureta Stace for one) , is exceptional. I think that given the continued rise of the Asia Pacific these markets and the leaders born from them will continue to have an increasing imapct on the global marketplace. Do you agree ?

Tell me, Bryan O'Rourke, why do you think the Australian and New Zealand markets have such a profound influence in the health club industry ? Do you agree with this thesis ? What do you think is the reason for this ? I look forward to your thoughts.

About the author:

Bryan O’Rourke is a health club industry expert, technologist, financier, and shareholder and executive in several fitness companies. He advises several successful global brands, serves as a member of the GGFA Think Tank and serves as CEO of the Fitness Industry Technology Council. To learn more contact Bryan here today .

Technology Is Changing Consumer Behavior And The Health Club Business Will Feel The Impact Soon

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I recently watched a Brian Solis video interview featuring Jon Swartz, a reporter based in Silicon Valley who covers emerging and disruptive technology trends for USA today (see the interview below). It was quite interesting and made me realize how very much is really changing for consumers and what it means in particular for the health club and fitness industry.

Jon sees trends as less about hype and more about how technology is really changing everyday business and society. I agree. For consumers, using mobile, social and the web is not only enlivening experiences, it’s also creating a real sense of immediacy. Its increasing consumer expectations. In my recent trend report on NEWISM FASTER is identified one of NEWISM's 6 drivers . Indeed everything is FASTER and as Jon points out its going to become even more so. Solis and Swartz termed it the "Urgency of Now". No matter what you term it, Faster or the Urgency of Now, it will result in increasing change and the need for massive innovation in the health club business. How you ask ?

It means providing consumers the ability to buy training or group fitness classes instantly using mobile devices. It means the erosion of the classic "membership" recurring revenue model for many club concepts. It means the disappearance of the front desk for many health club concepts and it means a lot of things we can't quite predict right now. More than anything it means CHANGE and a lot of it.

The interview is fascinating and a great short piece you should watch. Brian Solis describes the discussion as follows:

Jon and I explore the importance of “the urgency of now” and how its changing the landscape for commerce. From shopping to how we pay for what we want, and the technology that changes customer expectations along the way, businesses must now evaluate how to adapt to not only react but lead customer experiences before they fall to digital darwinism.

Brian is right, You will not want to miss it. How are you preparing for the sea change that technology is bringing to the fitness and health club business ? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

About the author:

Bryan O’Rourke is a health club industry expert, technologist, financier, and shareholder and executive in several fitness companies. He advises several successful global brands, serves as a member of the GGFA Think Tank and serves as CEO of the Fitness Industry Technology Council. To learn more contact Bryan here today .

NEWISM An Important Trend For 2013 and Beyond - GET THE FREE REPORT

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What's new ? That is what consumers want to know. In the report: (GET YOUR FREE COPY: 6 Forces Making NEWISM Relevant )  I share some thoughts on the NEWISM trend.

Brands like Fresh Fitness, Orange Theory, and Les Mills , among others, are all tapping into this trend in many ways in order to increase the relevance of their brands . Why ? What is new is FRESH and something to be EXCITED about. New technologies, changing consumers and innovation are all contributing to NEWISM. Its the secret sauce that some people really love.

What is causing this trend to be relevant ? 6 Drivers:

1. Creative Destruction;

2. The World Is Going Faster;

3. People Are Experience Cramming;

4. Consumers Are Into Status Streaming;

5. A New Class Of Trysumers Has Emerged; and

6. To Have Is To (H)OLD: STUFF isnt what it used to be.

Not all consumers or brands will be impacted by this trend but the surge in the Micro-Gym Market, Mobile Applications and High Intensity Training, in addition to other examples, are all emerging in connection with the NEWISM trend.

Check out the presentation below. You can get a copy for FREE: its embedded in this post.  Please share the content via your social networks if you like it. More importantly PLEASE tell me what YOU think about the NEWISM trend and its 6 drivers. Thank you for your interest !

About the author:

Bryan O’Rourke is a health club industry expert, technologist, financier, and shareholder and executive in several fitness companies. He advises several successful global brands, serves as a member of the GGFA Think Tank and serves as CEO of the Fitness Industry Technology Council. To learn more contact Bryan here today .

 

 

Les Mills Has Strong Showing At Club Industry 2012

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My partner Robert Dyer and I headed to Las Vegas early in the week to attend an important session with Les Mills Internationals New Zealand team prior to the opening of the Club Industry show, along with other US agents. The recent introduction of Les Mills GRIT, a solution that addresses the surge in demand for high intensity small group training, was on the agenda along with many other interesting topics.There is a lot of new and interesting news coming from Les Mills and we are always excited to hear about it.

We distribute Les Mills and serve 12 states and nearly 700 fitness facilities and 4,000 group fitness instructorsl offering the very best group fitness solutions in the world. All of our customers are very important and we love being able to visit with many of them at events like Club Industry. Ingrid Owen of 24 Hour Fitness, was kind enough to join us for a dinner hosted by Phillip Mills Tuesday evening ( that's Ingrid with my partner Robert above). The dinner was fantastic - thanks to Les Mills and Phillip for being such gracious hosts.

So what do you think about small group training trends ? Are you offering these classes ? Let me know your thoughts. The LES MILLS GRIT™SERIES is designed for small groups and has science, safety and results at its core. “High-intensity interval training works, and it works fast,” says Les Mills International CEO Phillip Mills. “These three new 30-minute programs attract and keep new, younger members – including more men.” The LES MILLS GRIT™SERIES delivers the ultimate mix of great music, high-intensity exercise and inspirational trainers who motivate every individual while harnessing the power of the team.

About the author:

Bryan O’Rourke is a health club industry expert, technologist, financier, and shareholder and executive in several fitness companies. He advises several successful global brands, serves as a member of the GGFA Think Tank and serves as CEO of the Fitness Industry Technology Council. To learn more contact Bryan here today .