Why Pilates Franchises Win: Recurring Revenue & Strong Margins Explained

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 franchise opportunities that match their capital, experience, and goals. Our team consists entirely of franchise owners, not traditional brokers.

We focus on truth-telling over hype: If a franchise doesn't fit your profile, we'll tell you. If there's a better opti

Visit www.thefranchiseinsiders.com to subscribe.
Send us your questions for an upcoming episode at 305-710-0050.
From your pals in franchise ownership, Jack and Jill Johnson.

Chapters

• 0:20 Meet Emily Brown And LFG
• 1:42 From Club Pilates To Limitless
• 4:45 Why Pilates Has Massive White Space
• 6:45 Jet Set’s Differentiation And Validation
• 9:08 Who Succeeds As An Owner
• 10:05 Pre‑Sale, Recurring Revenue, Margins
• 11:10 Owner Day‑In‑Life And KPIs
• 13:18 Tech Stack, Dashboards, Coaching
• 17:18 Is Boutique Fitness Saturated
• 18:38 Brand Aesthetic And Demographics
• 20:51 Item 19 Highlights And Expansion
• 22:50 Build‑Out, Real Estate, Footprint
• 24:18 Confirmation Day And Process
• 25:21 Other LFG Brands Overview
• 28:23 Fundraising U Model And Impact
• 30:52 Where Fundraising Works Best
• 32:35 Final Takeaways On Support
• 34:49 Scaling With Existing Operators
• 41:27 Closing And Next Steps

Transcript

SPEAKER_05: 0:10

Hi everyone, welcome back to the We Bought a Franchise podcast. I'm Jack Johnson.

SPEAKER_04: 0:14

I'm Jill Johnson.

SPEAKER_05: 0:15

And we're here today with a very compelling guest. We have Emily Brown from Limitless Franchise Growth. We also have our esteemed panel of franchise consultants. We have Catherine Allen, Morgan Knowler, Brian Gross, and David San Juan. Emily, let's get right into this. We've been working with you for a long time, since back to the Club Pilates days. And now here you are with Limitless Franchise Growth and a very exciting concept that I see every single day.

SPEAKER_04: 0:45

All over Instagram, TikTok.

SPEAKER_05: 0:47

Yeah. Well, and us being based in South Florida, so right here in Boca Raton, we've got a jet set Pilates, which this is for all of you listening, we want to get into jet set today because we think Pilates is such a great space. So, Emily, without further ado, welcome to the show.

SPEAKER_01: 1:01

Thank you for having me. I'm excited to spend some time with you guys today.

SPEAKER_05: 1:04

Of course. So, Emily, I I'd love to just sort of start with tell us about Limitless franchise growth. Tell us about how you guys fired this up. You guys have so much experience in the boutique franchise space, but let's sort of talk tell the audience about where this is and what inspired you guys to start this new group.

SPEAKER_01: 1:24

Yeah, absolutely. I'll give you kind of a brief share on my background and how uh Limitless came to be. Kind of tee up again how we came to partner with Jets at Pilates. Kind of fell into franchising back in 2008. Graduated from Xavier University at that time in Cincinnati. 2008, there's no jobs to be had. All my friends were going to grad school. And I actually got a job offer from a gentleman who was a master franchise for a tax preparation company. Got into the franchising kind of by accident, really realized that tax preparation is not that glamorous of an industry, quickly kind of pivoted the gentleman who started St. Gregory Development Group, one of the first franchise sales organizations, was that master for the tax preparation space. So I was able to be really employee number one of St. Gregory Development Group, kind of that founding franchise sales organization back in 2010. And we really got our start in health and wellness and boutique fitness brands. And really, again, throughout really 12 years, we specialized in health and wellness beauty. And one of those brands that we started working with back in 2015 was Club Pilates. At that point, that brand had about 30 locations open, kind of new to, you know, the Pilates space. And really, we were the sales engine for the Club Pilates system that eventually grew that franchise to over 1,500 locations over about seven years. So really we're on the front end of the development for Club Pilates, which was really the pioneer in the Pilates space. Fast forward, Club Pilates, that gentleman who owned that company continued to buy brands. Exponential fitness came into being. Company went public in 2021. And from that aspect to the beginning of the end for the sales team, that just their MA strategy started to shift. They were no longer looking to buy brands and continue to expand. They wanted to kind of hold and keep what they had, which is great for the franchise partners, but being on the sales side of things, that's a little bit hard to keep our team together. So at that point, you know, Lance and I had been working together for over a decade and decided to approach the board and say, hey, we kind of want to go back to our original roots as a true franchise sales organization and be able to get into other brands and other sectors. So we had that conversation with the board. At the end of 2024, we did depart exponential and Lance started Limitless franchise growth. The team at Limitless, we've got nine under our umbrella. And what's kind of unique about Limitless is that we've all been working together for, I think, our least season partner for close to eight years. But the majority of us have been working together for about 10 years, which you really just don't see in franchising these days. So a lot of people say it, we are a family, but we actually kind of own that in terms of the relationship that we have and just the respect that we have for the team here at Limitless. So that kind of led Lance and I to really kind of decide, okay, the gloves are off here. We don't need to stay in boutique fitness. We can start to partner with other brands. And so we have diversified our portfolio. You know, right now we're working with four brands in the kids space and the pet space. But in terms of boutique fitness, we knew that there was one modality that we really saw opportunity with. And that was Pilates. So if you think about the Pilates space, you know, Club Pilates, the first, the OG brand, a lot of success in that system. They have close to 1,500 studios now open. The second player in the Pilates space has under 60 doors open. So for us, that's just opportunity. There's so much demand here, and there is no one else that is really kind of coming in as that number two, that Pepsi in the space. So Pilates was definitely something that we wanted to get back into and partner with the brand under the limitless portfolio. I'll say, you know, Lance and I spent a lot of time and a lot of months speaking with every Pilates brand that had more than five locations open. We wanted to make sure that as we would kind of we knew our team's history and what we would do with another run in terms of the Pilates space. We wanted to make sure that the brand 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 since 2010. And really we fell in love with how differentiated it was. You know, we know that we don't want, we didn't want to do a number two, a Pilates uh club Pilates Me Too. We wanted something that could actually come in and be differentiated and fill a need for this growing um Pilates boom. And again, Jet Set very clearly came out on the top of this brand is the most differentiated. By the way, they also have an amazing executive team. You know, their franchise partners are validating better than any other brand that I've ever seen. So we got really excited when we started to talk and dig in further with the Jet Set team.

SPEAKER_05: 6:18

You know, I it to me, uh, we had so many clients that said to us, maybe this is 2020, 2021, how can I get Club Pilates? And and every time we would check, the markets were gone, right? It went really fast.

SPEAKER_04: 6:31

And that was even post-COVID, too.

SPEAKER_05: 6:32

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'm leaving for our clients, we love recurring revenue. We love predictability. That that's something that a lot of people who come in thinking about buying a business, they don't think you know they don't know yet, right? And so when I look at Pilates and I look at Jet Set and I see this brand and I see that recurring revenue, and you just see how different the studio is and the brand is, it feels and you're starting to see it now. I'm seeing markets starting to come off the board. I saw last week alone, you guys must have awarded five new pretty major markets. Did uh do I have that right?

SPEAKER_01: 7:12

Yeah, things are moving quickly. As I mentioned, validation on this brand is better than any other brand I've ever worked with in my 18 years of doing it, which is saying something. So that goes to show that you know the system is working, franchisees are following the model, they've got that great recurring revenue, and they're wanting to get in. So we have we've had a busy few months and we've have awarded over 100 licenses in the last four months alone for jet set. So territories are starting to move. That said, we do still have a ton of white space left. So we've got about 200 units open and really see a runway to absolutely get to a thousand units here with JetSet.

SPEAKER_05: 7:45

And so when you think about those successful owners, and I want to open it up to the team too, because I know they have questions, but my question is are we seeing any consistencies in terms of who those successful owners are? Do they own other businesses already? Are they first-time franchise owners? Is it a mix? What are you seeing in terms of those highly successful franchisees that are validating so well?

SPEAKER_01: 8:04

Yeah, absolutely. We definitely have kind of what we call brand avatars that we look for in terms of bringing on new franchise partners. I will say we have a variety of avatars, but I'd say the commonality of those folks, and I'm gonna steal this line from Bert, who is the CEO of Jet Set, is they are dependent independents, meaning they're these are folks that are dependent on the systems. They want to follow a playbook that the franchise or is providing. However, they are independent in the way that they actually roll out that model. They are taking ownership in their business. They are understanding that at the end of the day, this is my business. I am going to kind of take responsibility and make sure that I'm providing and stepping up and really owning and managing my team. So that dependent, independent, is really the type of person that we're looking for that has high drive, a high motor. But the beauty of this brand as well is that it can be a GM model. Um, and we are seeing that that will validate that. Well, a lot of franchisors will say it, but this actually validates across the system that over 75% of our folks have GMs that are running the day-to-day operations. And this is allowing our franchise partners to scale faster and to get more locations up and running. Um ideally, we're not awarding more than three licenses to anyone that doesn't have franchising experience in those hundred units that I mentioned. We are doing it very responsibly. We want to make sure that we're setting these folks up for success. We don't want to sell 10 packs. We want to sell kind of those tranche of three to make sure that the studios are getting open and franchise partners have an opportunity to actually scale and find success there.

SPEAKER_03: 9:41

And Emily, uh sorry, Morgan Knowler here. Emily, are you starting the marketing prior? I mean, I see a lot of these like Club Plotties, for instance, they do a lot of the marketing ahead of time. Memberships are being sold. So by the time you're launching all these studios for the franchisees, do you already have recurring revenue started? Correct.

SPEAKER_01: 9:55

So we do have kind of a robust 12 to 16 week pre-sale process that in blue involves, you know, a lot of grassroots, what we call uh jets out on the mat. So we'll gather folks in the community, get them on a Matt Pilates um class, give them a little bit of taste of you know what they can expect inside the studio, but it's really uh lead generators for us. So absolutely we've got an aggressive and a really kind of buttoned-up pre-sale process to make sure that as these franchisees are opening their doors, they're doing so with recurring revenue already coming in. And kind of going back to Jack, you know, that recurring revenue model is so beautiful in boutique fitness. And especially with Jet Set, what we love is that ratio, which really helps margins. So you've got one instructor to up to 18. So 12 to 18 reformers in each of the studios, I'd say kind of that sweet spot is 14 to 16. Uh, most of our studios have 14 to 16 reformers, but when you've got one instructor um conducting a class, though that's where, again, kind of the beauty of the margins come in with boutique fitness.

SPEAKER_02: 10:56

Catherine Allen here, Emily. You know, I think it it sometimes helps envision a day in the life of a franchise owner. What does a day in the life look like on average in that first maybe year of business? Yeah, absolutely. I know it's gonna change. I know it's gonna be different for different people based on their background and what they're coming in with. But is there, can you give us a little glimpse into what a day in the life may look like?

SPEAKER_01: 11:19

Yeah, absolutely. And honestly, you know, time will ratchet back as the studio becomes more seasoned, as your staff 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, the build out. We have we have partners in place that will help them do that, but they need to be checked in. They need to be mentally, you know, engaged with the group, handling the construction and the build-out. But then as you're going through that construction, you're hiring your GM. And really the GM at the end of the day is in charge of running the day-to-day operations in your studio. That side, you as an owner, you need to be able to create a really kind of great team culture. You need to attract the right GM, the right instructors. So you are spending time and you know, hiring and managing those employees and really checking in with your GMs. At a minimum, every day, every morning, you should have a check-in with your GM. Hey, here are you know the KPIs that we're gonna run through. How many members, how many new triers do we have today? So, kind of the big KPIs that are running your business. Um, and then maybe a check-in call at the end of the day. So absolutely you can do this um, you know, with some flexibility in your your daytime position, but it's really empowering that GM to continue to build that culture and really run those day-to-day operations. Um, as an owner, you'll also really work with community partners, creating strategic partnerships to be able to do those pop-up events. So, you know, you don't want to just put that on your GM. You want to do that with them. And at the end of the day, you are building a business in your local community. So creating those uh relationships really, you know, serves both of you well for long-term success.

SPEAKER_02: 12:55

And you mentioned the KPIs, which is great because you need to understand your KPIs as a business owner. Is that something that Jet Set has baked in? Are there any dashboards or anything to support that conversation?

SPEAKER_01: 13:08

We're glad you asked that question, Catherine, because um, again, we've been really impressed with the support system that JetSet has in place. They've got, you know, close to 50 locations open by the end of the year. And right now, their support team is almost as big. So they have overinvested in the amount of corporate support getting ready for this next level of growth. And they have probably one of the most robust tracking and KPI systems that I've seen. Um, and that's again, saying I'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 is really impressive. Kuvenci is the system that they use, but they will track pretty much everything. And profit per reformer is a big metric for them in terms of you know just how busy your studio is, capacity. Again, every imaginable KPI that you could think of, they are tracking, they are monitoring, they're being really proactive. So they've got these weekly blueprint calls with their franchise partners to say, hey, we noticed week over week there was a shift here. Maybe we need to work on tweaking the marketing for league generation if we've got a top-of-funnel issue. Or, hey, maybe your sales lead needs to get a little bit more vocal with the new triers in terms of conversion. So they're really tracking all those parts of the business that really uh kind of make or break that model. So again, really excited to see um much JetSet is investing in that tracking capability with their franchise partners.

SPEAKER_02: 14:33

It's amazing. I track on a Excel and I'd really love to have what franchise owners have at Jet Set. Man, that's actually crazy.

unknown: 14:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03: 14:45

Yeah, Emily, you were touching on the community aspect of Jet Set Pilates, and I feel that that's the same with all of your brands and kind of sets limitless franchise growth apart where it's not just a great brand, but it's great people and like a great culture. And so I feel that you've been very responsible in the brands that you've brought on where they they check all those boxes. Is that right?

SPEAKER_01: 15:05

Yeah, absolutely. Thank you, Morgan. Um, you know, for us, people is the number one box that we need to check as we're bringing on new franchise brands under Limitless. You know, for Lance and I, we don't want to get too big. We don't want to have be an FSO that's got 20 or 30 brands. We want to be more boutique. We want quality over quantity. Um, you know, yes, for our lifestyle, it's just not worth it at this point of our lives to work with people that we don't like and trust. We need to make sure that we're feeling really good about our brand partners. So we've been, again, very cognizant in the brands that we're partnering with that they're just at the end of the day, really good people, people that we want to hang out with, we want in our lives. And yes, they have these amazing brands. So if you look across our portfolio, we do have a lot of kind of synergies between our brand founders. And it's kind of fun to, you know, we go to these conferences now and to see them interact with one another and how much they have in common. It's really just kind of this culture that we're bringing to LFG.

SPEAKER_05: 16:02

I think one of the most powerful things that you could say, Emily, is exactly what you just said. And it's one of my most favorite things about being a business owner. David and I were talking about this before the podcast started. And when you own a franchise, you get to decide who you're gonna hire, who you're gonna work with, who you're gonna hang out with. And for those of you listening who may be working with someone or for someone, it just makes every day feel so much longer. That's one of my favorite things about owning a business, is you get to build your team. You get to choose who you hang out with. So I think that's such an excellent, excellent point to business ownership.

SPEAKER_01: 16:53

Yeah, absolutely. Life's too short to uh go to work with people that, again, you don't you don't trust or believe in.

SPEAKER_06: 16:59

Emily uh Brian Gross here. So, you know, I think about you know this brand, the space in general. I live in the middle of Washington, 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 an Orange Theory. Um, you know, so there's a lot of players in this space. And so, you know, I guess what would you say to people who aren't even coming to you, not even having a conversation with you, because they're just writing off boutique fitness in general and saying it's too saturated. So a lot a lot of good owners that are you know just making that assumption.

SPEAKER_01: 17:31

So what what do you say to Yeah, absolutely, and again, it it is an assumption. It's something that we hear time and time again. Um but as I kind of mentioned earlier, if you think about the Pilates space, you've got Club Pilates, kind of the 10,000-pound gorilla with 1,500 open locations. The next runner-up, if you look at, you know, there's a number of brands that are sitting anywhere from call it 20 to 60 open location, but there's really no distinct number two. Um, so we really see jet set coming in and filling that gap. Um, and there's a need for it. Right now, there is um there's not enough inventory. Um, so if you think about you know these Pilates classes, as you said, all of this studio seem to be just filling at the brim. There's weightless, there is demand in Pilates. So if looking at data from ClassPass, from 2023 up until today, there's been an 84% increase in demand for Pilates classes. And Zs and millennials are spending more money on boutique fitness than any other category in front of them. And if you think about Club Pilates, it has naturally skewed to be a little bit of an older demographic. Whereas Jet Set, it's got more of that vibe. It's pulling in these Gen Z and millennial dollars who are, again, spending more than any of the other generations, really by almost 3x. So when you walk into a Jet Set studio, it feels different. Again, we didn't want it to be kind of a Me Too, a Club Pilates, kind of that older demographic. We wanted to resonate with that younger group who will also help us go viral. We've seen the Instagrams, the TikToks, you know, social media is real. We want those Instagrammable moments to be able to continue to grow this brand. And um, you know, Tamara, the founder of Jet Set, really designed that aesthetic to make those Instagrammable moments. So we're seeing a huge influx in these younger populations that are big on class paths and are looking for a home and going back to that community aspect. Gen Zs are looking for more of that community than any other group before that. So we're in kind of this perfect storm for Pilates and specifically for Jet Set to be able to take advantage of the changes that are happening out there.

SPEAKER_05: 19:44

Well, and let's face it, it's it's like that. Do you remember that old ad commercial, this isn't your father's old mobile or something like that? I I might be dating myself. But if you compare the vibe in Jet Set to Club Pilates, and no disrespect to Club Pilates, but jet 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, by the way, is I like I don't I didn't discover Pilates until 49. And my God, what a what a great workout. I mean, for men, I mean, I had this stigma that it was like a it was like a a for a girl workout, but no, it's it's a fabulous workout. So there's so much about it that just makes it there's a reason why you guys, in my opinion, are probably gonna sell this thing out in the next 12 months because it's great brand, great workout. Emily, I don't know, do you want to 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 item 19 data from Pilates franchises tends to be better than almost any other boutique fitness concept. But would you say that's a fair assessment?

SPEAKER_01: 20:55

Um from what I've seen, um, I would, yeah, I would say so in general. Um, and again, it goes back to a little bit of that ratio and coupled that with the demand for the space. Um, we've seen a lot of success in Pilates to date. Um, but I would say in terms of jet sets specifically, our item 19 data right now is almost a year stale. So I'll say we're really excited to refile our FDD next year. As it stands now, you know, average uh you're sitting at 924,000 in terms of top line AUV on a 30% margin. Our top performers, um, you'll see it kind of tranched out, are over 1.3 in terms of AUV at a 45% margin. So again, that is almost sale data at this point. What we really love to get is candidates in the process and validating with our franchise partners on what they're seeing now. As I mentioned, the validation in this brand is better than I've ever seen. Every system, especially legacy systems, will have kind of those legacy owners who aren't quite, you know, with it or wanting to shift into the next realm of where the brand is going, but we don't have that in the jet set system. So we get candidates in and we get them validating with the existing system. Um, but I also say that the existing system is also expanding already. They're already opening studios number two and three and four and coming back and wanting to buy more territory. So if that says anything about their experience and where they see this thing going, I think it just speaks volume to the jet set support as well.

SPEAKER_05: 22:25

And just to be clear, this podcast is not an offer to sell a franchise. Uh, if you want to find out if jet set is available in your city or state, go to the franchiseinsiders.com, visit our team page, and feel free to contact any of our franchise consultants.

SPEAKER_00: 22:38

Emily, this is David San Juan. How are you? First, I want to start with a com I want to start with a comment that Jack's completely right. I'm pretty much the caveman of the group, and I love to live lifting heavy stuff and working out every day. And I went into a jet uh a jet set, and that was probably the hardest workout I've ever done in my life. I think I cried for weeks. Um want to leave with that. And then you just mentioned about the top-performing franchisees. What are they doing differently?

SPEAKER_01: 23:05

Yeah, absolutely. So, again, in terms of the workout, time under tension is real. Um instructors are really good at at keeping you under that tension, and that's what sees those results along with soreness for days. Certainly love to hear that you've been into a class. We are trying to grow that male uh participation, and we have over the last few years it's starting to pick up and it will continue to do so. Um, in terms of those franchise partners that are kind of top of the pack, it's really about execution. Um understanding the small details are really what makes a difference in the boutique fitness experience, the cleanliness, the friendliness, the follow-up. So just if you've got an owner that is obsessed with those small details, that resonates to their team. The GM will start to notice. If you've got an owner that steps over a paper towel and can keeps walking, what do you what's gonna happen when you're not there? They're gonna do the same thing. But if you pick it up, if you you know, treat everyone with respect and friendliness and get to know them, that resonates among your team. And it's those little differences that keep folks coming back in that build that community of, hey, I'm gonna go from an eight time a month or a four time a month to an unlimited because I've fallen in love with the people in the studio. I've made new best friends. I want that community, and I'm gonna 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 attention to the the details and to that in terms of top performers.

SPEAKER_02: 24:36

This is Catherine Allen. I have a quick question on just from a consumer perspective, you know, the ease of booking a class is so important. Talk of talk to us about the technology and kind of what that looks like to book a class. Is there an app with Jet Set? You know, what does that look like?

SPEAKER_01: 24:54

Yeah, there is. So we absolutely we've got our own proprietary app. It is powered by Mind Body, one of the biggest booking platforms out there. So people are familiar with it. They're very comfortable using the Jet Set app app along with the Mind Body kind of backend that runs and generates all the reporting. So it's in a matter of, you know, two or three clicks, you can be in, you can book, book out for your class. We use it as a little bit of a sales tool in terms of your membership level will dictate how far out you can book those classes. So the quality times, the the 6 p.m. or the 6 a.m. classes that tend up to tend to fill the most. If you're an unlimited member, you've got an extra kind of couple days for the booking window. So that's kind of a nice little perk with your membership to get earlier access to make sure that you're getting in those prime times or the prime instructors that you like to take class with. Great technology across the board in terms of the jet set system for sure.

SPEAKER_04: 25:47

Yeah, it's really user-friendly. And um it likes to send you a reminder to remind you to book your class, which we haven't done yet. But I like that. I mean, again, you know, sometimes we all get so busy with everything. I love the gentle nudges here and there. And like Catherine said, it's really important to know that you're able to book it online. And I personally do love that different memberships do get extended time to book because it that is very valuable. I mean, that is something that would take me from, you know, a two-time a week person to unlimited to be able to book in advance because we're all so busy and they do fill up so fast. Um, so it's really nice that you have that technology.

SPEAKER_01: 26:25

Yeah, absolutely. And I love that you called out those reminders. You know, the all that automation is built into the CRM. So it's not like the the front desk or the what we call the sales lead need to remember that. Those are all automatically sent out and pushed. We've got a really great kind of again, marketing and CRM campaign for folks that, you know, maybe they've come in once but are not back into the studio. So getting those automated text messages, emails out to really help our team with the conversion rates in the studio.

SPEAKER_05: 26:53

Hey, Emily, how long is uh build-out taking these days for the studios, would you say?

SPEAKER_01: 26:57

On average, about nine months. So in any retail brand, real estate is always the hardest part. I always say it's the most painful part of the process because it's a process that we don't control, right? So we can't control availability, responsiveness to the landlord. That said, we do have a number of relationships with real estate and construction partners to make sure that we've got that local broker knowledge. So we're partnering each of our franchise partners with a local broker who has that kind of boots on the ground knowledge. They know the idiosyncrasies of the market, they know all the local landlords. So we're doing a lot to be able to 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 go through permitting, build out.

SPEAKER_02: 27:38

So about nine months is kind of what's the average square feet for a studio?

SPEAKER_01: 27:43

Yeah, 1800 I'll say is the sweet spot, 15 to 2200. And that then kind of dictates the number of reformers, uh, 12 to 18 reformers based on the the size and the layout of the the studio space.

SPEAKER_05: 27:55

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 phone calls with you guys and and you guys liked us as candidates. Do you guys do in-person discovery days or meet the team days? Is it virtual? How does that work when people go through your process?

SPEAKER_01: 28:12

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 meet you. We want to get you in person, in a class. So we do want you to engage with the brand, experience it. Um, and then we'll spend quite a few hours just getting to know you more and then really highlighting the jet set team, the people that are going to be supporting 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 make sure that you've got all of your questions answered from the team so that you're in a position to say, yes, I'm ready. Should you be approved after confirmation day?

SPEAKER_05: 28:47

So quiet.

SPEAKER_04: 28:48

We're just ready to go to Claudia.

SPEAKER_05: 28:50

Right, exactly. So, I mean, Emily, you guys do such a good job of identifying brands, and we've spent spent a lot of time on jet set, but obviously you have other brands in the portfolio. Would you mind telling us more about those other brands that you guys have as well?

SPEAKER_01: 29:04

Yeah, absolutely. Um, so our three other brands would be Project Lean Nation, which is a healthy prepared meals brand based out of Rochester, uh, New York. We've got Fundraising University, our newest brand. They're based out of Phoenix, which focuses on high school sports and activities fundraising. And then All Dogs Unleashed, really fun brand uh based in Dallas, Texas. They have a kind of a proprietary two-week board and train program that they utilize. So, again, all of our brands are what I would call experiential brands. They are feel-good brands that are looking to improve their communities and in each of their ways. They are AI and recession resistant. So that's really kind of the brands that we're looking for in our portfolio. Project Lean Nation, based in Rochester. Again, think about it as kind of factor or some of those mere meal delivery programs that show up at your doorstep, coupled with, you know, kind of the Jenny Craig counseling. So it is quality, healthy meals, but with coaching and counseling. So what we see is that retention is skyrocketed compared to a factor. You know, it's easy to quit a box of food that's delivered to your doorstep. It's harder to quit a coach or a counselor that is really in this with you. So they spend a lot of time meeting with each of their members, understanding their journey. Their goals, making sure that the 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 very motivating feeling to understand where your opportunities are. Again, Project Lead Nation is really changing the lives of their members in their community. They've got about 40 locations now open across the country.

SPEAKER_05: 30:52

Well, and there you go. Again, recurring revenue. And this is for all of you listening, we we we really want our clients to look at this like an investor. It's like, you know, David and I were talking before uh the podcast fired up about there are certain there are owners in certain franchise systems that they're looking to infuse more capital and open more units. And it's if you want institutional capital, if you want private equity to be a potential suitor for potentially a recapitalization, you better have at least a million dollars in EBITDA and you better have recurring revenue. And so, you know, again, we try when we counsel people on looking at businesses to move away from fantasy and stay with reality in terms of what people really want. And if we're going to put all this effort in of building a business, of going through the nine months of building out our jet set, then ultimately I think we all should have a goal in mind of building a business towards that. And maybe that's with three or four jet set locations and then bolting on a um a lean nation unit. The fundraising university piece is very interesting. They've been around a while. I think they've got really good people. We actually met them at a uh franchise conference over the summer. I think that's a neat addition to the portfolio.

SPEAKER_01: 32:04

It is. We're really excited about fundraising you. Um, you know, Mike Bahun started the brand back in 2009. Again, talk about a great person. Those brand founders are really important to us. Mike is amazing. He is a coach through and through. So kind of baseball, I'll say kind of saved his life, got him on the right path, and he has never looked back in terms of paying it forward. So with fundraising you, they've got some really cool proprietary software that allows the franchisee to go into these schools, think about your local baseball, you know, high school athletics program. The state is only giving them X amount of dollars that gets them typically about two dozen baseballs for the year, and that's it. So to be able to travel, to be able to have uniforms that are better than the handy-downs that get replaced every three years, there's a ton of money that uh needs to be made up in fundraising. So we come in with our software and our our coaching of the coaches to really help these coaches raise more money in less time with less interference in their day-to-day. Um, so that brand is a low investment. So you're looking at sub$100,000. The high end of that item seven range is$85,000. So really simple business model. We are looking for the rate franchise partner there. You need to be kind of a go-getter, you need to have a motor to be able to go in. But really, it's simple. You go into the schools, you meet the coaches, you get them to sign on for the fundraiser, you execute the fundraiser, and then um, we see a high renewal rate. So the coaches see the success and they immediately sign up for next year. And then you have a built-in referral system because you do well with the baseball team. All of a sudden, the women's volleyball coach is like, oh my gosh, I just saw what you raised. How do how do we get in on that? So you've got this built-in referral system and really no marketing needed in that brand. You go in, you create relationships with the schools, and that's it.

SPEAKER_05: 33:53

So, like, let's take Morgan and Catherine, for example, both are our top performing soccer stars franchise owners. Would it be unreasonable for me to say, would they be, and again, I'm not trying to spend your guys' money, but just thinking about, you know, your audience, Catherine and Morgan, would fundraising university be a good diversification piece for franchise owners in their space?

SPEAKER_03: 34:14

Yeah. For me, yeah, for me, more for Morgan specifically, I can Catherine can speak to her territory. My territory, I have a lot of um, a lot of schools that that don't get a lot of money. And so they're really relying on the title funds from the state. We come and run programming for very little, uh, which is hard, hard on us, but the coaches are happy and the kids are happy so we do it. But something like franchise you would be amazing because then I could help the schools raise the money that they need to have all these sports that they don't get without us coming in and running it for dirt cheap.

SPEAKER_01: 34:43

Yeah, absolutely. I see it as a natural kind of bolt-on for that, you know, that franchise partner who isn't afraid to go in and build relationships with those schools. It's the amount of impact that we're creating in these children's lives is uh pretty special.

SPEAKER_03: 34:56

Yeah, and these these t-shirts or shirts that we give them, I mean, they'll wear them to school. Like they need the extra jerseys and and shirts and things like that. So we always include it, but it is a high cost. It's a lot of money to do that for them.

SPEAKER_02: 35:08

Quick question is this do you mainly target high schools or is it elementary, middle, and high school?

SPEAKER_01: 35:15

So traditionally, we've seen the most success in high schools. If you think about when the coach goes in and asks for the kids to participate, there's a lot of respect for that high school coach at that point. There's discipline, there's kind of expectations in place at the high school sports level. That gets a little bit diluted in elementary and middle school. Sometimes you've got volunteer, you know, moms that might be running the soccer team as well. So you miss out on a little bit of that. That said, I do think there's going to be some opportunity to expand the brand into those realms. And even with colleges, with AAU teams, there's a ton of opportunity to continue to diversify for fundraising you. So that's something that they're they're working to get into. But I'll say kind of historically, their bread and butter has been with high school, not only athletics, but also if you think about the activities in terms of like band and dance and pep, there's a lot of programs that need that funding. But again, that high school level has been their sweet spot today.

SPEAKER_00: 36:13

I think I need a fundraising you just to fund my daughter's dance competitions.

SPEAKER_01: 36:16

Exactly. I mean, all the travel, the hotels, the outfits, it all really starts to add up for parents. Real fast.

SPEAKER_05: 36:23

That is a full-time deal. All right. Well, listen, Emily, this has been awesome. Um, guys, team, let's go. Maybe last questions, thoughts from around the uh around the room. Brian, let's start with you.

SPEAKER_06: 36:34

Yeah, Emily, this was fantastic. And I'll tell you, as you talk, especially about Jet Set, the one thing that was my big takeaway here, you know, you're talking about going into a pretty crowded space and you're using technology, you're doing an elevated customer experience, and you're setting your franchises up for success. Right. So I think of the things that you shared about JetSet, it has really nothing to do with Pilates, right? This is what a good franchise or is doing, whether it's an HVAC company, whether it's senior care, whether it's boutique fitness. But these are the things that if you're looking for a franchise, you should be looking for on the support side. Um, you know, so I'd say anyone that's remotely interested in a business without recurring income, you know, this is a great model and a great example of exactly what to be looking for. So thanks for sharing today.

SPEAKER_01: 37:21

Thank you, Brian.

SPEAKER_03: 37:23

Yeah, thank you, Emily. I think uh my takeaway is that you work with great people with great brands and amazing culture. And I think that's what's gonna set you apart going forward. And I I'm excited to go try jet set Pilates now.

SPEAKER_01: 37:34

Yeah, I'll have to get you into a studio. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02: 37:36

Thank you so much, Emily, for coming on today. And I think I love the the takeaway that I loved was you know, you're you've invested in the same number of people as owners. I think you said maybe 50 and just the investment level that has been put in by the franchiseur to ensure these franchise successes. That's that's everything. The KPIs, the dashboard, everything you explained and described. It's just, you know, you're you're going to succeed with that type of support behind you. So I think jet set sounds like a great opportunity. And I'm gonna do a territory check after this in preparation for a call at noon. Jack, you know which one I'm talking about. So thank you. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00: 38:20

Yeah, Emily, thank you. This is David. Um, again, I I love what you said about the top performing franchisees. I see it within our Pinx community. I own a Pinx, and we just see it across the board, different franchises. What sets the top performers apart is kind of the same thing, you know, everywhere paying attention to those details. But again, thank you again for for your time.

SPEAKER_05: 38:40

I think that's it, that's a terrific point. And Emily, you know, I I love it you mentioned that, you know, new owners coming in. You guys kind of put a little bit 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 in and 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 up a bigger asset. And what I'd like to do is maybe reach out to, and in any franchise system, right? The the best franchise systems on earth, there's always going to be um exit and acquisition potential. Like if you look at Crumble's 2023 item 19, they showed the average owner netting like 250 where the medium was 85. So even with Crumble, there's high performers and low performers. So let's say I own, you know, three jet sets, I'm kicking butt, and I say, okay, now I want to go and I'm here in Boca Ratan and I want to go pick up seven more units through acquisition. I want to go buy existing owners that want to sell. Is that something that you guys would entertain for a high performing franchise owner?

SPEAKER_01: 39:39

Absolutely. No, I think any franchise or the easiest and safest way to grow is with their existing system. You've got a proven operator. Um, and so long as the capital is there, absolutely, we want to grow. I saw that in my tenure with Club Pilates. For the last two years that we sold Club Pilates, we sold more units than ever before, but 90% of them were to the existing system. So any good franchise or will grow that way. Jet Set, they've already seen expansions, expansions from those existing partners. So, yes, we want to make sure that you're a good operator, you're not in default, that you're following the system and the playbook, but I imagine that the Jet Set system is going to start growing very quickly from within just in the next probably two years. So we're really excited to um you know not only bring in new franchise partners, but also allow those existing partners to continue to grow their portfolio. One of our avatar avatars is that portfolio builder. We absolutely welcome folks who really want to build something special. And as you said, Jack, you know, in any system, there's always, you know, the top third, the middle, then the bottom third. And those bottom thirds will naturally get picked up by those larger fish in the system.

SPEAKER_05: 40:49

Well, and you, you know, you have so many people out there that are scouring biz by sell looking for the perfect business to buy, and they spend years doing it. And there's so many more creative ways to do it, right? If you're an investor and you can identify a successful franchisee who really knows what they're doing and you can come in and recapitalize them and follow that sort of roll-up strategy, that's it's something not enough people talk about is how there are so many different ways to get creative. And this is where working with franchise consultants like Morgan, like Catherine, like Brian, like David can really help you for those of you listening to understand how to accomplish your goals. Now, the mistake I think people make is they want to do it day one. And you really shouldn't. First, you you've gotta you've gotta get the right strategy, the right brand, make sure it's for you. And then once you're in it, then you can really accomplish so much. So, Emily, this has been so great. We really appreciate your time and your partnership. And we're so excited to continue to send our clients to you guys and look forward to many years of working together. That's it for me today. So I appreciate all of you being on the podcast. I'm Jack Johnson. We'll talk to you next time on the We Bought a Franchise podcast. Thank you.