Editorial

Children's Fitness Franchise Builds Self-Esteem

If you want to make a difference in your community, you need look no further than The Little Gym, a Franchise out of Scottsdale, Arizona. The Little Gym offers franchisees a way to help children succeed while building a profitable business. Robert Bingham, CEO of The Little Gym, says that the most important requirement in a franchisee candidate is that they “must love children” and have a desire to create an atmosphere where children’s lives can be improved and even changed.

Founded in 1976 by Robin Wes, The Little Gym began Franchising in 1992 and currently has 238 open and operating units in the U.S. with 41 additional units in 16 countries. The Little Gym provides weekly classes for children ages 4 months to 12 years using curriculum-based activities to build self-esteem, socialization and physical skills in a nurturing, non-competitive environment.

What seems to be spontaneous is actually a planned result
“We provide classes in gymnastics, karate, dance and sport skills,” says Bingham. “We focus on long-term value by building on skills learned the previous weeks. The children have so much fun they don’t even realize that they are learning. Our curriculum is very cutting edge and what seems to be spontaneous is actually a planned result. It’s not about being the best; it’s all about trying your best.”

With the national trend towards childhood obesity, parents are increasingly interested in finding ways to encourage their kids to exercise more and small steps can lead to big results, suggest health experts such as those at MayoClinic.com. Children who participate in The Little Gym classes learn to enjoy exercise, which, along with healthy eating, could help prevent obesity which now affects about 25 million U.S. children and adolescents. Because The Little Gym offers a variety of age-appropriate classes, children can easily find something they really enjoy doing.

A franchisee’s Little Gym can be located in a strip mall or light industrial area. Safety for the parents and children coming to the gym is the number one priority in choosing the location and The Little Gym has a Real Estate Services Department which helps each new franchisee with site selection. The 4,000 sq. ft. space will be furnished with mats, balance beams and other equipment and the average business can hold 50-60 classes a week.

Each gym will need about three full-time employees and several part-time people. Both college-age adults who plan to make a career working with children and former teachers are good choices as employees.

We have the nicest people in franchising
“The ideal franchisee,” says Bingham, “is someone passionate about helping children succeed in life. A background is fitness or sports is not required but having previous business success is an important quality. We are very selective about who we reward our Franchises to and look for outgoing people with great customer service skills. Sales experience and a solid business background are also helpful and, as I mentioned earlier, our franchisees must love children. Our business has attracted wonderful people. I believe we have the nicest people in franchising.”

Franchisees for The Little Gym gave their franchisor a four-star rating (the highest possible) when interviewed by franchise business Review, a market research company, for their most recent Franchisee Satisfaction Report. Of the 112 franchisees participating in the review process, 95% flt the initial training was good to excellent and 96% wre happy with ongoing training and support. In addition, Entrepreneur magazine rated The Little Gym the #1 franchise in children’s fitness programs for 2007.

Training is provided to new franchisees and is very comprehensive, covering a total of four weeks. There is a training center in Scottsdale and the company also holds regional meetings during the year. “We provide additional training opportunities as needed so that all of our franchisees are always up-to-date on the most recent information,” says Bingham.

Mothers are great communicators so word-of-mouth is our best advertisement
The Little Gym will help franchisees develop direct mail pieces when they first open their gym to help attract children to the classes. However, says Bingham, “We really don’t require a great deal of marketing. Mothers are great communicators so word-of-mouth is our best advertisement. Whenever a mom experiences something she feels is of value for her children, she makes sure to tell all of her friends.” Franchisees contribute to a national marketing fund which is used to help build brand awareness but pay only 1% o their gross revenues. “We’ve also contributed a large amount of money at the corporate level and have used that for television advertising,” says Bingham.

Bingham, who has been with The Little Gym since 1994, is continually impressed with the impact this company has had on children. “I was recently speaking with a teacher who told me she could always tell which children in her class had been Little Gym students. When I asked how she could tell, she said they were the children who on the first day of school were confident enough to raise their hands. They weren’t afraid of being wrong; they knew that the reward was for making the effort, not for being perfect.”

If you love working with children and want to be involved in a business that makes a difference in their lives, click HERE to learn more about The Little Gym on Bison.com.

“We have franchisees who have had great success in other businesses but tell us that being a part of The Little Gym is the most satisfying thing they have ever done, says Bingham. “I think the positive impact we make on children is the most important part of our business.”