Posted:16-August-2022
Interview with award-winning franchisee Duncan Attwood, fit20 Exeter
- Name: Duncan Attwood
- Location: Exeter
- Franchise: fit20
- Date launched the franchise: 7th January 2019
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and what you were doing prior to buying your fit20 franchise business?
I have always enjoyed helping others and this has been the driving force behind my decision on a potential career. As a child, I was overweight and unhealthy which meant I needed medication for illnesses such as asthma and I wanted to help others in a similar manner to those who were helping me, so thought about becoming a doctor.
However, through my teenage years I took up kayaking and became very competitive in White Water Slalom, which significantly changed my physique and removed my health conditions, so I no longer needed medication. This led me to pursue health and fitness to help others in a more natural way without reliance on medication, and I have spent over 20 years in this field.
Over these years I have worked in many fitness businesses including David Lloyd Leisure, Bannatyne’s Health Clubs and Village Hotels and while I have seen many members succeed in their fitness goals, I have also seen many try and fail which can be disheartening. My last ‘employed’ role was Cluster Manager for golf courses in the Midlands where I also developed one of the sites with a £3m expansion and refurbishment project to include gym, hospitality and driving range facilities.
Can you also tell us about the fit20 franchise?
fit20 is an innovative and unique training method. Most people believe that fitness training takes at least a few hours every week with several sessions per week. fit20 provides a science-based alternative. At fit20 you train once a week for 20 minutes with a personal trainer. Our training method is based on the latest scientific findings about effective and efficient training to improve fitness and health. You book your weekly session ahead of time to stay on track. Because you have an appointment, you don’t have to wait. There is no need to change or shower because we train at a slow and precise pace in a custom cooled studio. Most members show measurable results within a few sessions, and more importantly, they feel stronger and fitter. Your weekly appointment lasts 20 minutes.
Why did you go down the franchise route? What made you choose the fitness industry? And why a fit20 franchise?
I have always wanted to have a business of my own (inspired by my father who has run his own company for over 40 years) and my plan was to work my way up to managing multiple sites before branching off on my own. In my last role I managed golf courses and developed health clubs within them.
When I decided it was time to go off on my own, I looked at various options from starting up a business, to buying an existing business. Throughout my career I have always gone into business operations that have been struggling and I thought that buying a small existing business would play to my strengths. The issue I found is that after negotiating on a purchase, someone would come from the city and offer more than I was willing to pay.
I had never considered a franchise, as I disliked the thought of paying royalties from a business I owned but I had neglected to consider the benefits of owning a franchise.
While searching for businesses to purchase, I heard about the fit20 franchise through a business networking group (BNI), who used one of my golf sites as a venue for their meetings, and I was intrigued by their unique approach to fitness. Throughout my years in the health & fitness industry I have seen many members succeed in their fitness goals, but I have also seen many try and fail, which can be disheartening, and fit20 offers a guarantee on achieving results. This bold claim, and the scientific approach to fitness made me excited to learn more. I visited the fit20 Head Office where I experienced the training and challenged their methods, which I am pleased to say stood up to scrutiny! I have a BSc in Sports Science and a MSc in Management so researched their approach and then went back to speak to their members.
The deciding moment for me was I was speaking to a couple who had been training with them for approximately a year. He had previously suffered after having flu which left him weak and struggling to play golf, yet after only a few months of fit20 training his strength was back to the point where he could walk the 18 holes with ease. He was so impressed with the results, he never plans to leave. I then asked his wife why she comes to fit20 and she said it was originally to support her husband but during the training she was able to come off the medication for high blood pressure. She had been on this medication for many years and dislikes exercise, though found the fit20 training effective and something she is happy to do as it only takes 20 minutes a week!
What training and support did you receive initially and ongoing?
fit20 has a very robust training program for all fit20 Personal Trainers, with exams to ensure everyone is appropriately qualified before they are allowed to train our members. They are willing to support franchisees to find suitable locations for their studios and provide budgets for forecasting purposes. They provide links with marketing companies to help with lead generation (although you are free to use your own local provider if you prefer) and the UK Head Office now has both Operational and Marketing support staff to help grow your franchise. We also have weekly conference calls with all UK franchisees in attendance to share best practice and these are occasionally supported by the fit20 Founders in Holland so we can learn from those in other countries.
How would you describe your day-to-day role as a franchisee
Exciting! It is your business to run and the opportunities are endless. Some franchisees are interested in operating as a lifestyle business and others are looking to expand with multiple sites. I love to see the benefits my members are achieving and growing the site means we can positively affect the lives of more people in the local area.
Provide information on challenges overcome as well as your key successes to date. Please also detail the steps you have taken to manage the business during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Our product is unique in the industry and challenges the traditional views on exercise. The method is highly effective but difficult to comprehend as it goes against widely held beliefs. On this basis, one of the biggest challenges I have faced is convincing people that our USP’s are genuine and it works. Leading with the fit20 brand was met with scepticism so I changed my approach to focus on the health benefits and outcomes of the training rather than the unique approach used by the franchise. When I combined this with my own experience of traditional exercise versus those of our brand it became a compelling proposition and our enquiries and subsequent sales increased.
The franchise encourages all operators to use Facebook advertising as a strong source of enquiries. Whilst this does work, I have found that it is far more successful when combined with regular organic posts, particularly videos that aim to educate the viewer in our area of expertise without trying to sell. This combination has led to both a higher number of enquiries and better conversion with prospective clients mentioning how they have already seen our videos and thereby having a greater understanding of our product.
When I invested in the franchise the aim was to build a successful team of personal trainers to enable me to grow the business and build additional sites. The fit20 Academy is a great program to ensure all personal trainers are at the required standard to deliver a consistently high-quality training session and the training app ensures the client receives the right intensity for their own unique circumstances, regardless of who had trained them previously. During the recruitment process I have been looking for people who have a variety of different interests that can add value to clients. For instance, I have one who has a particular interest in nutrition (which is not a service we offer at fit20) but adds value to the client when they are able to get this advice, thereby aiding our retention.
Members/clients would not accept a 20% increase to their fees when we crossed the VAT threshold, so it was important to push through the VAT threshold and beyond rapidly so that the deduction of VAT from revenue did not damage profits. I forecasted ahead to see when we were likely to cross the threshold and invested heavily in marketing in the few months prior, and after, in order to build leads. I also identified a member of the team who was most keen to progress and discussed possible roles and the skills needed to take on a more senior position. I then encouraged this member of the team to take on additional responsibility for converting leads into sales appointments and paid commission for each appointment booked. The result led to us quickly increasing sales and covering the cost of the VAT deduction.
I now have the largest membership of any of the UK studios, I am in a position to open my second studio and am actively looking for a suitable property, and I have the longest standing team member of all of the UK studios.
The gym industry as a whole can have a high turnover of staff and this was particularly prevalent during Covid. All Health & Fitness Clubs and Studio operators were forced to lockdown and this industry has a high number of zero hour and self employed staff who were unable to benefit from furlough schemes and other government incentives. This led to many people leaving the industry and retraining in other sectors. I discussed our predicament with other fit20 franchisees and we developed our own version of the training that could be delivered by Zoom into members’ homes. We described this as an ‘Emergency Ration’, to distinguish it from our standard training, and we charged half the usual fee. In order to support my team, I gave all the training sessions to them, did not do any myself, and paid them their normal rate for the sessions. This meant that the business did not financially benefit from these sessions, but our team did. This approach led to me keeping hold of my team and a number of clients, so that when lockdown ended, we were in a strong position to grow!
Has becoming a franchisee changed your life, if so how?
Yes! It enabled me to start and build a successful business using a proven formula. If you consider how many new businesses fail in their first years of operation and that we have managed to succeed through some of the hardest conditions businesses have ever faced (Covid) then I am proud to be part of a great franchise. Operating within the health & fitness industry with a results guaranteed offering means that I am proud whenever we pick up a new member, as I know it is going to benefit their lives.
Being a franchise owner has put me in a position where I can confidently network with many other business owners which has helped me to develop skills both professionally and personally. I am now friends with many of these business owners who are on a similar growth trajectory, and it is exciting to see each of our dreams become reality.
It has also had a profound impact on my family with my children both dreaming big for their future careers, which I know is a result of them seeing me achieve it within my business.
How do you achieve a work-life balance?
It is a challenge. My aim has been to grow my business and gradually make myself redundant from frontline operations. This then means I can be more flexible to spend time with the family. However, my business is still young and I am looking to open more sites which does take significant time and effort. To help me achieve a sensible balance I now have a business coach, which encourages me to work on the business (rather than in it) and focus on both professional and personal objectives.
How do you incentivise your team and recognise success?
- Introduced commission for all sales.
- Introduced commission for appointments booked from leads.
- Take the team and their partners out for Christmas. During Covid Lockdowns I gave a Christmas hamper with local produce.
- Tiny noticeable things: buying team members a coffee from the local Starbucks, taking an interest in them and their families (I even helped one go on a camping holiday by using my van to drop off their camping supplies as their car was not big enough).
What formal staff development and training programmes have you introduced?
Introduced weekly meetings and documentation for the future Studio Manager (prior to them taking on the role) where we have split the business down into 6 headings - one of which is ‘Staff’. In each weekly meeting we use this as an opportunity to identify staff needs and development opportunities.
How have you retained your best staff?
By doing all of the above and allowing them to see the studio as their own business and rewarding accordingly. Only reprimanding (and doing so quickly) if it is clear the staff knew better. Never reprimanding if things do not go as planned, especially if it is trying a new task or activity, but instead encouraging them to learn from mistakes quickly and try again.
Can you tell us about any community involvement, including any local partnerships, incentives or charity work you are involved in?
I am an active member of a number of local networking groups including BNI, Exeter Business Club, Your Partnerships (including netwalking events at a local Forest centre), and Entrepreneurs Circle. I have partnered up with 3 other Health Specialists (Clinical Psychologist, Nutrition Expert, and a Men’s Mental Health expert) to teach local people how to ‘Live Well Forever’ at an event last month at the local Science Park where we had c60 attendees. All proceeds from this event were donated to a local charity – InFocus Charity.
I have further supported the local charity “InFocus Charity”, who help young people with sight and complex needs. To help this charity I have done tree planting at their site, and have done a Charity Skydive with my fit20 team and my daughter (raised over £1700).
What is the most invaluable piece of advice you could give someone looking to buy their first franchise?
Identify one that holds values similar to your own – this will make you happy and more successful in the long run. Do your own research and due diligence on any information you receive.
In your opinion, what makes a successful franchisee?
You need to be self motivated. The franchise will support you though you must be driven to succeed by your own definition of success. You also need to be excited by the sector – you are going to spend a lot of time here and you are more likely to be successful if you enjoy it!
What are your plans for the future?
When I first bought in to the franchise I planned budgets for 6 sites. Covid slowed our growth plans though they still exist. I am currently looking for the next studio location.
I am excited to see the brand grow in the UK and I know when this gets traction the chances are that I will not be limiting myself to just 6 sites. I believe the UK has potential for 500 fit20 studios in the future.
If you had to do it all again, what would you do differently?
I have learnt from everything we have done, and we needed those experiences at each stage. However, I kept the costs low for the first site including having a studio in a location that is largely hidden. While we have succeeded, I believe our growth would have been quicker had we been in a more visible location. I plan to put future sites in a more prominent position to pick up passing trade as the extra rental cost can be offset with faster growth and potentially a reduction in marketing costs.
Interested and want to know more about fit20 ?
The fit20 profile outlines all aspects of their franchise opportunity and allows you to contact them for further information or to ask a question.
