Where diversity is a fact, inclusion becomes a must. Each of us has the potential to make our own lives better, but there’s a limit to progress without social interactions. If we want TRUE Progress, we need to move as one, as a society, as a specie, towards the direction of BETTER – and this begins with INCLUSION. And there’s nothing more inclusive than Health and Wellness. Regardless of demographics… We all live and breathe. We all need to take care of our minds and bodies. And all of us can benefit from good health. This is the message Martin Balcaitis and Nate Chang want to share with all of us. Martin and Nate are Chief Marketing Officers for StretchLab and YogaSix, respectively; both boutique fitness brands are part of Xponential Fitness. Martin and Nate are also seasoned veterans in franchising in their own right, with the former having taken key roles under brands like Krispy Kreme and Denny’s, and the latter, having worked with Del Taco, Rita’s, and UFC Gym. Both powerhouses, despite working on 2 separate brands, agree that the marketing function is integral to the success of any business. It’s through marketing best practices that a brand builds consistency, drives alignment, and makes sure the touch, feel, look – the overall concept of a brand – are in sync. When you can ensure synchronicity, a brand’s voice becomes so powerful enough to deliver a message consumers resonate with AND will respond to. Martin and Nate work tirelessly to drive Xponential Fitness’s message… Everyone has something to gain from their brand and the health and wellness space. Whether you’re looking for a job, a way to improve your health, a way to help others build strong minds and bodies, or you have a desire to improve your quality of life through financial freedom, among other endeavors, there’s something in store for you! How does Inclusion tie-in with Diversity? How does Xponential Fitness deliver equal opportunities for growth and development to different consumers and stakeholders? What marketing best practices cement their brand’s message? Tune in to our Podcast to learn more about everything you WANT and NEED on franchising, investment, financing processes and options. This is Eye On Franchising, where we share our vision for your franchise future. https://www.facebook.com/lance.graulich https://ionfranchising.com/ https://eyeonfranchising.com
Where diversity is a fact, inclusion becomes a must.
Each of us has the potential to make our own lives better, but there’s a limit to progress without social interactions.
If we want TRUE Progress, we need to move as one, as a society, as a specie, towards the direction of BETTER – and this begins with INCLUSION.
And there’s nothing more inclusive than Health and Wellness. Regardless of demographics…
We all live and breathe. We all need to take care of our minds and bodies. And all of us can benefit from good health.
This is the message Martin Balcaitis and Nate Chang want to share with all of us.
Martin and Nate are Chief Marketing Officers for StretchLab and YogaSix, respectively; both boutique fitness brands are part of Xponential Fitness.
Martin and Nate are also seasoned veterans in franchising in their own right, with the former having taken key roles under brands like Krispy Kreme and Denny’s, and the latter, having worked with Del Taco, Rita’s, and UFC Gym.
Both powerhouses, despite working on 2 separate brands, agree that the marketing function is integral to the success of any business. It’s through marketing best practices that a brand builds consistency, drives alignment, and makes sure the touch, feel, look – the overall concept of a brand – are in sync.
When you can ensure synchronicity, a brand’s voice becomes so powerful enough to deliver a message consumers resonate with AND will respond to.
Martin and Nate work tirelessly to drive Xponential Fitness’s message…
Everyone has something to gain from their brand and the health and wellness space.
Whether you’re looking for a job, a way to improve your health, a way to help others build strong minds and bodies, or you have a desire to improve your quality of life through financial freedom, among other endeavors, there’s something in store for you!
How does Inclusion tie-in with Diversity? How does Xponential Fitness deliver equal opportunities for growth and development to different consumers and stakeholders? What marketing best practices cement their brand’s message?
Tune in to our Podcast to learn more about everything you WANT and NEED on franchising, investment, financing processes and options.
This is Eye On Franchising, where we share our vision for your franchise future.
https://www.facebook.com/lance.graulich
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
franchisees, stretch, people, brand, franchise, exponential, franchise owners, yoga, studio, truthfully, marketing, martin, consumers, franchising, nate, pandemic, lab, fitness, opportunity, support
SPEAKERS
Lance Graulich, Nate, Martin
Lance Graulich 00:02
Welcome to Eye on franchising. Are you looking for business opportunities? Well, you are in the right place. We represent over 650 franchises and business opportunities. We will help you find your perfect franchise for free. We even have a free assessment on our website that will help us determine the best businesses for you based on your investment level, mindset, skill set, and life experiences. This is Eye on franchising, where we share our vision for your franchise’s future.
I'm your host Lance Graulich. Each week, we will speak to fascinating folks from the world of franchising, franchisors and founders, franchise funders and franchisees, are you looking to find your perfect franchise? Or perhaps you are an independent business owner looking to grow and scale your business by setting up a franchise? Either way, our team can help you. Eye on franchising where you will learn the A to Z's of the franchise.
Hello, everyone and welcome back to another great episode of Eye on franchising today call it a special edition. It's pride month. And I have two absolute powerhouses, two absolute powerhouses of marketing. They're both Chief Marketing Officers of one of my favorite probably my favorite fitness company. I don't know if I'm supposed to have favorites. Exponential fitness. So welcome to the show Nate and Martin. So welcome guys.
Nate 01:42
Thank you. Glad to be here. Thanks,
Martin 01:44
Lance. Thanks for having us.
Lance Graulich 01:45
Awesome, guys. Well, thank you so much for being here. So Nate, first let's, let's hear from you. How the heck did you get into franchising? I always find it fascinating how people even got into franchising. Of you, I read up on you and both of you have some great experience in franchising even before exponential fitness. So I'd love to hear it, Nate, you first.
Nate 02:07
Oh man, way to tee up my aging. Alright, yeah, definitely, I've been in the franchise industry for quite some time actually started on the QSR food recipes side of things, working for a brand called Del Taco actually started my career there climbing the ladder, that was a hybrid concept of a corporate slash franchise organization, and really lead over to that franchise side of things. So from there, I mean, I've been in the industry, almost crazy, say 20 years. But you know, started on the food side of things. I've always had a passion for fitness. I'm also a big foodie at heart. And as I got older, you know, the excuses of being able to eat whatever you want and not gain weight actually started to remove themselves. And I realized I had to start working out more. So, fortunately, especially in the marketing industry, you know, once you kind of get settled in a certain type of industry, it's kind of hard to jump over to a different type of concept. And I was luckily enough able to have an opportunity to get into the fitness side of things. I've been doing it probably for almost the last 10 years. And here I am now with exponential fitness, leading the charge of the yoga industry.
Lance Graulich 03:21
So awesome. So where did marketing come into your life? How did that happen?
Nate 03:25
That is a funny question, actually. Because, you know, when I went to school, I went to school for Business Economics. Actually, when I was starting up in high school, I thought I was gonna be an architect. And then coincidentally, when I started, when I graduated from college and started working at Del Taco, it was a very small, niche, like, house business type of thing. So you pretty much wore a lot of hats. And from there had the opportunity to really start getting integrated with the marketing departments. They clearly saw something of talent from me and offered me you know, that coordinator role, though, I think we've all started out when we are young in our career, and fortunately enough have learned, you know, all the responsibilities and was able to grow with a lot of opportunities in my future.
Lance Graulich 04:13
So awesome. Awesome. All right, Martin, same question. How did you get here and had your fall in marketing had you fall into franchising?
Martin 04:20
That's saying, um, I was fresh out of college and looking for a job. And probably the same thing that when you are talking to you know prospective franchisees, it’s following your passion, right? And I was a waiter, all through college and it was the best job I ever had. I love the restaurant industry. So I looked for marketing jobs. I knew I wanted to do marketing, but I was really passionate about you know, waiting tables and being in the restaurant industry. So I actually started my career working for a franchisee. So I worked for the largest Krispy Kreme franchisee in Los Angeles, taking them from 22 to 31 locations and just under two years. yours and then I stayed in the restaurant industry.
Lance Graulich 05:03
Real. So who was that rich Rhine
Martin 05:06
It was rich rain is and Roger Glickman,
Lance Graulich 05:09
I and Roger Glickman, I saw that you had Krispy Kreme on your resume. I was part of the group, there were two of us. I was a partner in Krispy Kreme for Nevada, and Utah, we were the second franchisees. Oh, wow. So we'll talk offline about that. I saw Krispy Kreme in your past.
Martin 05:33
That's amazing. That's amazing. I work for great circle family foods. And it was fantastic. And that's where, you know, you get to learn how to deal with those evil marketing guys from corporate as on the franchisee side, and then I became the evil marketing guy from corporate went to work for Baja Fresh, and, you know, some big brands I was at Denny's for about four and a half years I was in Field Marketing. And then this crazy opportunity came from exponential fitness. And actually, when I was interviewing, you know, our Anthony, our founder CEO didn't even own the brand yet but knew that he needed some marketing folks. And unlike Nate, fitness is not my passion. I'm the heaviest one in the building. But I took a leap. And I went and I got a stretch and stretch lap up in Santa Monica. And I got off the bench and I said, I can sell this person need this in their life. So it's been an absolute blessing and a joy for the past four and a half years to be able to kind of grow this brand. And I was nervous, about leaving the restaurant industry, right? Would my skills be applicable? Would they transfer over? And at the end of the day, it's an inspiring trial, it's helping people be better. And it's been a really rewarding experience.
Lance Graulich 06:42
Yeah, no, that's awesome. You guys are both great. This is great. So when we talk about franchising, I was a franchise broker, I hear from people all the time, well, why should I get a franchise? And I always start off by saying, Well, do you have an original idea that needs to be born. And as chief marketing officers, you certainly know that in most cases, people do not. And where people really get into trouble is putting that round peg in a square hole where they decide there's a need that needs to be born and there really isn't a need. So I say a franchise is certainly amazing. And you don't have to do all the heavy lifting someone's already proven this for you are proven and out and created this system. So where do you guys sit? Tell me a little bit about it, I guess you could say the why of marketing or specifically franchising because marketing is a huge piece of why you get involved in a franchise. Imagine having a stretch lab or a yoga studio of your own in your own name brand. And you're attempting to compete with an exponential brand and the resources that you have. So talk a little bit about that. Some people don't realize that.
Nate 08:02
Yeah, I mean, it definitely is hard to kind of be a mom and pop and try to do it on your own and opportunity with franchising in generals. You know, it is a proven business model for the marketing aspect. You know, Mark and I really are driving strategy and more so structure for our franchise owners to be able to have like a focus, there are so many things you're doing all at once. And honestly, sometimes the last thing that people forget to do is the marketing aspect. But, you know, with us here have with our team, and truthfully, my, my opinion, you know, the marketing team is really the support system for franchisees but also for the infrastructure of all the departments in our corporation. So it's building that brand consistency, driving that brand alignment, and making sure that you know, all cylinders are firing at the same time speaking that same language, the touch the field, the look, the concept, all that stuff. So it really is being voiced, as loud as possible when we're starting to get into new markets, existing markets, and truthfully, just educating consumers about the product of what it is. So that's really been attracted and responded to be like, yes, I want to go there. So.
Lance Graulich 09:09
Wow, that's very well said a lot of good stuff. Martin, any anything to add to that?
Martin 09:14
Yeah, I mean, the marketing aspect of franchising is just that incredible support that you get, but then also from a consumer standpoint, right. So it takes a special person like Nate or myself, to really understand what the consumer needs to hear and how to craft that message. And then different creative solutions that we will come up with where is if you try to and we've seen that happen, right? Where, you know, people will try to go out and do this thing on their own and think they say, oh, you know, I can do this, this looks easy. And unfortunately, they fail because they don't have that structure in place. And you're spending a lot of plates as a franchise owner as an individual studio owner and having that marketing support and having someone who truly understands how to craft that messaging and the creative solutions to get To those, those potential consumers is really important.
Lance Graulich 10:03
Yeah, and it's really important. Everyone out there seems to have an idea that starting a business is always the hardest thing. Especially not knowing what you don't know, and what you in fact, really do know. And I know that exponential all of the brands, you guys seem to have a pretty darn good preopening plan, you know, whether it's pre-selling, talk a little bit about that support and what you do for the respective brands. Martin, you're your first this time.
Martin 10:37
For the thing, we're really lucky, we have a stretch lamp in that we can take the show on the road. So we will grab a couple of massage tables, and grab a couple of flex ologists. And if your listeners don't know stretch lap is one-on-one assistance stretching concept. So you know, we can go to another fitness establishment, we can go to a concert in the park, we can go to a farmers market and get people on the bench, I trained all my GMs and franchises that it's about booties on benches. That's what you got to do. We can do all the creative marketing tactics, we can talk until we're blue in the face about the benefits of assistant stretching, but they got to get some booties on benches. So during our presale activities, we will generate those prospects and leads communicate with them, and then set up a ton of different pop-up events. We're a new modality for a lot of people I had never heard about assisted stretching five years ago, a lot of people haven't heard about this, or they think it's a service that's reserved for elite athletes, right. So we stretch anywhere from, you know, nine-year-old competitive cheerleaders to grandmothers of four, right, and everybody needs to stretch more. So it really is about, you know, communicating those benefits to all walks of life during pre-sale and letting people know this is gonna be a fantastic service. And in getting them to try it. We try to inspire trial a lot during that presale activities. And we aren't, you know, offering memberships at a discount where monthly membership model. So we're paying for people's patience, and we'll give them a little bit of a discount. And then we open up our studios with really nice healthy numbers.
Lance Graulich 12:06
Yeah, I'm glad you also defined what stretch lab is. I know you said it so perfectly. Of course, you're the chief marketing officer. The reality is when I first heard of the stretch lab, and I heard stretch lab success, it made perfect sense because I was an athlete, and I still tend to be. But I know that elite athletes to your exact point, get stretched, you know, either before, you know before the well during training before the major event, whatever it might be after obviously, the cold plunge the heat, it's part of that, you know, whole stick if you will. So it is obviously needed. And I'm glad it's made it to the masses now. So thank you for that. All right, Nate, the same type of question. First of all, go ahead and define yoga six. I mean, obviously, it's a yoga studio, but obviously, it's a little different.
Nate 13:03
Yeah, we definitely are a more modern concept. And truthfully, we're breaking the stereotype and what people consider yoga or just the word yoga to be right. There are a lot of intimidation loss stereotypes of the concept around the yoga industry. And truthfully, we are a concept that is meant to be accessible to everyone. And so there are so many health and wellness benefits, both mentally and physically, when it comes to having yoga part of your day-to-day life, I always make the joke, like we're like that size style. It's like any great steak entree or indulgence you'd like to have. But and then since you know, you had to have that healthy intake to kind of make yourself feel better about what you decide to do. And that truthfully, is where we are, we're taking yoga into this new modern light. And, you know, similar to how Martin does pre-sell our strategies are very similar in ways but, you know, obviously, we don't have asses on benches, but we are definitely doing pop-up events and starting to, you know, get ourselves into the local communities, educating all those consumers to understand that, you know, if you never thought that yoga is something that you could do potentially before, you know, actually give us a shot. You know, we have six different types of classes. And it's meant to be able to have people feel comfortable, and at least one of them right, we can level people up, if they start to want to have a little bit more challenge. They can let them down when maybe they say it's a little too challenging for them. And you know, it's really being able to get more consumers understanding that what you may have thought yoga was is not necessarily actually what it is in this day and age press so
Lance Graulich 14:37
Yeah, and yoga, yoga, and stretching have never been hotter. I mean, fitness is so important. And people are starting to realize that. And Martin It's funny how you said it. I mean, there are so many people that want to be either more fit or you know, more pliable for stretching purposes, and what have you. And it's tough. It's, you have to create a habit out of it any secret sauce to that? Or I should ask Nate that question probably right, Martin.
Martin 15:08
I get a membership. I call stretch lap I call stretching. We're kind of the flossing of the fitness industry. I know I need to do it every day, I lie to people about how much I do it. And wouldn't it be easier just to pay someone to do it for me? That's my stretch lens here.
Lance Graulich 15:25
I love the flossing of the fitness industry.
Martin 15:29
You know, it's good for him. But you don't do it enough. Yep, yep.
Lance Graulich 15:32
Nate, what were you gonna say? I'm sorry,
Nate 15:34
I was gonna say I'm definitely guilty of maybe not recovering as much as I should. But between stretching and yoga, I am able to get it accomplished every now and then. So yeah,
Lance Graulich 15:44
that's, that's awesome. So you guys and your marketing teams work with franchisees? So what do you see? What is the, you know, so many people listening to this are interested in a business, they don't even know if a franchise is right for them? Or which franchise? It's why they work with a broker, let's say like me, but as they're listening to you guys, they want to understand, well, how do I know if an exponential brand is right for me? So assuming they have, you know, a few bucks, you know, their SBA loans, obviously available, and you guys have great lenders and relationships. So how do they know? And more importantly, why is an exponential brand right for somebody that, you know, let's talk about a new entrepreneur, for that matter?
Nate 16:32
Yeah, I mean, I guess I can go first. I mean, honestly, you know, I've been with exponential now for four years, Martin came on before me, but really, when I came on board, I really saw the collaboration across the entire exponential family. So it's a proven business model, we definitely are working for success for all our franchise owners, obviously, if they fail, we fail too and that is not why we're in the business. So we, you know, we really are holding them by the hand, making sure that they feel comfortable. And, you know, going along the journey with them, it's amazing to see how much we've grown, how much success there has been. And that truly is because we care. So you know, with everything that we do with our franchise owners, I kind of say that you know, I don't have children personally, but I don't think I ever need to when I work for a franchise organization. These are my children. And I obviously want them to win and be successful at the end of the day. So
Lance Graulich 17:22
I love it. I love that attitude. So Martin, your turn,
Martin 17:28
You know, I am coming to work for exponential, and just seeing how exponential has grown stretch lab was, you know, the third or fourth brand that we acquired. And the amount of training support and collaborative brain share that goes on in the exponential building is truly inspiring and really beneficial for a franchise owner. We do leverage the economies of scale really well of having more than 2000 Studios worldwide. And we're able to what that does is it affords us to partner with some real world-class organizations. Were a brand Nate nice size wouldn't be able to touch for a few more years. Right. So it's a really fantastic support system. And I've worked for you know, tgi Fridays, for Denny's for Wendy's some really big iconic brands and exponential truly is the leader in understanding that a franchise owner’s successes is our success, and we will do anything possible. As stretch lab continued to grow from a marketing standpoint, I never had anything that was negotiable. I'm not the one who is in the studios every day, who's executing the marketing programs, who was dealing with consumers who was having those interactions, right. So I learned a lot from my franchise owners. Nothing's precious. Now, you know, everything is up for discussion. We started our brand Advisory Council a few years ago. And that's been a really wonderful thing to have those boots on the ground those eyes and ears out there to help educate me and help me make sure that everything that leaves my desk is really easy to execute and drives the right response.
Lance Graulich 19:03
That was actually my next question when you guys, I think you both mentioned collaboration at this point. When it comes to that. Some people are concerned that if I get into a franchise, they don't have to listen to me. They don't want to listen to me. And I always tell people I said look at McDonald's, the fillet of fish was invented by a franchisee that gave it to corporate and said we need to have some sort of fish on Fridays and it ended up being a permanent menu item. So it sounds like you're having a regular you know, you mentioned brand Advisory Council. I've heard a call from the, you know, franchise advisory council but obviously on the marketing front. So do you do that for both brands? I mean, Nate, you're doing that as well.
Nate 19:47
Yeah, I call my organization, the marketing fun committee. So you know, we try to have a spin on it. But absolutely, it really is about hearing from the franchisees and truthfully some of you know, our best brands stripe Use for yoga six have come from their franchisees, the more we listen to them, the more they feel comfortable, and obviously, following the play, so to speak, or really, you know, supporting one another, you know, if we're all speaking the same language, especially when it comes to brand consistency, franchisees definitely want you to feel like they have a piece of the pie. And you know, we are definitely here to listen, and every market going to be a little bit different. So we can't just replicate especially considering that we're in California, we have locations all across the country now. But truthfully, you know, it's making sure that there is obviously a focus of a voice, but then being able to localize that so the proper constituent consumers in each market can truthfully be able to understand exactly why they want to be a part of it.
Lance Graulich 20:41
Yeah, you just brought up a great point, which, you know, can make franchising, very powerful. If you have a certain brand that started, let's say, in California, the marketing departments have to be very much in tune to, well, why would it work in Kansas City? I know it works in California, but it's different here. So I'm sure you guys are really tied to demographics and understanding, constantly understanding who is our customer? You know, because I hear it all the time from prospective franchisees? Oh, I wouldn't do that in my area, because there's too much competition, or there's too much of this, or we don't have the customer base, and I love how prospective franchisees, you know, they honestly think they know, and I said, Look, in the process of selecting a franchise, as you're talking to a brand, you ask the questions, if you don't feel comfortable that they've answered sufficiently, maybe they don't know. Maybe they don't. But the larger brands definitely have it all figured out. Because they've been there done that. I mean, what do you see, as you've grown out brands, I mean, now exponential is 10 brands, I had to look it up to remind myself, I was thinking it was nine but now but it's 10,
Nate 21:56
we tend to forget to
Lance Graulich 21:58
yeah, there's always another one. So as you guys, as chief marketing officers, you've had an opportunity to watch some brands or do it yourselves, you're not watching from the sidelines, you're on the field. But I would imagine it's a hands-on-deck sort of approach like BF T is a new brand of yours. So I'm assuming there's a lot of cross-collaboration amongst the brands as well, right?
Martin 22:23
There sure is, I'm all the CMOS, we get together every month and just kind of have a little powwow and pick each other's brains. They're really productive meetings, where we're talking about best practices, and we have access to a shared platform that kind of shows our digital results by brand. And we all use that a lot. Right? So if there's a certain market where like, gosh, you know, I'm not getting some, you know, my leads are coming in really expensive. Let me check to see if it's a market thing if it's a stretch lab thing, how is that yoga six performing and so we'll really bounce ideas off of each other. And as we, you know, grew stretch lab, from a kind of a, a, hey, will this work in Omaha kind of place, I was super nervous. When I joined, we had three locations in Los Angeles, very successful locations, but in LA, you can pay anybody to do anything for you. And, you know, we built our own studio in Orange County which was successful. But you know, here in Orange County, there's a lot of people with too much time, too much money. But then we opened up in Idaho, and then we opened up in New Jersey, and then we opened up in Plymouth, Minnesota in the dead of winter. And we really proved out this concept, right, where you know, people's bodies are broken across the globe and stretch lab is here to help you. Do we have to change things regionally? Absolutely, you know, we'll look at the different consumers will look at what's hitting what's not. And that's where a lot of collaboration between Nate and all the other CMOS, we will really talk about those different challenges across the country and different tactics that we're deploying, right that we're testing and bring those to the table. We don't we don't we Yes, we are competitive. There's a healthy competition between the brands. But the CMOS have a really nice network where we're never holding anything back. And hey, if this is working for me, don't tell anybody else. We don't have that attitude. We just want to make sure that all boats are rising with the time.
Lance Graulich 24:24
I love it. And what you were describing I always refer to prospects, I talked about proof of concept. You know, if your comfort level is such that you don't want a new brand that maybe only has three locations in LA, you have the option of waiting and hoping nobody else takes your territory. But you know, people always tend to want the next McDonald's and I said, Well, don't wait too long. You might not have a territory left.
Martin 24:50
Yeah, absolutely. Our early franchisees were lucky and they you know, got the best territories available but they came with us on This journey of hate trust us, right? And they're doing the same thing during pre-sale of, you know, hey, get on this bench for 15 minutes, I promise you're gonna love a 15-minute stretch, I promise you're gonna love our studio Can I have you know, $250 today, and I promise we're gonna be open in seven weeks. So we were doing the same thing I swear this thing will work and will make you money. And, you know, it took some, you know, evaluating and some changes from a marketing standpoint to get us here. But it's been a really fantastic journey. And we'll open up our 200 studio this week.
Lance Graulich 25:34
Love it 200 I can't believe it. And maybe how many? How many yoga sixes right now.
Nate 25:41
Actually, yesterday in celebration of International Yoga Day, we actually opened our 150th location
Lance Graulich 25:46
100 and Fitch. So you guys are growing like crazy. I love it. I love it. Love it. So let's talk a little bit about the pandemic, the pandemic. And it's, I mean, it's the obvious issue that happened in the world. And in the world of franchising. It was interesting because you guys obviously had limited control. But you got pretty creative. I heard about the online content. So talk a little bit about that. Who wants to go first on that?
Nate 26:14
I mean, I'll shoot. Sure. Yeah, I mean, it was definitely an interesting time. You know, what turned into a month or two, two years of shutdown in some circumstances. But yeah, that's really where we really do need to support our franchisees and its largest form. I mean, it was amazing to see how well our franchisees responded to the situation. And another funny joke I like to say is that actually, we created the pandemic. And that's why our on-demand platform exists in the way it does. Because we really did lean on exponential plus, to be able to favor towards our members keep people activated in regards to doing yoga, obviously, especially when you're locked down in your home, you need more fitness activity or more mental stimulation in any way possible. So it was a huge opportunity for us to continue driving memberships and have that as a valuable opportunity for people to do on-demand classes for free. And it was a great way to keep all of our members engaged. And it was amazing to see honestly that we actually grew exponentially no pun intended there. But during a pandemic, where a lot of people were closing down, we were actually growing faster, and scale considering everything that was going on during the pandemics.
Lance Graulich 27:25
So people were given access, if you were a member of any exponential brand, you were given access to this online platform. And you can actually take classes at different yogis different exponential brands. So if you were a yoga six-member, you could take a stretch lab class or anything else for that matter. Is that correct?
Nate 27:47
Yeah, it was awesome to be able to, like, really expose how exponential was as a whole consumer standpoint, and as a family organization from different modalities. You know, I was definitely doing some stretching every now and then doing yoga as well as even doing some dancing every now and then as well to psych it up all those things like that.
Lance Graulich 28:07
So that's awesome. Martin. Yeah, it was,
Martin 28:10
it was a challenging time. For you know, two years prior, we were telling people, you can't do this on your own, you need to come into a studio and get this one-on-one assistance stretch. So when we had to pivot, right, I had said, pivot about 17 million times during this during the pandemic. And, you know, we and we provided this on-demand service. And you know, we're really helping people virtually, my studio was got incredibly creative and did virtual one-on-one stretches, right? would lead group stretches in an outdoor setting where people miss their flex, ologists. Who, and getting stretched is a really personal intimate thing, right? Where you're working one on one, and you're and you're, you know, opening up your body and we're trying to, you know, really, you know, treat your body like a puzzle, and how do we fix you? And how do we make you a better person leaving the studio? So it was difficult it was really not a fun time for our studios and for our flex ologists. And then, but what was really inspiring was opening back up, we were nervous, and we are a high-touch environment. And would people be willing to come back into the studio and just like Nate, we grew during the pandemic, right, we sold franchises. We opened up studios, we started presale. And as we opened up, people were clamoring to come back into the stretch lab. That to me was the biggest validation of the concept that yes, this is a modality that I didn't know about previous to my local stretch lab opening, and then now that you are closed, I cannot wait to come back because this is what I need for my body. So it was a really nice validation of the concept. And we are, you know, blowing way past all of our pre-pandemic numbers from a sales and membership standpoint. So it's been really nice and refreshing.
Lance Graulich 29:52
I'm getting an image of the average individual including myself that was balled up on the couch for a period of time and Yes, I can myself
Martin 30:00
I was working at home on my dining room table and I you know, and it was horrible on my show I just wasn't at the right height. And so I was doing stretching and I was hyper holding, or you don't miss percussion massage device that we use inside the studios and I could not wait to get a stretch. Yeah, we were all more sedentary. And then on the flip side, there were people right whose gym was locked down. So they started running again. They started cycling again, they started doing more activity, and their body wasn't prepped for it. So from both ends of that spectrum, right people who you know started just doing their own CrossFit in the garage, way too much. We helped everybody and stretch them.
Lance Graulich 30:43
Yeah, it was, it was definitely an awful, awful time. And you know, especially that first 30 days when the lockdown started happening, depending on what state you're in. Everybody was like, frozen. Like they had no idea. I was calling friends and family across the country. Like, is this really happening? Like how long is this gonna last? What is it? Wait, our stores are gyms are closing salons are closing. It's not an essential business. What's that? It was crazy. But obviously exponential did a nice job supporting their franchisees as well as they can. And obviously, in most cases, it certainly worked through an awful period of time. So my hat's off to you guys. So let's talk about pride month, what does Pride Month mean to you guys, so let's talk about that a little bit. Who wants to go first?
Martin 31:38
I can, um, you know, Pride Month is special near dear to me, right? I'm a proud member of the LGBTQ Alliance. And it's, it's an opportunity for us to remind our consumers that, you know, we are inclusive, and everybody deserves a stretch and our studios are open and supportive of the LGBTQ community. And it's something where, you know, it's a little bittersweet. You know, as a gay man, I, you know, I enjoy Pride Month, and I think it's great, but nothing warms my heart when I see marketing or I see communication around being open to the gay community or supporting the gay community when it's not Pride Month, and it's a year-long initiative, right? That representation does matter. To me, it helps. And it just really, from a franchising standpoint, we want to make sure that we represent all groups, right. So we do take the opportunity during pride month to really highlight that. And it's been, it's been fun to be able to, you know, support my studios to support my franchisees and it helps from you know, I have, you know, LGBTQ franchisees as well as employees in every single studio, right. So for them to understand that this company and this franchise organization support them supports their community and welcome them into the studios goes a long way.
Lance Graulich 33:07
That’s awesome. Thank you for sharing all that. Mr. Nate.
Nate 33:11
Yeah, I mean, definitely echo a lot of everything that Martin said, it definitely is a great opportunity to showcase, you know, the whole community that is out there. For me personally, honestly, with yoga, six, we are a place of accessibility and acceptance for everyone is, you know, in the fitness industry as a whole should be inclusive, that everyone should feel welcome. So for us, it really is making sure that you know, we can really rally that to Martin’s point, you know, it's more than just one month, in my opinion, we really want to make sure that everyone feels comfortable throughout the entire year. But for us, for myself included, you know, Pride Month really means about just you know, feeling more confident, being more comfortable accepting one another, putting more education behind everything that is going on out there. And you know, showcasing and celebrating all the love that is truly out there for everyone.
Lance Graulich 34:01
So that's awesome. Yeah, I mean, it looks, I definitely understand your point. Every time I see some sort of holiday or some sort of, you know, a special month for certain groups of folks. I often think that you guys are marketing folks. So you know, you guys are marketing gurus. So you understand that, but I guess it's got to be amazing. Just for awareness overall.
Nate 34:28
That yeah, I mean, if you think about the evolution, especially like myself growing up, you know, the acceptance from backbends where it is now it's amazing to see so not to mitigate all the things of all the things that have happened and the time passed. So it is amazing to see how much we evolved for sure.
Martin 34:45
Yeah. And as a consumer, it does change where I spend my money. It really does when I know that a company is supportive of the gay community. It changes my spending habits. It really does just As a consumer you know if I'm you know watching TV and this will happen every so often where you know, it's not overt they're not making a pride commercial but it features a gay couple, my husband will look at each other and be like, Wait, did we just deal with that we hold on you know, and it just it means something you know, representation matters so it does change my purchasing habits. And so we'll take this month and make sure that people don't that we do support that community.
Lance Graulich 35:27
Yeah, no, that's awesome. I appreciate you guys sharing all that. So let's switch gears a little bit. Let's talk a little bit about franchisees if the audience's perspective is prospective franchisees or franchises you know their franchise industry folks listening as well but the majority of the listeners are people again exploring business ownership and when you guys work with so many franchises in not only the exponential system but in your systems before what is in your marketing gurus so what is that secret recipe when you are putting together in your head the perfect franchisee the people that you've seen that only an exponential but in the past what are those ingredients for the perfect franchisee and if you want to throw out because both of you are fun like me I think a little bit but if you want to throw out on the flip side what is not a good franchisee? What makes somebody just not good for the franchise or any franchise system?
Nate 36:32
Oh man, I guess I'll go first there this kind of goes theme with pride month because you know, you have to be accepting of all in that really segue. But, you know, I guess the secret sauce to a good franchisee is someone that is with open arms open ears and is willing to adapt and listen truthfully, right? It's not going to be perfect, there is always going to be kind of a roadblock like a pandemic that happens that you are going to have to ship but you can never lose touch. And you definitely always have to keep your foot on the gas. Right? If you're going to question every step of the way, especially when you're coming into a franchise organization, you know, the purpose of being a part of franchise owners is to make life easier for you. So, you know, as we are here to support you, you know, we only want the success so as a perfect franchisee it's really about listening, being open following the play, you know, having constructive conversations, and, you know, working through those situations as is, I guess the unperfect franchisee is the person that wants to think they know better than us, although they bought into a franchise that wasn't theirs in the first place. So maybe it wasn't for them.
Lance Graulich 37:43
And at the end of the day, so but now they're a genius, because they bought into the franchise, and they know everything.
Nate 37:47
Oh, you know, every franchise definitely knows everything. But that's actually how we know more because we learn from them truthfully.
Lance Graulich 37:53
So yeah, yeah. Martin.
Martin 37:55
Yeah, it is, then that delicate dance. But honestly, it follows the playbook. That's why you're buying a franchise. Let us give you honestly the step-by-step, Color by Number, and directions on how to grow your studio successfully. We're all on the same team, we want you to be successful, we are a royalty-based business, right? So we want you to make money so we can make money. Do we let you I always say it's colored by number, but we will give you opportunities to color outside the lines, we will learn and we will grow from you? Stretch lab, we're a monthly membership model. So would we be initially just selling four times a month or eight times a month memberships. And then it was listening to the field and taking that feedback where we created our family plan that is 12 times a month that you can share between households. So things will change and evolve over time when franchisees are bringing things up and respectfully, and making suggestions and nothing's off the table. But honestly, it really is just to follow that playbook. And, and try to execute everything that we are putting out and we know it's a lot we try to be respectful of your time, but it just really follows that playbook.
Lance Graulich 39:09
Love it. So let me kind of redirect on that last question. If you were both going to think in your respective brands about the top two or three franchisees without naming names. What do they have in common? The best franchisees in your system? What do they have in common? Martin, you first on this one?
Martin 39:32
Yeah, they're, they're great operators, and they are good motivators. They are incredibly passionate about their business. They're running the business, not the numbers, right. So stretch lab. We are a service organization. We are a one on one assistance stretching concept, and that really starts with the people inside the building. There's no gimmicks there's no crazy machinery. It is about that relationship that we're building. So a good franchisee understands that builds and motivates a really good staff, right? So people really will buy the service, but they're buying the people behind the counter right, or the people with them on that bench as well. So a really good franchisee motivates our team and follows the playbook, of course, right. But they are having those daily, weekly monthly meeting rhythms motivating their team and operating the business and not necessarily from the numbers, they understand that the money comes and goes, right, and the money will come. But they have to have that really nice foundation of solid operations and executing 100%.
Lance Graulich 40:33
Martin, one little redirect on that if you were thinking of the top, top two, or three franchisees, what were their occupations prior to joining. In your case, stretch lab.
Martin 40:44
You know, what's interesting is we have a lot of corporate burnout franchisees, right, and then we have a lot of medical device salespeople who or you know, drug reps, right? So at their core, I always say, you know, when exponential throw our big convention, right, you can kind of tell what owner comes from what brand, right? So when you see somebody you're like, oh, they don't appear back? Oh, really? Yes, everybody kind of has a look. But stretch lab, we don't have a look at our core is really great. franchisees just want to help people. So when we have that person who dedicated their lives to medical device sales, because they want to help save lives, they want to help people live a better life. They make a fantastic stretch lab franchisee we're at their core, they're just trying to help people. And that really is what unifies all of our franchise owners that it takes a special person, right? Who wants to build the studio where we are inviting people in, give us your body, and we're going to try to fix you, right? So we'd never have franchise owners who are evaluating a stretch lab and a janitorial service, right? If they're, that's a different mindset. So we really do have people at their core, who want to help people. And that's, that's really fantastic.
Lance Graulich 42:01
I love it. I love it. All right now your turn.
Nate 42:04
Yeah, I mean, our best are some of our best franchises, at the end of the day, truthfully believe in our brand pillars, which have been energizing, empowering, and fun, providing a yoga concept that is accessible to everyone and believes in the product, right? They want to bring yoga to the masses, they want to show the benefits, and they want to build community at the end of the day, truthfully. So to Martin's point there, you know operating the business, not necessarily looking at the numbers, but the passion is there. And that's really what is driving the business and growing it right the culture, having a great team, and really being that support system in that leader to all their staff there so that they actually believe like, wow, I really enjoy working here. I really love coming here every day. I love that there are so many people that are coming into our studio, class after class, and really enjoying, you know, feeling better than when they first walked in. So it's awesome. Every time I get out to a studio, you know, you see a room full of 40 people in a class, and everyone is walking out with smiles or some are coming in with their prions upside down and all these things like that. So truthfully, it is just believing in the product and really building that culture. So that way, obviously that will help grow your business at the end of the day.
Lance Graulich 43:12
So How about how about the top three or so franchisees, when you think of what their past occupation was prior to? Joining? Yoga six, what do they do before in their previous life?
Nate 43:25
Yeah, I mean, tomorrow's point earlier, a majority of them are from a corporate burnout. But you know, they wanted to provide something better to their community, they see there's like a there's not that type of yoga that isn't actually in the market. But for the majority, it's you know, either corporation, some are health and wellness, not necessarily medical devices. And some also do have a fitness background also. But for the majority it really is, though, that have a passion for yoga, really wanted to have something for themselves came from a corporation or something that was just burning them out. And they definitely wanted to give back to the community.
Lance Graulich 43:59
So love it. Love it. Love it. So before we get to final thoughts, Nate you tipped me off that Martin would probably want to sing for us is that
Nate 44:09
You know, it's funny, you will see that we are two different types of LGBTQI. Members for sure.
Lance Graulich 44:17
Mark, do you have to microphone for him?
Nate 44:19
I do not see I do not see for sure. Now I will let more and do all the jazz. I'll do the jazz hands for him.
Martin 44:25
Oh my goodness. You know what? We couldn't agree on my appearance fee. So I can't unfortunately, no, no, no worries.
Lance Graulich 44:31
We'll have to have you back and we'll do it in round two. But so let's final thoughts from both of you, gentlemen. Anything you'd like to share before we sign off for today?
Martin 44:44
You know if anyone out there is really thinking about is franchising right for me, is this a good purchase and really just be asking the questions about that ongoing support and that is really at the end of the day, what's most important and why you buy into a franchise system, we work tirelessly every single day to make sure we're providing that support that structure that training to make you successful. And then we are building, you know, I'm working on building the stretch slab of 2030. Right? And so what do we look for in the future? And how do we make sure that we are talking to those consumers? So just make sure you're comfortable with the team and make sure that you're comfortable with the amount of support and exponential is a really fantastic choice.
Lance Graulich 45:34
Awesome. Thank you, Martin, and any final thoughts?
Nate 45:37
Yeah, to that point. Definitely. Anyone that's out there looking for a franchise organization, you know, exponential definitely have it done. Right. We are definitely here to support and you know, just be willing to listen, come with an open mind, obviously, yes. You know, ask all the questions, be comfortable with a team, be confident that we are all in it together, and that we definitely all want to be successful as a whole.
Lance Graulich 46:00
So awesome. Well, Nate and Martin, thank you so much for being here. today. We're talking about we were talking about yoga six, we're talking about the stretch lab, exponential fitness. You guys are awesome. Thank you so much for being here.
Martin 46:14
Thanks for having you so much. Appreciate it.
Lance Graulich 46:17
Thank you very much for listening today. Please like follow and subscribe so you don't miss anything here at Eye on franchising? Visit our website at Eye on franchising.com Ey e o n franchising.com and complete our free assessments so we can assist you in finding your perfect franchise. This is Lance Graulich. Until next time