1) Should your studio have only cycling classes? Or should you also offer “complementary” training such as yoga, Pilates, barre , TRX, or something else? This question comes up a lot.  People seem to feel that indoor cycling or SPINNING alone may not “be enough”.   In my opinion….with a few rare exceptions, the answer is NO, do not start with other offerings.  Stick to a defined niche, do one thing and do it well and you will have the best chance of success.  I have a number of specific reasons for believing this.  There is not the space here to get into it — but be sure you tread very carefully here.  I am well aware there are some successful exceptions to this rule, but I believe there are very specific conditions that make these exceptions viable. (More on this in a future newsletter).

2) How important is it to somehow provide “metrics” (heartrate, power output, cadence, calories burned, etc.) so your clients get hard data about their workouts?   Bike manufacturers and 3rd party after-market suppliers have products that are getting better all the time, and many studio owners are considering investing in these technologies. Does it make sense for you?  Maybe.  It depends on precisely what you are considering, who your target market is and how much it costs. I believe there are big plusses and big minuses to making this kind of investment and you need to consider both.

3) How closely should I control the type and style of classes my instructors teach? Every studio is slightly different in this regard, and the challenge is finding a balance between a) consistent guidelines, and b) allowing instructors to use their own creativity and energy to fill classes.  A studio (unlike a large health club) is a business that relies on filling classes. Once you set up a nice studio in a good location, filling classes is primarily a function of two things: 1) Marketing (more on this later) and 2) Instructors. They are critical….so be sure you have a clear plan for dealing with instructor recruitment, training, evaluation and compensation!

What are your thoughts?

Indoor cycling classes are one of the top group exercises in North America and around the world for good reason.  When they’re done right, these classes are tremendously effective workouts that can thrill and inspire.  Historically, they have been done in large multi-purpose fitness facilities,  the exciting news we have discovered at Spynergy Consulting, is that independent cycling studios are on the rise!  In 2011 the business model came of age.

Spynergy Consulting has just completed our first review of independent cycling studios in North America*.  How many indoor cycling studios or spin studios are there in the US and Canada?  A relatively small amount, but the number is growing.  My estimate is that there are less than 200 dedicated cycling or SPIN studios in North America, but 40 of those have been launched in the last 12 months alone, and dozens more are in the works.  Compare this to yoga where there are literally thousands of studios, and I believe there continues to be huge potential here for the committed entrepreneur.

*For the purposes of this analysis I have defined a “Dedicated Indoor Cycling Studio” as a facility where group cycling classes are the primary activity.   Some of these studios also offer other classes (yoga, zumba, pilates, etc.), but their primary activity is indoor cycling or SPINNING®.   I have not included group cycle-training programs inside retail stores or other facilities.  We also have a data on Europe and other regions of the world, that will come later.

In the past two years, Spynergy Consulting has received hundreds of inquiries from entrepreneurs exploring the dedicated cycling studio model.  We have provided business plans, websites and other consulting services to over 110 studio starters and 31 of our clients have launched studios as of this writing.  Dozens more are at some stage of launch or development.

As far as I know, here is the first published data on the independent cycling studio marketplace  (remember, this data does not include cycling and SPIN programs being conducted at multi-purpose fitness centers and health clubs).

• While the number of cycling studios is growing, it is still on a very small base.  Spynergy Consulting estimates there are just under 200 dedicated cycling or SPIN studios in the US and Canada
• California has the most studios, followed by New York, New Jersey and Florida (note: yes, these studios can do well in “warm weather” states).
• Other states with 5 or more studios identified include Massachusetts,  Minnesota, Ontario and Pennsylvania.
• Our review indicates 26 states where there is no identifiable independent, dedicated indoor cycling studio.
• Significant cities where we could not identify a single studio:  Atlanta, Portland, Seattle, Cleveland, Sacramento, Charlotte, Columbus, Jacksonville, Indianapolis, San Jose, Memphis, Montreal, Hartford.  (Note:  if you know a studio in one of these areas please let us know so we can add to our database).

Other data being collected on this studio database include type of bikes, other group-ex offerings and average studio size.   Check the Spynergy Consulting website for further updates and data.

Spynergy Consulting owns and operates cycling studios in Boston and Chicago and also provides consulting and business services to fitness studio businesses around the world.  Contact Bill Pryor  billpryor@comcast.net 781-254-3677

Year-end is a time to be reflective, right?  When the history of the indoor cycling studio is written (hah!), we may look back at 2011 as the year the concept really “came of age”.  Indoor Cycling (and it’s cousin SPINNING®) have been around since the 80′s mostly in big gyms.  Back in 2004 a few notable start-ups, Spynergy (Chicago and Boston) and Soul Cycle (New York) brought visibility to a business model that has grown dramatically in the past 5 years.

Our business here, Spynergy Consulting, has done business plans, websites and consulting projects for over 100 entrepreneurs and studio owners in the past year alone…..many have actually launched. On the national scene, Soul Cycle is expanding after being acquired by Equinox.  FlyWheel, the Soul Cycle spinoff, is also expanding with private equity investment —- both these 2011 development are nice validation of the cycling studio business model.

Being in the middle of this industry has been exhilarating.  Before plunging into the indoor cycling world 8 years ago, I spent a career in corporate media and marketing, but I have rarely felt such energy and passion as what I see here.  Having fun and making people healthy?  What could be better?

In the spirit of David Letterman, here is the Spynergy Consulting’s  year-end “Top 7 List” (modified from last year).   This is the 7 Best Things About Indoor Cycling Studios:

1)   People adore them! Customers constantly thank you for what you for what you provide.

2)   The market is still growing! An aging population continues to drive the growth of this low-impact exercise that can be done late into life.

3)   They appeal to diverse groups! Specialty classes are continue to emerge for fitness junkies, teens, seniors, competitive cyclists, cross-trainers, and more.

4)   The model is unique! Pay-per-class, online reservations, community spirit, high-convenience — these create a unique sustainable model.

5)   Cycling is green!

6)   Mental AND Physical benefits. Well done classes are good for the body, the mind and the soul of the rider.

There are a variety of articles covering studio startup and operations on this Spynergy Consulting blog.  For a free consultation or brainstorm session contact Bill Pryor    781-254-3677   billpryor@comcast.net

If you get your studio up and running would you be surprised to find out that over 50% of your customers also belong to a health club?*

That’s what we found when we conducted a survey of our customers.   We own a 48-bike studio outside Boston that will be 7 years old this coming spring.  This September and October were our best months ever and we have enjoyed steady growth in revenue and attendance since opening in 2005.  (Note:  October attendance was up 14% over last October and revenue was up 19% over last October).

I recently reviewed a survey we conducted of our cycling studio visitors.  Some things were expected, some were actually quite surprising, here are a few things I found interesting:

1. 53% belong to a health club or fitness center*
2. 35% claim “regular” outside riding (65% do NOT)
3. Other popular activities by spinners:  Running (48%), Yoga, Weight Training, & Personal Training  (all over 30%).
4. “Quality of Instructors” was cited as the most important factor in client satisfaction
5. Online reservation system, convenient location and music were all more important to customer satisfaction than type of bikes used,
6. 75% of regular visitors live within 5 miles of the studio
7. 10% travel more than 10 miles to attend classes.

*In the comments section of the survey several clients noted they had spin classes at their club but there were serious complaints about reservation systems, bike maintenance and instructor quality.

Inexpensive online survey tools from Constant Contact or Survey Monkey are ideal to gather this kind of information that is helpful for marketing.  We also asked our clients to rate instructors and to give us feedback on new potential class times.

Last week I had the pleasure of flying South to Philadelphia, hopping into a rental car and driving up the east coast visiting cycling and spin studios along the way.   My primary visits were to my own clients —- folks I have worked with primarily via phone and email to develop business plans and get their studios launched.  Each studio had its own character and its own challenges —- each was at a different stage of development, but they all had one thing in common:  energetic and committed entrepreneurs striking out and creating something cool in their communities.

Interestingly one is urban, one is suburban and one is in a midsize community.  Here’s a quick snapshot:

BodyCycle Studio, Philadelphia
Profile:  10 month old urban studio right in the heart of Philly.  Upstairs studio in a cool neighborhood with Keiser bikes, high ceilings and wood floors.  Growth has been steady and solid for the first 10 months, very close to original financial projections.  Owner is looking to expand # of bikes and # of classes and my need to find a new location to do so.  Has built a solid database of customers and prospects via Groupon, word-of-mouth and some great instructors.

Lifestyle Mechanics,  Martinsville, New Jersey|
Profile:  One of the quickest start-ups I have ever seen.  I connected with the owners in early September and after the business plan development they were able to take the necessary steps on funding, real estate and marketing to be able to shoot for a mid November start-up.  Chose to go with Star-Trac and the SPIN brand to become an official SPINNING studio.  Biggest challenge?  Finding the right spot to minimize start-up / build out costs.

CycleOn Studio, Washington Township, New Jersey
Profile:  After business plan development, this entrepreneur faced a lengthy effort to receive SBA funding (bank loan), and then a series of real estate “issues”.  Finally he settled on an awesome space, Star-Track bikes, video projection system and had his “grand opening” on October 29^th.  Biggest challenge?  Juggling the massive start-up details while working full time at another job.

My 4^th visit was to be to JoyRide in Westport Connecticut — a client group that has been opened since early summer, but unfortunately a massive Rte.95 traffic jam prohibited me from visiting……next time!   They are growing nicely and providing a range of interesting types of classes and events.  Biggest challenge?  finding great instructors.

4 different studios, 4 different entrepreneurs, 4 different communities but all relying on the same fundamental appeal of a “pay-per-class”  dedicated studio that provides a tremendously effective workout.  It has been a joy working with each of them providing guidance based on our own experience at Spynergy Cycling Studio in a suburb of Boston.

For many years, cycling studios and SPIN®  studios, a relatively rare phenomena,  have flown “under the radar”.   There are some awesome and successful studios, but most communities are not familiar with them and the basic concept has been largely unknown.   No longer.

Two high-profile New York studios: Soul Cycle and Flywheel have recently received significant national press. Soul Cycle was acquired by national chain Equinox, and Flywheel has partnered with investors who have announced aggressive expansion plans throughout the U.S.

If you are a studio owner, or contemplating a studio in your area….this is good news!  Actually, let me correct myself….this is great news.  Here’s why.

1)   It helps legitimize the concept of a stand-alone cycling studio.  This is important if you are trying to raise money for your studio, or convince a landlord of the viability of the business.

2)   Their presence expands the market.  The more people that hear about indoor cycling studios….the better.  Cycling studios don’t just steal riders from health clubs they expand the market and make the workout available to a broader audience.  Their existence creates broad awareness that is helpful to all.

3)  It’s a cliche and it’s true.  Competition is good.  It makes us all better.  Knowing they are expanding makes studio owners evaluate how to do things better and secure their local position.

Would I want a Soul Cycle or a Flywheel to open across the street from my studio?  No, of course not.  But there are thousands of communities in the US (and abroad) that could support cycling studios…..and the more they open, the more the tide rises for the rest of us.

At the end of the day, cycling studios are not Starbucks, which serves up an identical product in every store you go into.   What we’ve learned at our studio Spynergy, is that cycling studios are true local businesses that ultimately thrive on three things:  A) Awesome and committed instructors, B)  The building of a vibrant community, and C) Smart local marketing deep into a community or neighborhood.

Net, net?  There is plenty of room in the market for Soul Cycle,  Flywheel, and also for talented entrepreneurs to build new, compelling cycling studios.   There are a few hundred cycling studios around the world right now, let’s not worry about market saturation until there are 10,000 (like there are in yoga).

I spent the weekend up the road in Danvers, Mass attending the ICI/PRO conference, a very cool event.  In addition to attending state-of-the-art sessions on “Indoor Cycling 2.0″, power metrics and other trends, I presented at sessions called “Start your own SPIN or Cycling Studio” and “Effective Cycling Studio Operations”.  As usual when I talk about the cycling studio model, something comes up that I call The Big Question.  It looks something like this:

“…Why will people pay-per-class for spin classes when they can join a nice big gym and get unlimited spin (indoor cycling) with their membership?….”

OK, there are several ways to answer this.  If you want to be a bit fresh, you can answer a question with a question:  Why are there a growing number of highly successful cycling studios around the country that are right near big gyms?  Or Why are there THOUSANDS of successful yoga studios when you can do yoga in almost every big gym?

But actually, you can answer the question by citing several of the specific reasons people like (and will pay) to attend a well-run niche cycling studio:

• the convenience of an online reservation and purchasing system
• the flexibility of “pay-per-class” options and not having to “join”
• the feeling of intimacy and community in a small studio
• the attention to quality and detail that a studio provides

Yes, a studio can be more expensive but the reality is that the studio experience is often a much better VALUE.   You can buy coffee at the gas station for 79 cents but people routinely go to coffee shops and pay $2 because the experience and the product are better.  It is no different for a spin studio.

Advertising and direct mail used to be primary drivers of new fitness clients.  Yes, you should still do some of this……but we believe there are 3 Core Marketing “Planks” to help  build your business.

Marketing Plank #1:  making your business “findable” online is one of the best things you can do to get new customers.    To learn a bit about this whole topic, you can read the Spynergy Consulting blog post called “Hey, it’s your Google Rank” man, where we discuss the idea of an “online foot print”.   Getting found by search engines is not about spending a bunch of money on Google Adwords, or SEO services……it’s about:

a) doing some basics on your core web site
b) posting regular, relevant content posted to your site (blogging)
c) encouraging inbound links from  credible sites.
d) engaging selectively and actively in social media (Facebook, Yelp, YouTube)

Based on my studio’s 7-year history, along with online “findability” there are two other “planks” that are effective in spurring word of mouth to build your studio’s attendance.

Marketing Plank #2: Email marketing — Use Constant Contact (or Mail Chimp)  templates.  For $15 a month (free if you are an MBO customer) you can set up a Constant Contact account and start gathering names of potential customers.  This list of emails  will be highly valuable to you later.  If you are looking for content ideas for your email promotions, we have done hundreds at Spynergy and would be happy to discuss.

Marketing Plank #3:  Guerilla marketing — This includes a range of things like cross-promotions with neighbors, studio events, fundraisers, school PTA projects, and more.  Done well, these are powerful……and generally inexpensive.  It also connects you to valuable communities.  Be sure to plan some of this in your annual marketing plan…..and set aside marketing funds!!  Especially at the beginning

Over the past year, we have built business plans and websites for dozens of energetic entrepreneurs around the country, people passionate about indoor cycling and launching their own studios. These people have taken a risk and “taken a shot” at a dream business…..I think they are really cool. Several of them have graciously agreed to share some advice “from the gut”. When asked “what piece of advice would you give a studio-starter” here are some of the frank answers we received from current studio owners.

1. Keep it simple and define something that sets you apart.

2. Be careful about zoning and licenses….be careful about the noise issue….have a lawyer read your lease carefully!

3. Treat every customer like gold…..word of mouth is so critical that getting one new customer is hugely important because they bring friends

4. Don’t worry about the bikes….worry about the instructors.

5. Spend time (or money) on marketing before you need it……By the time you realize you need to spend it, its often too late.

6. Don’t hire your friends as instructors. Ugggggh

7. The start-up is fun, but crazy time-consuming . Be ready for multiple days, nights, weekends, holidays dealing with hundreds of details.

8. Finding the right space, rent, neighbors!!! Hardest part, most important part.

9. Get someone good with numbers to do your Quickbooks and give you good reports from time to time.

10. Opening a new studio is like starting out on a bike, take off slow and steady and before you know it you’ll find yourself gaining momentum. (Keep expectations realistic, getting your name out there takes time and persistance)

There are dozens of examples around the country of successful dedicated fitness  studios. While there are differences in approach, pricing and style………these studios have survived, and thrived in the face of direct (usually lower-priced) competition from large “box gyms” and health clubs that offer spin as well as multiple other products.  These studios are classic “niche” businesses.  They are successful for their focus on some combination of the following factors.

1) Focussed Mission. A dedicated studio pays attention to the details and focuses on one thing:  the best  classes possible.  Equipment, sound system, decor, amenities, teachers………are the best available.

2) Convenience.  A studio is single purpose, “in and out”, simple, easy to reserve and participate.

3) Flexible payment. In a studio, you can pay “per-class” and when you don’t attend….you don’t pay, or you can often buy monthly unlimited passes if that seems economic.

4) Easy reserve. No waiting in lines, no getting “shut out”, no calling the night before to reserve.  You can easily reserve online, show up 2 minutes before the class, and enjoy!

5) Community. A small intimate studio encourages sharing and interaction amongst students if they so desire.  Instructors and students interact to optimize fitness, growth and enjoyment.

6) The little things matter. Quality sound, outstanding teachers, attention to detail, lighting, mirrors, equipment, announcing schedule changes and subs, personal touches, amenitites

If you are interested in learning more….in launching your own studio….or streamlining and marketing an existing fitness studio — click here to find out about our consulting services.