November 24, 2025 • 41 mins
Pilates franchise investment is exploding - but is it actually profitable? Emily Brown from Limitless Franchise Growth breaks down the real numbers behind Jet Set Pilates, Project Lean Nation, and Fundraising University franchises. We cover franchise costs, unit economics, profit margins, and what differentiates top-performing boutique fitness owners from those who struggle.
🎯 What You'll Learn: ✅ Pilates franchise cost breakdown and ROI expectations ✅ Why recurring revenue models outperform traditional retail ✅ The one-instructor-to-16-reformer ratio that drives margins ✅ Pre-sale strategies that fund your buildout before opening ✅ KPIs that separate top quartile owners from the rest ✅ Market data on Gen Z/Millennial demand for boutique fitness ✅ Multi-brand portfolio strategy for franchise diversification
THE OPPORTUNITY
The boutique fitness category is seeing explosive growth - Pilates specifically is surging among Gen Z and Millennials who want community, consistency, and shareable studio experiences. But there's still no clear second mover behind the category leader, creating white space for brands like Jet Set Pilates that combine:
- Modern aesthetic and brand positioning
- Strong franchisee validation (not just corporate spin)
- Data-obsessed support team with weekly KPI calls
- Proven unit economics with disciplined operating models
Emily Brown walks through what actually makes boutique fitness work: pre-sale windows that fund your buildout, instructor-to-reformer ratios that protect margins, and CRM systems that convert leads at the right moments. This isn't theory - it's the playbook top operators use to build durable local enterprises.
BEYOND PILATES: THE LFG PORTFOLIO
Limitless Franchise Growth operates three brands with a common thread: recurring revenue, measurable KPIs, and models that scale through responsible multi-unit growth.
Jet Set Pilates: Boutique fitness with strong validation and white space opportunity
Project Lean Nation: Macro-balanced meal delivery paired with coaching for retention that outlasts doorstep delivery alone
Fundraising University: Purpose-built software + hands-on guidance helping high school sports and activities raise funds with less volunteer effort
All three focus on recurring revenue models where operators can validate metrics, build strong teams, and scale where support is strongest.
WHO THIS IS FOR
This episode is essential if you're: ✔️ Evaluating boutique fitness franchise opportunities ✔️ Wondering if the Pilates category is "too saturated" ✔️ Looking for recurring revenue franchise models ✔️ Interested in multi-unit growth strategies ✔️ Comparing food vs. fitness vs. service franchises ✔️ Building a diversified franchise portfolio
ABOUT EMILY BROWN & LIMITLESS FRANCHISE GROWTH
Emily Brown leads franchise development for Limitless Franchise Growth, a portfolio company operating Jet Set Pilates, Project Lean Nation, and Fundraising University. LFG focuses on recurring revenue models with strong unit economics and data-driven operator support.
ABOUT THE FRANCHISE INSIDERS
The Franchise Insiders is led by Jack and Jill Johnson - current and former franchise owners helping investors find f
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_05 (00:21):
Hi everyone, welcome back to the We Bought a
Franchise podcast.
I'm Jack Johnson.
SPEAKER_03 (00:26):
I'm Jill Johnson.
SPEAKER_05 (00:27):
And we're here today with a very compelling guest.
We have Emily Brown fromLimitless Franchise Growth.
We also have our esteemed panelof franchise consultants.
We have Catherine Allen, MorganKnowler, Brian Gross, and David
San Juan.
Emily, let's get right intothis.
We've been working with you fora long time, since back to the
(00:47):
Club Pilates days.
And now here you are withLimitless Franchise Growth and a
very exciting concept that I seeevery single day.
SPEAKER_03 (00:56):
All over Instagram, TikTok.
SPEAKER_05 (00:58):
Yeah.
Well, and us being based inSouth Florida, so right here in
Boca Raton, we've got a jet setPilates, which this is for all
of you listening, we want to getinto jet set today because we
think Pilates is such a greatspace.
So, Emily, without further ado,welcome to the show.
SPEAKER_04 (01:12):
Thank you for having me.
I'm excited to spend some timewith you guys today.
SPEAKER_05 (01:15):
Of course.
So, Emily, I I'd love to justsort of start with tell us about
Limitless franchise growth.
Tell us about how you guys firedthis up.
You guys have so much experiencein the boutique franchise space,
but let's sort of talk tell theaudience about where this is and
what inspired you guys to startthis new group.
SPEAKER_04 (01:35):
Yeah, absolutely.
I'll give you kind of a briefshare on my background and how
uh Limitless came to be.
Kind of tee up again, how wecame to partner with Jets at
Pilates.
Kind of fell into franchisingback in 2008.
Graduated from Xavier Universityat that time in Cincinnati.
2008, there's no jobs to be had.
All my friends were going tograd school.
And I actually got a job offerfrom a gentleman who was a
(01:57):
master franchise for a taxpreparation company.
Got into the franchising kind ofby accident, really realized
that tax preparation is not thatglamorous of an industry,
quickly kind of pivoted thegentleman who started St.
Gregory Development Group, oneof the first franchise sales
organizations, was that masterfor the tax preparation space.
So I was able to be reallyemployee number one of St.
(02:20):
Gregory Development Group, kindof that founding franchise sales
organization back in 2010.
And we really got our start inhealth and wellness and boutique
fitness brands.
And really, again, throughoutreally 12 years, we specialized
in health and wellness beauty.
(02:41):
And one of those brands that westarted working with back in
2015 was Club Pilates.
At that point, that brand hadabout 30 locations open, kind of
new to you know the Pilatesspace.
And really, we were the salesengine for the Club Pilates
system that eventually grew thatfranchise to over 1,500
locations over about sevenyears.
(03:04):
So really we're on the front endof the development for Club
Pilates, which was really thepioneer in the Pilates space.
Fast forward, Club Pilates, thatgentleman who owned that company
continued to buy brands.
Exponential fitness came intobeing.
Company went public in 2021.
And from that aspect to thebeginning of the end for the
sales team, that just their MAstrategy started to shift.
(03:28):
They were no longer looking tobuy brands and continue to
expand.
They wanted to kind of hold andkeep what they had, which is
great for the franchisepartners, but being on the sales
side of things, that's a littlebit hard to keep our team
together.
So at that point, you know,Lance and I had been working
together for over a decade anddecided to approach the board
and say, hey, we kind of want togo back to our original roots as
(03:51):
a true franchise salesorganization and be able to get
into other brands and othersectors.
So we had that conversation withthe board.
At the end of 2024, we diddepart exponential and Lance
started Limitless franchisegrowth.
The team at Limitless, we've gotnine under our umbrella.
And what's kind of unique aboutLimitless is that we've all been
(04:12):
working together for, I think,our least season partner for
close to eight years.
But the majority of us have beenworking together for about 10
years, which you really justdon't see in franchising these
days.
So a lot of people say it, weare a family, but we actually
kind of own that in terms of therelationship that we have and
just the respect that we havefor the team here at Limitless.
(04:34):
So that kind of led Lance and Ito really kind of decide, okay,
the gloves are off here.
We don't need to stay inboutique fitness.
We can start to partner withother brands.
And so we have diversified ourportfolio.
You know, right now we'reworking with four brands in the
kids space and the pet space.
But in terms of boutiquefitness, we knew that there was
one modality that we really sawopportunity with.
(04:56):
And that was Pilates.
So if you think about thePilates space, you know, Club
Pilates, the first, the OGbrand, a lot of success in that
system.
They have close to 1,500 studiosnow open.
The second player in the Pilatesspace has under 60 doors open.
So for us, that's justopportunity.
There's so much demand here, andthere's no one else that is
really kind of coming in as thatnumber two, that Pepsi in the
(05:19):
space.
So Pilates was definitelysomething that we wanted to get
back into and partner with thebrand under the limitless
portfolio.
I'll say, you know, Lance and Ispent a lot of time and a lot of
months speaking with everyPilates brand that had more than
five locations open.
We wanted to make sure that aswe would kind of we knew our
team's history and what we woulddo with another run in terms of
(05:41):
the Pilates space.
We wanted to make sure that thebrand that we partnered with was
really positioned well.
Jet Set, as you've mentioned,Jack, you know, they seem to be
all over in South Florida.
That brand had been around since2010.
And really we fell in love withhow differentiated it was.
You know, we know that we don'twant, we didn't want to do a
number two, a Pilates uh clubPilates Me Too.
(06:03):
We wanted something that couldactually come in and be
differentiated and fill a needfor this growing um Pilates
boom.
And again, Jet Set very clearlycame out on the top of this
brand is the mostdifferentiated.
By the way, they also have anamazing executive team.
You know, their franchisepartners are validating better
than any other brand that I'veever seen.
(06:23):
So we got really excited when westarted to talk and dig in
further with the Jet Set team.
SPEAKER_05 (06:29):
You know, I it to me, uh, we had so many clients
that said to us, maybe this is2020, 2021, how can I get Club
Pilates?
And and every time we wouldcheck, the markets were gone,
right?
It went really fast.
SPEAKER_03 (06:42):
And that was even post-COVID, too.
SPEAKER_05 (06:44):
Pilates seems to me to always be the one that when
you look, the classes are full.
It has what we love.
When we look at franchises, I'mleaving for our clients, we love
recurring revenue.
We love predictability.
That that's something that a lotof people who come in thinking
about buying a business, theydon't think you know they don't
know yet, right?
And so when I look at Pilatesand I look at Jet Set and I see
(07:07):
this brand and I see thatrecurring revenue, and you just
see how different the studio isand the brand is, it feels and
you're starting to see it now.
I'm seeing markets starting tocome off the board.
I saw last week alone, you guysmust have awarded five new
pretty major markets.
Did uh do I have that right?
SPEAKER_04 (07:23):
Yeah, things are moving quickly.
As I mentioned, validation onthis brand is better than any
other brand I've ever workedwith in my 18 years of doing it,
which is saying something.
So that goes to show that youknow the system is working,
franchisees are following themodel, they've got that great
recurring revenue, and they'rewanting to get in.
So we have we've had a busy fewmonths and we've have awarded
over 100 licenses in the lastfour months alone for jet set.
(07:45):
So territories are starting tomove.
That said, we do still have aton of white space left.
So we've got about 200 unitsopen and really see a runway to
absolutely get to a thousandunits here with JetSet.
SPEAKER_05 (07:57):
And so when you think about those successful
owners, and I want to open it upto the team too, because I know
they have questions, but myquestion is are we seeing any
consistencies in terms of whothose successful owners are?
Do they own other businessesalready?
Are they first-time franchiseowners?
Is it a mix?
What are you seeing in terms ofthose highly successful
franchisees that are validatingso well?
SPEAKER_04 (08:15):
Yeah, absolutely.
We definitely have kind of whatwe call brand avatars that we
look for in terms of bringing onnew franchise partners.
I will say we have a variety ofavatars, but I'd say the
commonality of those folks, andI'm gonna steal this line from
Bert, who is the CEO of Jet Set,is they are dependent
independents, meaning they'rethese are folks that are
(08:36):
dependent on the systems.
They want to follow a playbookthat the franchise or is
providing.
However, they are independent inthe way that they actually roll
out that model.
They are taking ownership intheir business.
They are understanding that atthe end of the day, this is my
business.
I am going to kind of takeresponsibility and make sure
that I'm providing and steppingup and really owning and
(08:57):
managing my team.
So that dependent, independent,is really the type of person
that we're looking for that hashigh drive, a high motor.
But the beauty of this brand aswell is that it can be a GM
model.
Um, and we are seeing that thatwill validate that.
Well, a lot of franchise ourswill say it, but this actually
validates across the system thatover 75% of our folks have GMs
(09:21):
that are running the day-to-dayoperations.
And this is allowing ourfranchise partners to scale
faster and to get more locationsup and running.
Um ideally, we're not awardingmore than three licenses to
anyone that doesn't havefranchising experience in those
hundred units that I mentioned.
We are doing it veryresponsibly.
We want to make sure that we'resetting these folks up for
(09:41):
success.
We don't want to sell 10 packs.
We want to sell kind of thosetranche of three to make sure
that the studios are gettingopen and franchise partners have
an opportunity to actually scaleand find success there.
SPEAKER_02 (09:52):
And Emily, uh sorry, Morgan Knowler here.
Emily, are you starting themarketing prior?
I mean, I see a lot of theselike Club Plotties, for
instance, they do a lot of themarketing ahead of time.
Memberships are being sold.
So by the time you're launchingall these studios for the
franchisees, do you already haverecurring revenue started?
SPEAKER_04 (10:06):
Correct.
So we do have kind of a robust12 to 16 week pre-sale process
that in blue involves, you know,a lot of grassroots, what we
call uh jet set on the mat.
So we'll gather folks in thecommunity, get them on a Matt
Pilates um class, give them alittle bit of taste of you know
what they can expect inside thestudio, but it's really uh lead
(10:27):
generators for us.
So absolutely we've got anaggressive and a really kind of
buttoned-up pre-sale process tomake sure that as these
franchisees are opening theirdoors, they're doing so with
recurring revenue already comingin.
And kind of going back to Jack,you know, that recurring revenue
model is so beautiful inboutique fitness.
And especially with Jet Set,what we love is that ratio,
(10:48):
which really helps margins.
So you've got one instructor toup to 18.
So 12 to 18 reformers in each ofthe studios, I'd say kind of
that sweet spot is 14 to 16.
Uh, most of our studios have 14to 16 reformers, but when you've
got one instructor um conductinga class, though that's where,
again, kind of the beauty of themargins come in with boutique
fitness.
SPEAKER_01 (11:08):
Catherine Allen here, Emily.
You know, I think it itsometimes helps envision a day
in the life of a franchiseowner.
What does a day in the life looklike on average in that first
maybe year of business?
Yeah, absolutely.
I know it's gonna change.
I know it's gonna be differentfor different people based on
their background and whatthey're coming in with.
But is there, can you give us alittle glimpse into what a day
(11:30):
in the life may look like?
SPEAKER_04 (11:31):
Yeah, absolutely.
And honestly, you know, timewill ratchet back as the studio
becomes more seasoned, as yourstaff becomes more seasoned.
Um, but we do want, you know,franchise partners to be able to
be involved in the front end,making sure that they're
managing the construction, thebuild out.
We have we have partners inplace that will help them do
that, but they need to bechecked in.
They need to be mentally, youknow, engaged with the group,
(11:53):
handling the construction andthe build-out.
But then as you're going throughthat construction, you're hiring
your GM.
And really the GM at the end ofthe day is in charge of running
the day-to-day operations inyour studio.
That side, you as an owner, youneed to be able to create a
really kind of great teamculture.
You need to attract the rightGM, the right instructors.
So you are spending time and youknow, hiring and managing those
(12:16):
employees and really checking inwith your GMs.
At a minimum, every day, everymorning, you should have a
check-in with your GM.
Hey, here are you know the KPIsthat we're gonna run through.
How many members, how many newtriers do we have today?
So, kind of the big KPIs thatare running your business.
Um, and then maybe a check-incall at the end of the day.
So absolutely you can do this,you know, with some flexibility
(12:38):
in your your daytime position,but it's really empowering that
GM to continue to build thatculture and really run those
day-to-day operations.
Um, as an owner, you'll alsoreally work with community
partners, creating strategicpartnerships to be able to do
those pop-up events.
So, you know, you don't want tojust put that on your GM.
You want to do that with them.
And at the end of the day, youare building a business in your
(13:00):
local community.
So creating those uhrelationships really, you know,
serves both of you well forlong-term success.
SPEAKER_01 (13:06):
And you mentioned the KPIs, which is great because
you need to understand your KPIsas a business owner.
Is that something that Jet Sethas baked in?
Are there any dashboards oranything to support that
conversation?
SPEAKER_04 (13:20):
We're glad you asked that question, Catherine,
because um, again, we've beenreally impressed with the
support system that JetSet hasin place.
They've got, you know, close to50 locations open by the end of
the year.
And right now, their supportteam is almost as big.
So they have overinvested in theamount of corporate support
getting ready for this nextlevel of growth.
And they have probably one ofthe most robust tracking and KPI
(13:43):
systems that I've seen.
Um, and that's again, sayingI've I worked at a publicly
traded company.
So that is saying a lot, but um,the software and the dashboard
that they pull together isreally impressive.
Kuvenci is the system that theyuse, but they will track pretty
much everything.
And profit per reformer is a bigmetric for them in terms of you
know just how busy your studiois, capacity.
(14:06):
Again, every imaginable KPI thatyou could think of, they are
tracking, they are monitoring,they're being really proactive.
So they've got these weeklyblueprint calls with their
franchise partners to say, hey,we noticed week over week there
was a shift here.
Maybe we need to work ontweaking the marketing for
league generation if we've got atop-of-funnel issue.
Or, hey, maybe your sales leadneeds to get a little bit more
(14:29):
vocal with the new triers interms of conversion.
So they're really tracking allthose parts of the business that
really uh kind of make or breakthat model.
So again, really excited to seeum much JetSet is investing in
that tracking capability withtheir franchise partners.
SPEAKER_01 (14:45):
It's amazing.
I track on a Excel and I'dreally love to have what
franchise owners have a Jet Set.
Man, that's actually crazy.
unknown (14:56):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (14:56):
Yeah, Emily, you were touching on the community
aspect of Jet Set Pilates, and Ifeel that that's the same with
all of your brands and kind ofsets limitless franchise growth
apart where it's not just agreat brand, but it's great
people and like a great culture.
And so I feel that you've beenvery responsible in the brands
that you've brought on wherethey they check all those boxes.
Is that right?
SPEAKER_04 (15:16):
Yeah, absolutely.
Thank you, Morgan.
Um, you know, for us, people isthe number one box that we need
to check as we're bringing onnew franchise brands under
Limitless.
You know, for Lance and I, wedon't want to get too big.
We don't want to have be an FSOthat's got 20 or 30 brands.
We want to be more boutique.
We want quality over quantity.
Um, you know, yes, for ourlifestyle, it's just not worth
(15:38):
it at this point of our lives towork with people that we don't
like and trust.
We need to make sure that we'refeeling really good about our
brand partners.
So we've been, again, verycognizant in the brands that
we're partnering with thatthey're just at the end of the
day, really good people, peoplethat we want to hang out with,
we want in our lives.
And yes, they have these amazingbrands.
So if you look across ourportfolio, we do have a lot of
(16:00):
kind of synergies between ourbrand founders.
And it's kind of fun to, youknow, we go to these conferences
now and to see them interactwith one another and how much
they have in common.
It's really just kind of thisculture that we're bringing to
LFG.
SPEAKER_05 (16:13):
I think one of the most powerful things that you
could say, Emily, is exactlywhat you just said.
And it's one of my most favoritethings about being a business
owner.
David and I were talking aboutthis before the podcast started.
And when you own a franchise,you get to decide who you're
gonna hire, who you're gonnawork with, who you're gonna hang
out with.
And for those of you listeningwho may be working with someone
or for someone, it just makesevery day feel so much longer.
(16:37):
That's one of my favorite thingsabout owning a business, is you
get to build your team.
You get to choose who you hangout with.
So I think that's such anexcellent, excellent point to
business ownership.
SPEAKER_04 (16:47):
Yeah, absolutely.
Life's too short to uh go towork with people that again you
don't you don't trust or believein.
SPEAKER_06 (16:53):
Emily uh Brian Gross here.
So, you know, I think about youknow this brand, the space in
general.
I live in the middle ofWashington, DC.
So and I walk down the street,you know, within a three-block
radius, there's a boxing class,a Pilates, you know, there's a
Barry's boot camp, there's anOrange Theory.
Um, you know, so there's a lotof players in this space.
And so, you know, I guess whatwould you say to people who
(17:14):
aren't even coming to you, noteven having a conversation with
you, because they're justwriting off boutique fitness in
general and saying it's toosaturated.
So a lot a lot of good ownersthat are you know just making
that assumption.
SPEAKER_04 (17:25):
So what what do you say to Yeah, absolutely, and
again, it it is an assumption.
It's something that we hear timeand time again.
Um but as I kind of mentionedearlier, if you think about the
Pilates space, you've got ClubPilates, kind of the
10,000-pound gorilla with 1,500open locations.
The next runner-up, if you lookat, you know, there's a number
of brands that are sittinganywhere from call it 20 to 60
(17:46):
open location, but there'sreally no distinct number two.
Um, so we really see jet setcoming in and filling that gap.
Um, and there's a need for it.
Right now, there is um there'snot enough inventory.
Um, so if you think about youknow these Pilates classes, as
you said, all of this studioseem to be just filling at the
brim.
There's weightless, there isdemand in Pilates.
(18:09):
So if looking at data fromClassPass, from 2023 up until
today, there's been an 84%increase in demand for Pilates
classes.
And Zs and millennials arespending more money on boutique
fitness than any other categoryin front of them.
And if you think about ClubPilates, it has naturally skewed
to be a little bit of an olderdemographic.
(18:31):
Whereas Jet Set, it's got moreof that vibe.
It's pulling in these Gen Z andmillennial dollars who are,
again, spending more than any ofthe other generations, really by
almost 3x.
So when you walk into a Jet Setstudio, it feels different.
Again, we didn't want it to bekind of a Me Too, a Club
Pilates, kind of that olderdemographic.
(18:53):
We wanted to resonate with thatyounger group who will also help
us go viral.
We've seen the Instagrams, theTikToks, you know, social media
is real.
We want those Instagrammablemoments to be able to continue
to grow this brand.
And um, you know, Tamara, thefounder of Jet Set, really
designed that aesthetic to makethose Instagrammable moments.
(19:15):
So we're seeing a huge influx inthese younger populations that
are big on class paths and arelooking for a home and going
back to that community aspect.
Gen Zs are looking for more ofthat community than any other
group before that.
So we're in kind of this perfectstorm for Pilates and
specifically for Jet Set to beable to take advantage of the
(19:35):
changes that are happening outthere.
SPEAKER_05 (19:38):
Well, and let's face it, it's it's like that.
Do you remember that old adcommercial, this isn't your
father's old mobile or somethinglike that?
I I might be dating myself.
But if you compare the vibe inJet Set to Club Pilates, and no
disrespect to Club Pilates, butjet set is like Miami cool.
It has just the vibe of it.
You you want to be there.
Like it's not in the workout, bythe way, is I like I don't I
(20:02):
didn't discover Pilates until49.
And my God, what a what a greatworkout.
I mean, for men, I mean, I hadthis stigma that it was like a
it was like a a for a girlworkout, but no, it's it's a
fabulous workout.
So there's so much about it thatjust makes it there's a reason
why you guys, in my opinion, areprobably gonna sell this thing
(20:24):
out in the next 12 monthsbecause it's great brand, great
workout.
Emily, I don't know, do you wantto talk at all about item 19
data?
Um, you certainly don't have to,but if you want to, you're
welcome to share it.
It appears to me that the item19 data from Pilates franchises
tends to be better than almostany other boutique fitness
(20:46):
concept.
But would you say that's a fairassessment?
SPEAKER_04 (20:50):
Um, from what I've seen, um, I would, yeah, I would
say so in general.
Um, and again, it goes back to alittle bit of that ratio and
coupled that with the demand forthe space.
Um, we've seen a lot of successin Pilates to date.
Um, but I would say in terms ofjet sets specifically, our item
19 data right now is almost ayear stale.
So I'll say we're really excitedto refile our FDD next year.
(21:14):
As it stands now, you know,average uh you're sitting at
924,000 in terms of top line AUVon a 30% margin.
Our top performers, um, you'llsee it kind of tranched out, are
over 1.3 in terms of AUV at a45% margin.
So again, that is almost saledata at this point.
What we really love to get iscandidates in the process and
(21:37):
validating with our franchisepartners on what they're seeing
now.
As I mentioned, the validationin this brand is better than
I've ever seen.
Every system, especially legacysystems, will have kind of those
legacy owners who aren't quite,you know, with it or wanting to
shift into the next realm ofwhere the brand is going, but we
don't have that in the jet setsystem.
(21:58):
So we get candidates in and weget them validating with the
existing system.
Um I also say that the existingsystem is also expanding
already.
They're already opening studiosnumber two and three and four
and coming back and wanting tobuy more territory.
So if that says anything abouttheir experience and where they
see this thing going, I think itjust speaks volume to the jet
(22:18):
set support as well.
SPEAKER_05 (22:19):
And just to be clear, this podcast is not an
offer to sell a franchise.
Uh, if you want to find out ifjet set is available in your
city or state, go to thefranchiseinsiders.com, visit our
team page, and feel free tocontact any of our franchise
consultants.
SPEAKER_00 (22:32):
Emily, this is David San Juan.
How are you?
First, I want to start with acom I want to start with a
comment that Jack's completelyright.
I'm pretty much the caveman ofthe group, and I love to live
lifting heavy stuff and workingout every day.
And I went into a jet uh a jetset, and that was probably the
hardest workout I've ever donein my life.
I think I cried for weeks.
Um want to leave with that.
(22:54):
And then you just mentionedabout the top-performing
franchisees.
What are they doing differently?
SPEAKER_04 (22:59):
Yeah, absolutely.
So, again, in terms of theworkout, time under tension is
real.
Um instructors are really goodat at keeping you under that
tension, and that's what seesthose results along with
soreness for days.
Certainly love to hear thatyou've been into a class.
We are trying to grow that maleuh participation, and we have
over the last few years it'sstarting to pick up and it will
(23:20):
continue to do so.
Um, in terms of those franchisepartners that are kind of top of
the pack, it's really aboutexecution.
Um understanding the smalldetails are really what makes a
difference in the boutiquefitness experience, the
cleanliness, the friendliness,the follow-up.
So just if you've got an ownerthat is obsessed with those
(23:41):
small details, that resonates totheir team.
The GM will start to notice.
If you've got an owner thatsteps over a paper towel and can
keeps walking, what do youwhat's gonna happen when you're
not there?
They're gonna do the same thing.
But if you pick it up, if youyou know, treat everyone with
respect and friendliness and getto know them, that resonates
among your team.
And it's those littledifferences that keep folks
(24:04):
coming back in, that build thatcommunity of, hey, I'm gonna go
from an eight time a month or afour time a month to an
unlimited because I've fallen inlove with the people in the
studio.
I've made new best friends.
I want that community, and I'mgonna get in there three, four,
five days a week in order to,you know, see my people and find
my tribe.
So um it's really that attentionto the the details and to that
(24:27):
in terms of top performers.
SPEAKER_01 (24:30):
This is Catherine Allen.
I have a quick question on justfrom a consumer perspective, you
know, the ease of booking aclass is so important.
Talk of talk to us about thetechnology and kind of what that
looks like to book a class.
Is there an app with Jet Set?
You know, what does that looklike?
SPEAKER_04 (24:48):
Yeah, there is.
So we absolutely we've got ourown proprietary app.
It is powered by Mind Body, oneof the biggest booking platforms
out there.
So people are familiar with it.
They're very comfortable usingthe Jet Set app app along with
the Mind Body kind of backendthat runs and generates all the
reporting.
So it's in a matter of, youknow, two or three clicks, you
can be in, you can book, bookout for your class.
(25:09):
We use it as a little bit of asales tool in terms of your
membership level will dictatehow far out you can book those
classes.
So the quality times, the the 6p.m.
or the 6 a.m.
classes that tend up to tend tofill the most.
If you're an unlimited member,you've got an extra kind of
couple days for the bookingwindow.
So that's kind of a nice littleperk with your membership to get
(25:30):
earlier access to make sure thatyou're getting in those prime
times or the prime instructorsthat you like to take class
with.
Great technology across theboard in terms of the jet set
system for sure.
SPEAKER_03 (25:41):
Yeah, it's really user-friendly.
And um it likes to send you areminder to remind you to book
your class, which we haven'tdone yet.
But I like that.
I mean, again, you know,sometimes we all get so busy
with everything.
I love the gentle nudges hereand there.
And like Catherine said, it'sreally important to know that
you're able to book it online.
And I personally do love thatdifferent memberships do get
(26:03):
extended time to book because itthat is very valuable.
I mean, that is something thatwould take me from, you know, a
two-time a week person tounlimited to be able to book in
advance because we're all sobusy and they do fill up so
fast.
Um, so it's really nice that youhave that technology.
SPEAKER_04 (26:19):
Yeah, absolutely.
And I love that you called outthose reminders.
You know, the all thatautomation is built into the
CRM.
So it's not like the the frontdesk or the what we call the
sales lead need to rememberthat.
Those are all automatically sentout and pushed.
We've got a really great kind ofagain, marketing and CRM
campaign for folks that, youknow, maybe they've come in once
but are not back into thestudio.
(26:39):
So getting those automated textmessages, emails out to really
help our team with theconversion rates in the studio.
SPEAKER_05 (26:47):
Hey, Emily, how long is uh build-out taking these
days for the studios, would yousay?
SPEAKER_04 (26:51):
On average, about nine months.
So in any retail brand, realestate is always the hardest
part.
I always say it's the mostpainful part of the process
because it's a process that wedon't control, right?
So we can't controlavailability, responsiveness to
the landlord.
That said, we do have a numberof relationships with real
estate and construction partnersto make sure that we've got that
local broker knowledge.
(27:13):
So we're partnering each of ourfranchise partners with a local
broker who has that kind ofboots on the ground knowledge.
They know the idiosyncrasies ofthe market, they know all the
local landlords.
So we're doing a lot to be ableto mitigate and start to shrink
that timeline.
Um, but at the end of the day,we are still a brick and mortar
location that has got to gothrough permitting, build out.
SPEAKER_01 (27:32):
So about nine months is kind of what's the average
square feet for a studio?
SPEAKER_04 (27:37):
Yeah, 1800 I'll say is the sweet spot, 15 to 2200.
And that then kind of dictatesthe number of reformers, uh, 12
to 18 reformers based on the thesize and the layout of the the
studio space.
SPEAKER_05 (27:50):
Are your guys when people let's say that that Jill
and I are looking at at Jet Set,right?
And we've had a couple phonecalls with you guys and and you
guys liked us as candidates.
Do you guys do in-persondiscovery days or meet the team
days?
Is it virtual?
How does that work when peoplego through your process?
SPEAKER_04 (28:06):
We host a monthly in-person, we call it
confirmation day down in Miami,Florida, which is where our
headquarters are.
So we absolutely want to meetyou.
We want to get you in person, ina class.
So we do want you to engage withthe brand, experience it.
Um, and then we'll spend quite afew hours just getting to know
you more and then reallyhighlighting the jet set team,
(28:26):
the people that are going to besupporting you day in, day out.
We want you to meet them.
We want you to shake their hand.
We want you to be able to makesure that you've got all of your
questions answered from the teamso that you're in a position to
say, yes, I'm ready.
Should you be approved afterconfirmation day?
SPEAKER_05 (28:42):
So quiet.
SPEAKER_03 (28:42):
We're just ready to go to Play.
SPEAKER_05 (28:44):
Right, exactly.
So, I mean, Emily, you guys dosuch a good job of identifying
brands, and we've spent spent alot of time on jet set, but
obviously you have other brandsin the portfolio.
Would you mind telling us moreabout those other brands that
you guys have as well?
SPEAKER_04 (28:58):
Yeah, absolutely.
Um, so our three other brandswould be Project Lean Nation,
which is a healthy preparedmeals brand based out of
Rochester, uh, New York.
We've got FundraisingUniversity, our newest brand.
They're based out of Phoenix,which focuses on high school
sports and activitiesfundraising.
And then All Dogs Unleashed,really fun brand uh based in
(29:20):
Dallas, Texas.
They have a kind of aproprietary two-week board and
train program that they utilize.
So, again, all of our brands arewhat I would call experiential
brands.
They are feel-good brands thatare looking to improve their
communities and in each of theirways.
They are AI and recessionresistant.
So that's really kind of thebrands that we're looking for in
(29:40):
our portfolio.
Project Lean Nation, based inRochester.
Again, think about it as kind offactor or some of those mere
meal delivery programs that showup at your doorstep, coupled
with, you know, kind of theJenny Craig counseling.
So it is quality, healthy meals,but with coaching and
(30:01):
counseling.
So what we see is that retentionis skyrocketed compared to a
factor.
You know, it's easy to quit abox of food that's delivered to
your doorstep.
It's harder to quit a coach or acounselor that is really in this
with you.
So they spend a lot of timemeeting with each of their
members, understanding theirjourney.
(30:22):
Their goals, making sure thatthe food that they are buying
aligns with their goals.
We take a look at macros.
You get on an in-body scanner,which is never always the best
feeling, but it is a verymotivating feeling to understand
where your opportunities are.
Again, Project Lead Nation isreally changing the lives of
their members in theircommunity.
(30:42):
They've got about 40 locationsnow open across the country.
SPEAKER_05 (30:47):
Well, and there you go.
Again, recurring revenue.
And this is for all of youlistening, we we we really want
our clients to look at this likean investor.
It's like, you know, David and Iwere talking before uh the
podcast fired up about there arecertain there are owners in
certain franchise systems thatthey're looking to infuse more
capital and open more units.
(31:08):
And it's if you wantinstitutional capital, if you
want private equity to be apotential suitor for potentially
a recapitalization, you betterhave at least a million dollars
in EBITDA and you better haverecurring revenue.
And so, you know, again, we trywhen we counsel people on
looking at businesses to moveaway from fantasy and stay with
reality in terms of what peoplereally want.
(31:29):
And if we're going to put allthis effort in of building a
business, of going through thenine months of building out our
jet set, then ultimately I thinkwe all should have a goal in
mind of building a businesstowards that.
And maybe that's with three orfour jet set locations and then
bolting on a um a lean nationunit.
The fundraising university pieceis very interesting.
(31:50):
They've been around a while.
I think they've got really goodpeople.
We actually met them at a uhfranchise conference over the
summer.
I think that's a neat additionto the portfolio.
SPEAKER_04 (31:59):
It is.
We're really excited aboutfundraising you.
Um, you know, Mike Bahun startedthe brand back in 2009.
Again, talk about a greatperson.
Those brand founders are reallyimportant to us.
Mike is amazing.
He is a coach through andthrough.
So kind of baseball, Alsace kindof saved his life, got him on
the right path, and he has neverlooked back in terms of paying
(32:20):
it forward.
So with fundraising you, they'vegot some really cool proprietary
software that allows thefranchisee to go into these
schools, think about your localbaseball, you know, high school
athletics program.
The state is only giving them Xamount of dollars that gets them
typically about two dozenbaseballs for the year, and
that's it.
So to be able to travel, to beable to have uniforms that are
(32:43):
better than the handy-downs thatget replaced every three years,
there's a ton of money that uhneeds to be made up in
fundraising.
So we come in with our softwareand our our coaching of the
coaches to really help thesecoaches raise more money in less
time with less interference intheir day-to-day.
Um, so that brand is lowinvestment.
(33:03):
So you're looking at sub$100,000.
The high end of that item sevenrange is$85,000.
So really simple business model.
We are looking for the ratefranchise partner there.
You need to be kind of ago-getter, you need to have a
motor to be able to go in.
But really, it's simple.
You go into the schools, youmeet the coaches, you get them
to sign on for the fundraiser,you execute the fundraiser, and
(33:24):
then um, we see a high renewalrate.
So the coaches see the successand they immediately sign up for
next year.
And then you have a built-inreferral system because you do
well with the baseball team.
All of a sudden, the women'svolleyball coach is like, oh my
gosh, I just saw what youraised.
How do how do we get in on that?
So you've got this built-inreferral system and really no
marketing needed in that brand.
You go in, you createrelationships with the schools,
(33:46):
and that's it.
SPEAKER_05 (33:47):
So, like, let's take Morgan and Catherine, for
example, both are our topperforming soccer stars
franchise owners.
Would it be unreasonable for meto say, would they be, and
again, I'm not trying to spendyour guys' money, but just
thinking about, you know, youraudience, Catherine and Morgan,
would fundraising university bea good diversification piece for
franchise owners in their space?
SPEAKER_02 (34:08):
Yeah.
For me, yeah, for me, more forMorgan specifically, I can
Catherine can speak to herterritory.
My territory, I have a lot ofum, a lot of schools that that
don't get a lot of money.
And so they're really relying onthe title funds from the state.
We come and run programming forvery little, uh, which is hard,
hard on us, but the coaches arehappy and the kids are happy so
we do it.
But something like franchise youwould be amazing because then I
(34:31):
could help the schools raise themoney that they need to have all
these sports that they don't getwithout us coming in and running
it for dirt cheap.
SPEAKER_04 (34:37):
Yeah, absolutely.
I see it as a natural kind ofbolt-on for that, you know, that
franchise partner who isn'tafraid to go in and build
relationships with thoseschools.
It's the amount of impact thatwe're creating in these
children's lives is uh prettyspecial.
SPEAKER_02 (34:50):
Yeah, and these these t-shirts or shirts that we
give them, I mean, they'll wearthem to school.
Like they need the extra jerseysand and shirts and things like
that.
So we always include it, but itis a high cost.
It's a lot of money to do thatfor them.
SPEAKER_01 (35:02):
Quick question is this do you mainly target high
schools or is it elementary,middle, and high school?
SPEAKER_04 (35:10):
So traditionally, we've seen the most success in
high schools.
If you think about when thecoach goes in and asks for the
kids to participate, there's alot of respect for that high
school coach at that point.
There's discipline, there's kindof expectations in place at the
high school sports level.
That gets a little bit dilutedin elementary and middle school.
(35:30):
Sometimes you've got volunteer,you know, moms that might be
running the soccer team as well.
So you miss out on a little bitof that.
That said, I do think there'sgoing to be some opportunity to
expand the brand into thoserealms.
And even with colleges, with AAUteams, there's a ton of
opportunity to continue todiversify for fundraising you.
So that's something that they'rethey're working to get into.
(35:51):
But I'll say kind ofhistorically, their bread and
butter has been with highschool, not only athletics, but
also if you think about theactivities in terms of like band
and dance and pep, there's a lotof programs that need that
funding.
But again, that high schoollevel has been their sweet spot
today.
SPEAKER_00 (36:07):
I think I need a fundraising you just to fund my
daughter's dance competitions.
SPEAKER_04 (36:11):
Exactly.
I mean, all the travel, thehotels, the outfits, it all
really starts to add up forparents.
Real fast.
SPEAKER_05 (36:17):
That is a full-time deal.
All right.
Well, listen, Emily, this hasbeen awesome.
Um, guys, team, let's go.
Maybe last questions, thoughtsfrom around the uh around the
room.
Brian, let's start with you.
SPEAKER_06 (36:28):
Yeah, Emily, this was fantastic.
And I'll tell you, as you talk,especially about Jet Set, the
one thing that was my bigtakeaway here, you know, you're
talking about going into apretty crowded space and you're
using technology, you're doingan elevated customer experience,
and you're setting yourfranchise's up for success.
Right.
So I think of the things thatyou shared about JetSet, it has
(36:49):
really nothing to do withPilates, right?
This is what a good franchiseris doing, whether it's an HVAC
company, whether it's seniorcare, whether it's boutique
fitness.
But these are the things that ifyou're looking for a franchise,
you should be looking for on thesupport side.
Um, you know, so I'd say anyonethat's remotely interested in a
business without recurringincome, you know, this is a
(37:09):
great model and a great exampleof exactly what to be looking
for.
So thanks for sharing today.
SPEAKER_04 (37:15):
Thank you, Brian.
SPEAKER_02 (37:17):
Yeah, thank you, Emily.
I think uh my takeaway is thatyou work with great people with
great brands and amazingculture.
And I think that's what's gonnaset you apart going forward.
And I I'm excited to go try jetset Pilates now.
SPEAKER_04 (37:28):
Yeah, I'll have to get you into a studio.
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_01 (37:30):
Thank you so much, Emily, for coming on today.
And I think I love the thetakeaway that I loved was you
know, you're you've invested inthe same number of people as
owners.
I think you said maybe 50 andjust the investment level that
has been put in by thefranchiseur to ensure these
franchise successes.
That's that's everything.
(37:51):
The KPIs, the dashboard,everything you explained and
described.
It's just, you know, you'reyou're going to succeed with
that type of support behind you.
So I think jet set sounds like agreat opportunity.
And I'm gonna do a territorycheck after this in preparation
for a call at noon.
Jack, you know which one I'mtalking about.
(38:12):
So thank you.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_00 (38:14):
Yeah, Emily, thank you.
This is David.
Um, again, I I love what yousaid about the top performing
franchisees.
I see it within our Pinxcommunity.
I own a Pinx, and we just see itacross the board, different
franchises.
What sets the top performersapart is kind of the same thing,
you know, everywhere payingattention to those details.
But again, thank you again forfor your time.
SPEAKER_05 (38:35):
I think that's it, that's a terrific point.
And Emily, you know, I I love ityou mentioned that, you know,
new owners coming in.
You guys kind of put a littlebit of a governor on a new
owner.
I think that's smart.
I think you said three units.
But let's say I'm two years inand um I'm in the top, you know,
10% of owners.
And I I say to you, okay, Emily,what I'd like to do now is build
(38:56):
up a bigger asset.
And what I'd like to do is maybereach out to, and in any
franchise system, right?
The the best franchise systemson earth, there's always going
to be um exit and acquisitionpotential.
Like if you look at Crumble's2023 item 19, they showed the
average owner netting like 250where the medium was 85.
So even with Crumble, there'shigh performers and low
(39:18):
performers.
So let's say I own, you know,three jet sets, I'm kicking
butt, and I say, okay, now Iwant to go and I'm here in Boca
Ratan and I want to go pick upseven more units through
acquisition.
I want to go buy existing ownersthat want to sell.
Is that something that you guyswould entertain for a high
performing franchise owner?
SPEAKER_04 (39:33):
Absolutely.
No, I think any franchise or theeasiest and safest way to grow
is with their existing system.
You've got a proven operator.
Um, and so long as the capitalis there, absolutely, we want to
grow.
I saw that in my tenure withClub Pilates.
For the last two years that wesold Club Pilates, we sold more
units than ever before, but 90%of them were to the existing
(39:54):
system.
So any good franchise or willgrow that way.
Jet Set, they've already seenexpansions, expansions from
those existing partners.
So, yes, we want to make surethat you're a good operator,
you're not in default, thatyou're following the system and
the playbook, but I imagine thatthe Jet Set system is going to
start growing very quickly fromwithin just in the next probably
(40:15):
two years.
So we're really excited to umyou know not only bring in new
franchise partners, but alsoallow those existing partners to
continue to grow theirportfolio.
One of our avatar avatars isthat portfolio builder.
We absolutely welcome folks whoreally want to build something
special.
And as you said, Jack, you know,in any system, there's always,
(40:35):
you know, the top third, themiddle, then the bottom third.
And those bottom thirds willnaturally get picked up by those
larger fish in the system.
SPEAKER_05 (40:43):
Well, and you, you know, you have so many people
out there that are scouring bizby sell looking for the perfect
business to buy, and they spendyears doing it.
And there's so many morecreative ways to do it, right?
If you're an investor and youcan identify a successful
franchisee who really knows whatthey're doing and you can come
in and recapitalize them andfollow that sort of roll-up
strategy, that's it's somethingnot enough people talk about is
(41:05):
how there are so many differentways to get creative.
And this is where working withfranchise consultants like
Morgan, like Catherine, likeBrian, like David can really
help you for those of youlistening to understand how to
accomplish your goals.
Now, the mistake I think peoplemake is they want to do it day
one.
And you really shouldn't.
First, you you've gotta you'vegotta get the right strategy,
the right brand, make sure it'sfor you.
(41:27):
And then once you're in it, thenyou can really accomplish so
much.
So, Emily, this has been sogreat.
We really appreciate your timeand your partnership.
And we're so excited to continueto send our clients to you guys
and look forward to many yearsof working together.
That's it for me today.
So I appreciate all of you beingon the podcast.
I'm Jack Johnson.
We'll talk to you next time onthe We Bought a Franchise
(41:47):
podcast.
Thank you.
Hi everyone, welcome back to the We Bought a
Franchise podcast.
I'm Jack Johnson.
SPEAKER_03 (00:26):
I'm Jill Johnson.
SPEAKER_05 (00:27):
And we're here today with a very compelling guest.
We have Emily Brown fromLimitless Franchise Growth.
We also have our esteemed panelof franchise consultants.
We have Catherine Allen, MorganKnowler, Brian Gross, and David
San Juan.
Emily, let's get right intothis.
We've been working with you fora long time, since back to the
(00:47):
Club Pilates days.
And now here you are withLimitless Franchise Growth and a
very exciting concept that I seeevery single day.
SPEAKER_03 (00:56):
All over Instagram, TikTok.
SPEAKER_05 (00:58):
Yeah.
Well, and us being based inSouth Florida, so right here in
Boca Raton, we've got a jet setPilates, which this is for all
of you listening, we want to getinto jet set today because we
think Pilates is such a greatspace.
So, Emily, without further ado,welcome to the show.
SPEAKER_04 (01:12):
Thank you for having me.
I'm excited to spend some timewith you guys today.
SPEAKER_05 (01:15):
Of course.
So, Emily, I I'd love to justsort of start with tell us about
Limitless franchise growth.
Tell us about how you guys firedthis up.
You guys have so much experiencein the boutique franchise space,
but let's sort of talk tell theaudience about where this is and
what inspired you guys to startthis new group.
SPEAKER_04 (01:35):
Yeah, absolutely.
I'll give you kind of a briefshare on my background and how
uh Limitless came to be.
Kind of tee up again, how wecame to partner with Jets at
Pilates.
Kind of fell into franchisingback in 2008.
Graduated from Xavier Universityat that time in Cincinnati.
2008, there's no jobs to be had.
All my friends were going tograd school.
And I actually got a job offerfrom a gentleman who was a
(01:57):
master franchise for a taxpreparation company.
Got into the franchising kind ofby accident, really realized
that tax preparation is not thatglamorous of an industry,
quickly kind of pivoted thegentleman who started St.
Gregory Development Group, oneof the first franchise sales
organizations, was that masterfor the tax preparation space.
So I was able to be reallyemployee number one of St.
(02:20):
Gregory Development Group, kindof that founding franchise sales
organization back in 2010.
And we really got our start inhealth and wellness and boutique
fitness brands.
And really, again, throughoutreally 12 years, we specialized
in health and wellness beauty.
(02:41):
And one of those brands that westarted working with back in
2015 was Club Pilates.
At that point, that brand hadabout 30 locations open, kind of
new to you know the Pilatesspace.
And really, we were the salesengine for the Club Pilates
system that eventually grew thatfranchise to over 1,500
locations over about sevenyears.
(03:04):
So really we're on the front endof the development for Club
Pilates, which was really thepioneer in the Pilates space.
Fast forward, Club Pilates, thatgentleman who owned that company
continued to buy brands.
Exponential fitness came intobeing.
Company went public in 2021.
And from that aspect to thebeginning of the end for the
sales team, that just their MAstrategy started to shift.
(03:28):
They were no longer looking tobuy brands and continue to
expand.
They wanted to kind of hold andkeep what they had, which is
great for the franchisepartners, but being on the sales
side of things, that's a littlebit hard to keep our team
together.
So at that point, you know,Lance and I had been working
together for over a decade anddecided to approach the board
and say, hey, we kind of want togo back to our original roots as
(03:51):
a true franchise salesorganization and be able to get
into other brands and othersectors.
So we had that conversation withthe board.
At the end of 2024, we diddepart exponential and Lance
started Limitless franchisegrowth.
The team at Limitless, we've gotnine under our umbrella.
And what's kind of unique aboutLimitless is that we've all been
(04:12):
working together for, I think,our least season partner for
close to eight years.
But the majority of us have beenworking together for about 10
years, which you really justdon't see in franchising these
days.
So a lot of people say it, weare a family, but we actually
kind of own that in terms of therelationship that we have and
just the respect that we havefor the team here at Limitless.
(04:34):
So that kind of led Lance and Ito really kind of decide, okay,
the gloves are off here.
We don't need to stay inboutique fitness.
We can start to partner withother brands.
And so we have diversified ourportfolio.
You know, right now we'reworking with four brands in the
kids space and the pet space.
But in terms of boutiquefitness, we knew that there was
one modality that we really sawopportunity with.
(04:56):
And that was Pilates.
So if you think about thePilates space, you know, Club
Pilates, the first, the OGbrand, a lot of success in that
system.
They have close to 1,500 studiosnow open.
The second player in the Pilatesspace has under 60 doors open.
So for us, that's justopportunity.
There's so much demand here, andthere's no one else that is
really kind of coming in as thatnumber two, that Pepsi in the
(05:19):
space.
So Pilates was definitelysomething that we wanted to get
back into and partner with thebrand under the limitless
portfolio.
I'll say, you know, Lance and Ispent a lot of time and a lot of
months speaking with everyPilates brand that had more than
five locations open.
We wanted to make sure that aswe would kind of we knew our
team's history and what we woulddo with another run in terms of
(05:41):
the Pilates space.
We wanted to make sure that thebrand that we partnered with was
really positioned well.
Jet Set, as you've mentioned,Jack, you know, they seem to be
all over in South Florida.
That brand had been around since2010.
And really we fell in love withhow differentiated it was.
You know, we know that we don'twant, we didn't want to do a
number two, a Pilates uh clubPilates Me Too.
(06:03):
We wanted something that couldactually come in and be
differentiated and fill a needfor this growing um Pilates
boom.
And again, Jet Set very clearlycame out on the top of this
brand is the mostdifferentiated.
By the way, they also have anamazing executive team.
You know, their franchisepartners are validating better
than any other brand that I'veever seen.
(06:23):
So we got really excited when westarted to talk and dig in
further with the Jet Set team.
SPEAKER_05 (06:29):
You know, I it to me, uh, we had so many clients
that said to us, maybe this is2020, 2021, how can I get Club
Pilates?
And and every time we wouldcheck, the markets were gone,
right?
It went really fast.
SPEAKER_03 (06:42):
And that was even post-COVID, too.
SPEAKER_05 (06:44):
Pilates seems to me to always be the one that when
you look, the classes are full.
It has what we love.
When we look at franchises, I'mleaving for our clients, we love
recurring revenue.
We love predictability.
That that's something that a lotof people who come in thinking
about buying a business, theydon't think you know they don't
know yet, right?
And so when I look at Pilatesand I look at Jet Set and I see
(07:07):
this brand and I see thatrecurring revenue, and you just
see how different the studio isand the brand is, it feels and
you're starting to see it now.
I'm seeing markets starting tocome off the board.
I saw last week alone, you guysmust have awarded five new
pretty major markets.
Did uh do I have that right?
SPEAKER_04 (07:23):
Yeah, things are moving quickly.
As I mentioned, validation onthis brand is better than any
other brand I've ever workedwith in my 18 years of doing it,
which is saying something.
So that goes to show that youknow the system is working,
franchisees are following themodel, they've got that great
recurring revenue, and they'rewanting to get in.
So we have we've had a busy fewmonths and we've have awarded
over 100 licenses in the lastfour months alone for jet set.
(07:45):
So territories are starting tomove.
That said, we do still have aton of white space left.
So we've got about 200 unitsopen and really see a runway to
absolutely get to a thousandunits here with JetSet.
SPEAKER_05 (07:57):
And so when you think about those successful
owners, and I want to open it upto the team too, because I know
they have questions, but myquestion is are we seeing any
consistencies in terms of whothose successful owners are?
Do they own other businessesalready?
Are they first-time franchiseowners?
Is it a mix?
What are you seeing in terms ofthose highly successful
franchisees that are validatingso well?
SPEAKER_04 (08:15):
Yeah, absolutely.
We definitely have kind of whatwe call brand avatars that we
look for in terms of bringing onnew franchise partners.
I will say we have a variety ofavatars, but I'd say the
commonality of those folks, andI'm gonna steal this line from
Bert, who is the CEO of Jet Set,is they are dependent
independents, meaning they'rethese are folks that are
(08:36):
dependent on the systems.
They want to follow a playbookthat the franchise or is
providing.
However, they are independent inthe way that they actually roll
out that model.
They are taking ownership intheir business.
They are understanding that atthe end of the day, this is my
business.
I am going to kind of takeresponsibility and make sure
that I'm providing and steppingup and really owning and
(08:57):
managing my team.
So that dependent, independent,is really the type of person
that we're looking for that hashigh drive, a high motor.
But the beauty of this brand aswell is that it can be a GM
model.
Um, and we are seeing that thatwill validate that.
Well, a lot of franchise ourswill say it, but this actually
validates across the system thatover 75% of our folks have GMs
(09:21):
that are running the day-to-dayoperations.
And this is allowing ourfranchise partners to scale
faster and to get more locationsup and running.
Um ideally, we're not awardingmore than three licenses to
anyone that doesn't havefranchising experience in those
hundred units that I mentioned.
We are doing it veryresponsibly.
We want to make sure that we'resetting these folks up for
(09:41):
success.
We don't want to sell 10 packs.
We want to sell kind of thosetranche of three to make sure
that the studios are gettingopen and franchise partners have
an opportunity to actually scaleand find success there.
SPEAKER_02 (09:52):
And Emily, uh sorry, Morgan Knowler here.
Emily, are you starting themarketing prior?
I mean, I see a lot of theselike Club Plotties, for
instance, they do a lot of themarketing ahead of time.
Memberships are being sold.
So by the time you're launchingall these studios for the
franchisees, do you already haverecurring revenue started?
SPEAKER_04 (10:06):
Correct.
So we do have kind of a robust12 to 16 week pre-sale process
that in blue involves, you know,a lot of grassroots, what we
call uh jet set on the mat.
So we'll gather folks in thecommunity, get them on a Matt
Pilates um class, give them alittle bit of taste of you know
what they can expect inside thestudio, but it's really uh lead
(10:27):
generators for us.
So absolutely we've got anaggressive and a really kind of
buttoned-up pre-sale process tomake sure that as these
franchisees are opening theirdoors, they're doing so with
recurring revenue already comingin.
And kind of going back to Jack,you know, that recurring revenue
model is so beautiful inboutique fitness.
And especially with Jet Set,what we love is that ratio,
(10:48):
which really helps margins.
So you've got one instructor toup to 18.
So 12 to 18 reformers in each ofthe studios, I'd say kind of
that sweet spot is 14 to 16.
Uh, most of our studios have 14to 16 reformers, but when you've
got one instructor um conductinga class, though that's where,
again, kind of the beauty of themargins come in with boutique
fitness.
SPEAKER_01 (11:08):
Catherine Allen here, Emily.
You know, I think it itsometimes helps envision a day
in the life of a franchiseowner.
What does a day in the life looklike on average in that first
maybe year of business?
Yeah, absolutely.
I know it's gonna change.
I know it's gonna be differentfor different people based on
their background and whatthey're coming in with.
But is there, can you give us alittle glimpse into what a day
(11:30):
in the life may look like?
SPEAKER_04 (11:31):
Yeah, absolutely.
And honestly, you know, timewill ratchet back as the studio
becomes more seasoned, as yourstaff becomes more seasoned.
Um, but we do want, you know,franchise partners to be able to
be involved in the front end,making sure that they're
managing the construction, thebuild out.
We have we have partners inplace that will help them do
that, but they need to bechecked in.
They need to be mentally, youknow, engaged with the group,
(11:53):
handling the construction andthe build-out.
But then as you're going throughthat construction, you're hiring
your GM.
And really the GM at the end ofthe day is in charge of running
the day-to-day operations inyour studio.
That side, you as an owner, youneed to be able to create a
really kind of great teamculture.
You need to attract the rightGM, the right instructors.
So you are spending time and youknow, hiring and managing those
(12:16):
employees and really checking inwith your GMs.
At a minimum, every day, everymorning, you should have a
check-in with your GM.
Hey, here are you know the KPIsthat we're gonna run through.
How many members, how many newtriers do we have today?
So, kind of the big KPIs thatare running your business.
Um, and then maybe a check-incall at the end of the day.
So absolutely you can do this,you know, with some flexibility
(12:38):
in your your daytime position,but it's really empowering that
GM to continue to build thatculture and really run those
day-to-day operations.
Um, as an owner, you'll alsoreally work with community
partners, creating strategicpartnerships to be able to do
those pop-up events.
So, you know, you don't want tojust put that on your GM.
You want to do that with them.
And at the end of the day, youare building a business in your
(13:00):
local community.
So creating those uhrelationships really, you know,
serves both of you well forlong-term success.
SPEAKER_01 (13:06):
And you mentioned the KPIs, which is great because
you need to understand your KPIsas a business owner.
Is that something that Jet Sethas baked in?
Are there any dashboards oranything to support that
conversation?
SPEAKER_04 (13:20):
We're glad you asked that question, Catherine,
because um, again, we've beenreally impressed with the
support system that JetSet hasin place.
They've got, you know, close to50 locations open by the end of
the year.
And right now, their supportteam is almost as big.
So they have overinvested in theamount of corporate support
getting ready for this nextlevel of growth.
And they have probably one ofthe most robust tracking and KPI
(13:43):
systems that I've seen.
Um, and that's again, sayingI've I worked at a publicly
traded company.
So that is saying a lot, but um,the software and the dashboard
that they pull together isreally impressive.
Kuvenci is the system that theyuse, but they will track pretty
much everything.
And profit per reformer is a bigmetric for them in terms of you
know just how busy your studiois, capacity.
(14:06):
Again, every imaginable KPI thatyou could think of, they are
tracking, they are monitoring,they're being really proactive.
So they've got these weeklyblueprint calls with their
franchise partners to say, hey,we noticed week over week there
was a shift here.
Maybe we need to work ontweaking the marketing for
league generation if we've got atop-of-funnel issue.
Or, hey, maybe your sales leadneeds to get a little bit more
(14:29):
vocal with the new triers interms of conversion.
So they're really tracking allthose parts of the business that
really uh kind of make or breakthat model.
So again, really excited to seeum much JetSet is investing in
that tracking capability withtheir franchise partners.
SPEAKER_01 (14:45):
It's amazing.
I track on a Excel and I'dreally love to have what
franchise owners have a Jet Set.
Man, that's actually crazy.
unknown (14:56):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (14:56):
Yeah, Emily, you were touching on the community
aspect of Jet Set Pilates, and Ifeel that that's the same with
all of your brands and kind ofsets limitless franchise growth
apart where it's not just agreat brand, but it's great
people and like a great culture.
And so I feel that you've beenvery responsible in the brands
that you've brought on wherethey they check all those boxes.
Is that right?
SPEAKER_04 (15:16):
Yeah, absolutely.
Thank you, Morgan.
Um, you know, for us, people isthe number one box that we need
to check as we're bringing onnew franchise brands under
Limitless.
You know, for Lance and I, wedon't want to get too big.
We don't want to have be an FSOthat's got 20 or 30 brands.
We want to be more boutique.
We want quality over quantity.
Um, you know, yes, for ourlifestyle, it's just not worth
(15:38):
it at this point of our lives towork with people that we don't
like and trust.
We need to make sure that we'refeeling really good about our
brand partners.
So we've been, again, verycognizant in the brands that
we're partnering with thatthey're just at the end of the
day, really good people, peoplethat we want to hang out with,
we want in our lives.
And yes, they have these amazingbrands.
So if you look across ourportfolio, we do have a lot of
(16:00):
kind of synergies between ourbrand founders.
And it's kind of fun to, youknow, we go to these conferences
now and to see them interactwith one another and how much
they have in common.
It's really just kind of thisculture that we're bringing to
LFG.
SPEAKER_05 (16:13):
I think one of the most powerful things that you
could say, Emily, is exactlywhat you just said.
And it's one of my most favoritethings about being a business
owner.
David and I were talking aboutthis before the podcast started.
And when you own a franchise,you get to decide who you're
gonna hire, who you're gonnawork with, who you're gonna hang
out with.
And for those of you listeningwho may be working with someone
or for someone, it just makesevery day feel so much longer.
(16:37):
That's one of my favorite thingsabout owning a business, is you
get to build your team.
You get to choose who you hangout with.
So I think that's such anexcellent, excellent point to
business ownership.
SPEAKER_04 (16:47):
Yeah, absolutely.
Life's too short to uh go towork with people that again you
don't you don't trust or believein.
SPEAKER_06 (16:53):
Emily uh Brian Gross here.
So, you know, I think about youknow this brand, the space in
general.
I live in the middle ofWashington, DC.
So and I walk down the street,you know, within a three-block
radius, there's a boxing class,a Pilates, you know, there's a
Barry's boot camp, there's anOrange Theory.
Um, you know, so there's a lotof players in this space.
And so, you know, I guess whatwould you say to people who
(17:14):
aren't even coming to you, noteven having a conversation with
you, because they're justwriting off boutique fitness in
general and saying it's toosaturated.
So a lot a lot of good ownersthat are you know just making
that assumption.
SPEAKER_04 (17:25):
So what what do you say to Yeah, absolutely, and
again, it it is an assumption.
It's something that we hear timeand time again.
Um but as I kind of mentionedearlier, if you think about the
Pilates space, you've got ClubPilates, kind of the
10,000-pound gorilla with 1,500open locations.
The next runner-up, if you lookat, you know, there's a number
of brands that are sittinganywhere from call it 20 to 60
(17:46):
open location, but there'sreally no distinct number two.
Um, so we really see jet setcoming in and filling that gap.
Um, and there's a need for it.
Right now, there is um there'snot enough inventory.
Um, so if you think about youknow these Pilates classes, as
you said, all of this studioseem to be just filling at the
brim.
There's weightless, there isdemand in Pilates.
(18:09):
So if looking at data fromClassPass, from 2023 up until
today, there's been an 84%increase in demand for Pilates
classes.
And Zs and millennials arespending more money on boutique
fitness than any other categoryin front of them.
And if you think about ClubPilates, it has naturally skewed
to be a little bit of an olderdemographic.
(18:31):
Whereas Jet Set, it's got moreof that vibe.
It's pulling in these Gen Z andmillennial dollars who are,
again, spending more than any ofthe other generations, really by
almost 3x.
So when you walk into a Jet Setstudio, it feels different.
Again, we didn't want it to bekind of a Me Too, a Club
Pilates, kind of that olderdemographic.
(18:53):
We wanted to resonate with thatyounger group who will also help
us go viral.
We've seen the Instagrams, theTikToks, you know, social media
is real.
We want those Instagrammablemoments to be able to continue
to grow this brand.
And um, you know, Tamara, thefounder of Jet Set, really
designed that aesthetic to makethose Instagrammable moments.
(19:15):
So we're seeing a huge influx inthese younger populations that
are big on class paths and arelooking for a home and going
back to that community aspect.
Gen Zs are looking for more ofthat community than any other
group before that.
So we're in kind of this perfectstorm for Pilates and
specifically for Jet Set to beable to take advantage of the
(19:35):
changes that are happening outthere.
SPEAKER_05 (19:38):
Well, and let's face it, it's it's like that.
Do you remember that old adcommercial, this isn't your
father's old mobile or somethinglike that?
I I might be dating myself.
But if you compare the vibe inJet Set to Club Pilates, and no
disrespect to Club Pilates, butjet set is like Miami cool.
It has just the vibe of it.
You you want to be there.
Like it's not in the workout, bythe way, is I like I don't I
(20:02):
didn't discover Pilates until49.
And my God, what a what a greatworkout.
I mean, for men, I mean, I hadthis stigma that it was like a
it was like a a for a girlworkout, but no, it's it's a
fabulous workout.
So there's so much about it thatjust makes it there's a reason
why you guys, in my opinion, areprobably gonna sell this thing
(20:24):
out in the next 12 monthsbecause it's great brand, great
workout.
Emily, I don't know, do you wantto talk at all about item 19
data?
Um, you certainly don't have to,but if you want to, you're
welcome to share it.
It appears to me that the item19 data from Pilates franchises
tends to be better than almostany other boutique fitness
(20:46):
concept.
But would you say that's a fairassessment?
SPEAKER_04 (20:50):
Um, from what I've seen, um, I would, yeah, I would
say so in general.
Um, and again, it goes back to alittle bit of that ratio and
coupled that with the demand forthe space.
Um, we've seen a lot of successin Pilates to date.
Um, but I would say in terms ofjet sets specifically, our item
19 data right now is almost ayear stale.
So I'll say we're really excitedto refile our FDD next year.
(21:14):
As it stands now, you know,average uh you're sitting at
924,000 in terms of top line AUVon a 30% margin.
Our top performers, um, you'llsee it kind of tranched out, are
over 1.3 in terms of AUV at a45% margin.
So again, that is almost saledata at this point.
What we really love to get iscandidates in the process and
(21:37):
validating with our franchisepartners on what they're seeing
now.
As I mentioned, the validationin this brand is better than
I've ever seen.
Every system, especially legacysystems, will have kind of those
legacy owners who aren't quite,you know, with it or wanting to
shift into the next realm ofwhere the brand is going, but we
don't have that in the jet setsystem.
(21:58):
So we get candidates in and weget them validating with the
existing system.
Um I also say that the existingsystem is also expanding
already.
They're already opening studiosnumber two and three and four
and coming back and wanting tobuy more territory.
So if that says anything abouttheir experience and where they
see this thing going, I think itjust speaks volume to the jet
(22:18):
set support as well.
SPEAKER_05 (22:19):
And just to be clear, this podcast is not an
offer to sell a franchise.
Uh, if you want to find out ifjet set is available in your
city or state, go to thefranchiseinsiders.com, visit our
team page, and feel free tocontact any of our franchise
consultants.
SPEAKER_00 (22:32):
Emily, this is David San Juan.
How are you?
First, I want to start with acom I want to start with a
comment that Jack's completelyright.
I'm pretty much the caveman ofthe group, and I love to live
lifting heavy stuff and workingout every day.
And I went into a jet uh a jetset, and that was probably the
hardest workout I've ever donein my life.
I think I cried for weeks.
Um want to leave with that.
(22:54):
And then you just mentionedabout the top-performing
franchisees.
What are they doing differently?
SPEAKER_04 (22:59):
Yeah, absolutely.
So, again, in terms of theworkout, time under tension is
real.
Um instructors are really goodat at keeping you under that
tension, and that's what seesthose results along with
soreness for days.
Certainly love to hear thatyou've been into a class.
We are trying to grow that maleuh participation, and we have
over the last few years it'sstarting to pick up and it will
(23:20):
continue to do so.
Um, in terms of those franchisepartners that are kind of top of
the pack, it's really aboutexecution.
Um understanding the smalldetails are really what makes a
difference in the boutiquefitness experience, the
cleanliness, the friendliness,the follow-up.
So just if you've got an ownerthat is obsessed with those
(23:41):
small details, that resonates totheir team.
The GM will start to notice.
If you've got an owner thatsteps over a paper towel and can
keeps walking, what do youwhat's gonna happen when you're
not there?
They're gonna do the same thing.
But if you pick it up, if youyou know, treat everyone with
respect and friendliness and getto know them, that resonates
among your team.
And it's those littledifferences that keep folks
(24:04):
coming back in, that build thatcommunity of, hey, I'm gonna go
from an eight time a month or afour time a month to an
unlimited because I've fallen inlove with the people in the
studio.
I've made new best friends.
I want that community, and I'mgonna get in there three, four,
five days a week in order to,you know, see my people and find
my tribe.
So um it's really that attentionto the the details and to that
(24:27):
in terms of top performers.
SPEAKER_01 (24:30):
This is Catherine Allen.
I have a quick question on justfrom a consumer perspective, you
know, the ease of booking aclass is so important.
Talk of talk to us about thetechnology and kind of what that
looks like to book a class.
Is there an app with Jet Set?
You know, what does that looklike?
SPEAKER_04 (24:48):
Yeah, there is.
So we absolutely we've got ourown proprietary app.
It is powered by Mind Body, oneof the biggest booking platforms
out there.
So people are familiar with it.
They're very comfortable usingthe Jet Set app app along with
the Mind Body kind of backendthat runs and generates all the
reporting.
So it's in a matter of, youknow, two or three clicks, you
can be in, you can book, bookout for your class.
(25:09):
We use it as a little bit of asales tool in terms of your
membership level will dictatehow far out you can book those
classes.
So the quality times, the the 6p.m.
or the 6 a.m.
classes that tend up to tend tofill the most.
If you're an unlimited member,you've got an extra kind of
couple days for the bookingwindow.
So that's kind of a nice littleperk with your membership to get
(25:30):
earlier access to make sure thatyou're getting in those prime
times or the prime instructorsthat you like to take class
with.
Great technology across theboard in terms of the jet set
system for sure.
SPEAKER_03 (25:41):
Yeah, it's really user-friendly.
And um it likes to send you areminder to remind you to book
your class, which we haven'tdone yet.
But I like that.
I mean, again, you know,sometimes we all get so busy
with everything.
I love the gentle nudges hereand there.
And like Catherine said, it'sreally important to know that
you're able to book it online.
And I personally do love thatdifferent memberships do get
(26:03):
extended time to book because itthat is very valuable.
I mean, that is something thatwould take me from, you know, a
two-time a week person tounlimited to be able to book in
advance because we're all sobusy and they do fill up so
fast.
Um, so it's really nice that youhave that technology.
SPEAKER_04 (26:19):
Yeah, absolutely.
And I love that you called outthose reminders.
You know, the all thatautomation is built into the
CRM.
So it's not like the the frontdesk or the what we call the
sales lead need to rememberthat.
Those are all automatically sentout and pushed.
We've got a really great kind ofagain, marketing and CRM
campaign for folks that, youknow, maybe they've come in once
but are not back into thestudio.
(26:39):
So getting those automated textmessages, emails out to really
help our team with theconversion rates in the studio.
SPEAKER_05 (26:47):
Hey, Emily, how long is uh build-out taking these
days for the studios, would yousay?
SPEAKER_04 (26:51):
On average, about nine months.
So in any retail brand, realestate is always the hardest
part.
I always say it's the mostpainful part of the process
because it's a process that wedon't control, right?
So we can't controlavailability, responsiveness to
the landlord.
That said, we do have a numberof relationships with real
estate and construction partnersto make sure that we've got that
local broker knowledge.
(27:13):
So we're partnering each of ourfranchise partners with a local
broker who has that kind ofboots on the ground knowledge.
They know the idiosyncrasies ofthe market, they know all the
local landlords.
So we're doing a lot to be ableto mitigate and start to shrink
that timeline.
Um, but at the end of the day,we are still a brick and mortar
location that has got to gothrough permitting, build out.
SPEAKER_01 (27:32):
So about nine months is kind of what's the average
square feet for a studio?
SPEAKER_04 (27:37):
Yeah, 1800 I'll say is the sweet spot, 15 to 2200.
And that then kind of dictatesthe number of reformers, uh, 12
to 18 reformers based on the thesize and the layout of the the
studio space.
SPEAKER_05 (27:50):
Are your guys when people let's say that that Jill
and I are looking at at Jet Set,right?
And we've had a couple phonecalls with you guys and and you
guys liked us as candidates.
Do you guys do in-persondiscovery days or meet the team
days?
Is it virtual?
How does that work when peoplego through your process?
SPEAKER_04 (28:06):
We host a monthly in-person, we call it
confirmation day down in Miami,Florida, which is where our
headquarters are.
So we absolutely want to meetyou.
We want to get you in person, ina class.
So we do want you to engage withthe brand, experience it.
Um, and then we'll spend quite afew hours just getting to know
you more and then reallyhighlighting the jet set team,
(28:26):
the people that are going to besupporting you day in, day out.
We want you to meet them.
We want you to shake their hand.
We want you to be able to makesure that you've got all of your
questions answered from the teamso that you're in a position to
say, yes, I'm ready.
Should you be approved afterconfirmation day?
SPEAKER_05 (28:42):
So quiet.
SPEAKER_03 (28:42):
We're just ready to go to Play.
SPEAKER_05 (28:44):
Right, exactly.
So, I mean, Emily, you guys dosuch a good job of identifying
brands, and we've spent spent alot of time on jet set, but
obviously you have other brandsin the portfolio.
Would you mind telling us moreabout those other brands that
you guys have as well?
SPEAKER_04 (28:58):
Yeah, absolutely.
Um, so our three other brandswould be Project Lean Nation,
which is a healthy preparedmeals brand based out of
Rochester, uh, New York.
We've got FundraisingUniversity, our newest brand.
They're based out of Phoenix,which focuses on high school
sports and activitiesfundraising.
And then All Dogs Unleashed,really fun brand uh based in
(29:20):
Dallas, Texas.
They have a kind of aproprietary two-week board and
train program that they utilize.
So, again, all of our brands arewhat I would call experiential
brands.
They are feel-good brands thatare looking to improve their
communities and in each of theirways.
They are AI and recessionresistant.
So that's really kind of thebrands that we're looking for in
(29:40):
our portfolio.
Project Lean Nation, based inRochester.
Again, think about it as kind offactor or some of those mere
meal delivery programs that showup at your doorstep, coupled
with, you know, kind of theJenny Craig counseling.
So it is quality, healthy meals,but with coaching and
(30:01):
counseling.
So what we see is that retentionis skyrocketed compared to a
factor.
You know, it's easy to quit abox of food that's delivered to
your doorstep.
It's harder to quit a coach or acounselor that is really in this
with you.
So they spend a lot of timemeeting with each of their
members, understanding theirjourney.
(30:22):
Their goals, making sure thatthe food that they are buying
aligns with their goals.
We take a look at macros.
You get on an in-body scanner,which is never always the best
feeling, but it is a verymotivating feeling to understand
where your opportunities are.
Again, Project Lead Nation isreally changing the lives of
their members in theircommunity.
(30:42):
They've got about 40 locationsnow open across the country.
SPEAKER_05 (30:47):
Well, and there you go.
Again, recurring revenue.
And this is for all of youlistening, we we we really want
our clients to look at this likean investor.
It's like, you know, David and Iwere talking before uh the
podcast fired up about there arecertain there are owners in
certain franchise systems thatthey're looking to infuse more
capital and open more units.
(31:08):
And it's if you wantinstitutional capital, if you
want private equity to be apotential suitor for potentially
a recapitalization, you betterhave at least a million dollars
in EBITDA and you better haverecurring revenue.
And so, you know, again, we trywhen we counsel people on
looking at businesses to moveaway from fantasy and stay with
reality in terms of what peoplereally want.
(31:29):
And if we're going to put allthis effort in of building a
business, of going through thenine months of building out our
jet set, then ultimately I thinkwe all should have a goal in
mind of building a businesstowards that.
And maybe that's with three orfour jet set locations and then
bolting on a um a lean nationunit.
The fundraising university pieceis very interesting.
(31:50):
They've been around a while.
I think they've got really goodpeople.
We actually met them at a uhfranchise conference over the
summer.
I think that's a neat additionto the portfolio.
SPEAKER_04 (31:59):
It is.
We're really excited aboutfundraising you.
Um, you know, Mike Bahun startedthe brand back in 2009.
Again, talk about a greatperson.
Those brand founders are reallyimportant to us.
Mike is amazing.
He is a coach through andthrough.
So kind of baseball, Alsace kindof saved his life, got him on
the right path, and he has neverlooked back in terms of paying
(32:20):
it forward.
So with fundraising you, they'vegot some really cool proprietary
software that allows thefranchisee to go into these
schools, think about your localbaseball, you know, high school
athletics program.
The state is only giving them Xamount of dollars that gets them
typically about two dozenbaseballs for the year, and
that's it.
So to be able to travel, to beable to have uniforms that are
(32:43):
better than the handy-downs thatget replaced every three years,
there's a ton of money that uhneeds to be made up in
fundraising.
So we come in with our softwareand our our coaching of the
coaches to really help thesecoaches raise more money in less
time with less interference intheir day-to-day.
Um, so that brand is lowinvestment.
(33:03):
So you're looking at sub$100,000.
The high end of that item sevenrange is$85,000.
So really simple business model.
We are looking for the ratefranchise partner there.
You need to be kind of ago-getter, you need to have a
motor to be able to go in.
But really, it's simple.
You go into the schools, youmeet the coaches, you get them
to sign on for the fundraiser,you execute the fundraiser, and
(33:24):
then um, we see a high renewalrate.
So the coaches see the successand they immediately sign up for
next year.
And then you have a built-inreferral system because you do
well with the baseball team.
All of a sudden, the women'svolleyball coach is like, oh my
gosh, I just saw what youraised.
How do how do we get in on that?
So you've got this built-inreferral system and really no
marketing needed in that brand.
You go in, you createrelationships with the schools,
(33:46):
and that's it.
SPEAKER_05 (33:47):
So, like, let's take Morgan and Catherine, for
example, both are our topperforming soccer stars
franchise owners.
Would it be unreasonable for meto say, would they be, and
again, I'm not trying to spendyour guys' money, but just
thinking about, you know, youraudience, Catherine and Morgan,
would fundraising university bea good diversification piece for
franchise owners in their space?
SPEAKER_02 (34:08):
Yeah.
For me, yeah, for me, more forMorgan specifically, I can
Catherine can speak to herterritory.
My territory, I have a lot ofum, a lot of schools that that
don't get a lot of money.
And so they're really relying onthe title funds from the state.
We come and run programming forvery little, uh, which is hard,
hard on us, but the coaches arehappy and the kids are happy so
we do it.
But something like franchise youwould be amazing because then I
(34:31):
could help the schools raise themoney that they need to have all
these sports that they don't getwithout us coming in and running
it for dirt cheap.
SPEAKER_04 (34:37):
Yeah, absolutely.
I see it as a natural kind ofbolt-on for that, you know, that
franchise partner who isn'tafraid to go in and build
relationships with thoseschools.
It's the amount of impact thatwe're creating in these
children's lives is uh prettyspecial.
SPEAKER_02 (34:50):
Yeah, and these these t-shirts or shirts that we
give them, I mean, they'll wearthem to school.
Like they need the extra jerseysand and shirts and things like
that.
So we always include it, but itis a high cost.
It's a lot of money to do thatfor them.
SPEAKER_01 (35:02):
Quick question is this do you mainly target high
schools or is it elementary,middle, and high school?
SPEAKER_04 (35:10):
So traditionally, we've seen the most success in
high schools.
If you think about when thecoach goes in and asks for the
kids to participate, there's alot of respect for that high
school coach at that point.
There's discipline, there's kindof expectations in place at the
high school sports level.
That gets a little bit dilutedin elementary and middle school.
(35:30):
Sometimes you've got volunteer,you know, moms that might be
running the soccer team as well.
So you miss out on a little bitof that.
That said, I do think there'sgoing to be some opportunity to
expand the brand into thoserealms.
And even with colleges, with AAUteams, there's a ton of
opportunity to continue todiversify for fundraising you.
So that's something that they'rethey're working to get into.
(35:51):
But I'll say kind ofhistorically, their bread and
butter has been with highschool, not only athletics, but
also if you think about theactivities in terms of like band
and dance and pep, there's a lotof programs that need that
funding.
But again, that high schoollevel has been their sweet spot
today.
SPEAKER_00 (36:07):
I think I need a fundraising you just to fund my
daughter's dance competitions.
SPEAKER_04 (36:11):
Exactly.
I mean, all the travel, thehotels, the outfits, it all
really starts to add up forparents.
Real fast.
SPEAKER_05 (36:17):
That is a full-time deal.
All right.
Well, listen, Emily, this hasbeen awesome.
Um, guys, team, let's go.
Maybe last questions, thoughtsfrom around the uh around the
room.
Brian, let's start with you.
SPEAKER_06 (36:28):
Yeah, Emily, this was fantastic.
And I'll tell you, as you talk,especially about Jet Set, the
one thing that was my bigtakeaway here, you know, you're
talking about going into apretty crowded space and you're
using technology, you're doingan elevated customer experience,
and you're setting yourfranchise's up for success.
Right.
So I think of the things thatyou shared about JetSet, it has
(36:49):
really nothing to do withPilates, right?
This is what a good franchiseris doing, whether it's an HVAC
company, whether it's seniorcare, whether it's boutique
fitness.
But these are the things that ifyou're looking for a franchise,
you should be looking for on thesupport side.
Um, you know, so I'd say anyonethat's remotely interested in a
business without recurringincome, you know, this is a
(37:09):
great model and a great exampleof exactly what to be looking
for.
So thanks for sharing today.
SPEAKER_04 (37:15):
Thank you, Brian.
SPEAKER_02 (37:17):
Yeah, thank you, Emily.
I think uh my takeaway is thatyou work with great people with
great brands and amazingculture.
And I think that's what's gonnaset you apart going forward.
And I I'm excited to go try jetset Pilates now.
SPEAKER_04 (37:28):
Yeah, I'll have to get you into a studio.
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_01 (37:30):
Thank you so much, Emily, for coming on today.
And I think I love the thetakeaway that I loved was you
know, you're you've invested inthe same number of people as
owners.
I think you said maybe 50 andjust the investment level that
has been put in by thefranchiseur to ensure these
franchise successes.
That's that's everything.
(37:51):
The KPIs, the dashboard,everything you explained and
described.
It's just, you know, you'reyou're going to succeed with
that type of support behind you.
So I think jet set sounds like agreat opportunity.
And I'm gonna do a territorycheck after this in preparation
for a call at noon.
Jack, you know which one I'mtalking about.
(38:12):
So thank you.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_00 (38:14):
Yeah, Emily, thank you.
This is David.
Um, again, I I love what yousaid about the top performing
franchisees.
I see it within our Pinxcommunity.
I own a Pinx, and we just see itacross the board, different
franchises.
What sets the top performersapart is kind of the same thing,
you know, everywhere payingattention to those details.
But again, thank you again forfor your time.
SPEAKER_05 (38:35):
I think that's it, that's a terrific point.
And Emily, you know, I I love ityou mentioned that, you know,
new owners coming in.
You guys kind of put a littlebit of a governor on a new
owner.
I think that's smart.
I think you said three units.
But let's say I'm two years inand um I'm in the top, you know,
10% of owners.
And I I say to you, okay, Emily,what I'd like to do now is build
(38:56):
up a bigger asset.
And what I'd like to do is maybereach out to, and in any
franchise system, right?
The the best franchise systemson earth, there's always going
to be um exit and acquisitionpotential.
Like if you look at Crumble's2023 item 19, they showed the
average owner netting like 250where the medium was 85.
So even with Crumble, there'shigh performers and low
(39:18):
performers.
So let's say I own, you know,three jet sets, I'm kicking
butt, and I say, okay, now Iwant to go and I'm here in Boca
Ratan and I want to go pick upseven more units through
acquisition.
I want to go buy existing ownersthat want to sell.
Is that something that you guyswould entertain for a high
performing franchise owner?
SPEAKER_04 (39:33):
Absolutely.
No, I think any franchise or theeasiest and safest way to grow
is with their existing system.
You've got a proven operator.
Um, and so long as the capitalis there, absolutely, we want to
grow.
I saw that in my tenure withClub Pilates.
For the last two years that wesold Club Pilates, we sold more
units than ever before, but 90%of them were to the existing
(39:54):
system.
So any good franchise or willgrow that way.
Jet Set, they've already seenexpansions, expansions from
those existing partners.
So, yes, we want to make surethat you're a good operator,
you're not in default, thatyou're following the system and
the playbook, but I imagine thatthe Jet Set system is going to
start growing very quickly fromwithin just in the next probably
(40:15):
two years.
So we're really excited to umyou know not only bring in new
franchise partners, but alsoallow those existing partners to
continue to grow theirportfolio.
One of our avatar avatars isthat portfolio builder.
We absolutely welcome folks whoreally want to build something
special.
And as you said, Jack, you know,in any system, there's always,
(40:35):
you know, the top third, themiddle, then the bottom third.
And those bottom thirds willnaturally get picked up by those
larger fish in the system.
SPEAKER_05 (40:43):
Well, and you, you know, you have so many people
out there that are scouring bizby sell looking for the perfect
business to buy, and they spendyears doing it.
And there's so many morecreative ways to do it, right?
If you're an investor and youcan identify a successful
franchisee who really knows whatthey're doing and you can come
in and recapitalize them andfollow that sort of roll-up
strategy, that's it's somethingnot enough people talk about is
(41:05):
how there are so many differentways to get creative.
And this is where working withfranchise consultants like
Morgan, like Catherine, likeBrian, like David can really
help you for those of youlistening to understand how to
accomplish your goals.
Now, the mistake I think peoplemake is they want to do it day
one.
And you really shouldn't.
First, you you've gotta you'vegotta get the right strategy,
the right brand, make sure it'sfor you.
(41:27):
And then once you're in it, thenyou can really accomplish so
much.
So, Emily, this has been sogreat.
We really appreciate your timeand your partnership.
And we're so excited to continueto send our clients to you guys
and look forward to many yearsof working together.
That's it for me today.
So I appreciate all of you beingon the podcast.
I'm Jack Johnson.
We'll talk to you next time onthe We Bought a Franchise
(41:47):
podcast.
Thank you.
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