Industry Change

On this episode of Industry Change, we sit down with Sharon Simmons from the Pilates Association of Australia. Pilates has come a long way from obscurity and burst onto the mainstream fitness scene in the last few years and the PAA does a great job in setting the standards for the industry as well as supporting Pilates Studios and Instructors. The biggest prediction that Sharan has for the rest of 2020 is that there will be even more diversity within the Pilates space. More and more consumers are choosing Pilates classes and the studio's as part of a real move towards health and wellness and using movement as medicine. The challenge for the industry will be keeping the quality as the industry continues to grow.

In this episode of Industry Change, I speak with long-time friend and meditation teacher, Tom Cronin. Tom traded his life as a finance broker to become a meditation teacher and has an incredible story. Interestingly he's the first person who actually got me to sit in stillness for 20 minutes and I've now incorporated meditation into my daily life.

In this episode of Industry Change, I chat with Justin McDonnel, Co-Founder & Chair of Collective Wellness Group which includes Anytime Fitness, Orange Theory and Xtend Barre. Where does Justin see the fitness industry heading? As surprising as it is, the 24/7 model is still growing and there is still a significant amount of people still signing up to gyms every year. But people are looking for relationships rather than just a membership. Larger gyms and 24/7's can achieve this even on a larger scale, but have to focus on the manager and coaches building relationships with members. And there is a definite opportunity for the studio model and boutique fitness model to grow and expand, especially considering it is much easier for boutiques to build that relational style of training.

Want to know the importance of technology and mental health in the fitness industry? In this episode Richard chats with the Chief Operating Officer of LIFT Brands Andy Peat. Andy was 17 when he started out in the industry, conveniently not having to tell anyone his age… he was a personal trainer, worked on cruise … Continue reading How the fitness industry is turning into a wellness industry with Andy Peat | Industry change Episode 24

In this week’s episode of Industry Change I chat with Ty Menzies the CEO of LIFT Brands. Ty has had over 15 years of experience in this industry with a background of owning independent clubs, franchises and is now the CEO of LIFT Brands with over 300 locations across the Asia-pacific. Recently Ty was elected as a a … Continue reading How to Make the Right Moves in the Fitness Industry with Ty Menzies | Industry change Episode 23

In today’s Industry Change episode I chat with Richard Beddie CEO of Exercise New Zealand about the journey. Richard has been in the industry for over 20 years, initially, he was a gym owner and eager to learn more he went to a fitness industry conference. He did this because he figured that people who … Continue reading How You Can Help Set Standards in the Fitness Industry with CEO, Richard Beddie | Industry Change Episode 22

In this episode of Industry, Change Richard talks to Luke Baylist co-founder and CEO of Australia’s biggest health food chain: Sumo Salad. At one point for a long time, Sumo Salad had 92% brand awareness in the market as they were the first health food chain in Australia. Now after 16 years Luke Baylis has … Continue reading How Sumo Salad Has Adapted in A Changing Industry with Luke Baylis | Industry Change Episode 21

In this week’s episode of Industry Change Richard speaks with Barrie Elvish the CEO of Fitness Australia. Appointed at the beginning of 2019, Barrie is striving to empower and build healthier communities alongside the fitness industry.    Despite coming from outside the fitness industry, Barrie has set a number of goals to entice Australians to … Continue reading How to get more Australian’s Fit & Active with Fitness Australia CEO, Barrie Elvish | Industry Change Episode 20

In this week’s episode of Industry Change Richard speaks to CEO and Co-founder of global wellness platform MINDBODY, Rick Stollmeyer. From humble beginnings Rick started this company in the late 90’s, which aimed to provide fitness businesses’ with software to create change for their clients. Now, in 2019, MINDBODY is the largest platform in the … Continue reading How to stand out in the fitness industry with Rick Stollmeyer

I was lucky enough to sit down with my good friend and Co-Founder of Functional Training Institute, Tarek Michael-Chouja to talk about their new book that launched this week! Tarek is one of the innovators of functional training and shares his message not only across Australia, but globally. The truth about marketing is that if … Continue reading The Key To Reducing Your Marketing Spend With Tarek Chouja | Industry Change Ep 18

If you’re in the fitness space, most likely you’ve heard of Kayla Itsines – she’s a global phenomenon growing from a local fitness trainer in Adelaide to becoming the global face of the app and brand SWEAT. Who you probably haven’t heard of is Tobi Pearce – Kayla’s Fiance and CEO of SWEAT. Tobi has … Continue reading How Kayla Itsines Transformed Her Local Fitness Business into a Global Phenomenon with Tobi Pearce | Industry Change Ep 17

On this episode of Industry change I chat with sales and performance expert – Chris Muddell from Employsure. We talk all about the systems that you need to have in place in order to scale. As solo business operators there can be a real fear around growing our business, bringing on new staff and the obligations … Continue reading Systems To Scale Up Your Fitness Business With Chris Muddell of Employsure | Industry Change Episode 16

In the eyes of Nigel Benton, publisher of Australasian Leisure Management, there are endless great stories to share. Everyone has a story to tell. While some may be able to share their own, others may be too close to see the amazing story right in front of them. The leisure industry plays a very significant … Continue reading Creating The Story For Marketing ft Nigel Benton | Industry Change Ep 15

This week I sat down with long time fitness industry expert Ryan Hogan. Ryan has been in the industry for over 20 years, he has been heavily involved in Filex during that time and now is moving into a role with Wexer - creating digital experiences for gyms. Being in the fitness industry for so long he's seen many things come and go (including the Reebok Slide - who remembers that??). As things move into the digital space and our members expect us to provide digital experiences, it is even more important to provide an amazing experience for our clients when they are face to face with us in our facilities or at our classes. There is a reason that Crossfit, SoulCycle and Boutique Yoga and Pilates studios are so popular. They all provide a service that other gyms and facilities provide. And yet people are passionate about getting their Crossfit in everyday? It's not just about the product they provide, it's about the experience that members get when they are a part of the program. So how do you mimic this same ‘experience' type economy in your gym, fitness studio, or group classes? There are four key things to building an experience led fitness studio. 1. Build A Tribe of Passionate Members When people like coming to where they participate in their fitness program it's a key ingredient in customer retention. But more than that, build a place where people enjoy hanging out with each other and spending time with each other. 2. Design an Appealing Environment No, we're not just talking about keeping your gym clean and tidy (although that helps!). But think of your facility as a branding exercise. Do you have a brand colour? Use it in your gym! Paint a huge logo on a wall. Connect the experience that people see online and in your branding to what they see in your facility. 3. Encourage Friendly Competition Fostering a healthy competition keeps people engaged and coming back for more. Contests, membership rewards, and weekly challenges are all great for fostering your experience community. 4. Use technology to drive people back to experiences We live in a digital world and our members EXPECT us to keep up. Using apps to keep people engaged and providing virtual classes all drive people back to face to face experiences in your gym. Creating unique experiences for your customers can be powerful in building a tribe of passionate people who go out into the world and can't help talking about your brand.

On this week's episode of Industry change, I sit down with influencer, former athlete and best-selling author, Steve Brossman. We talk all about positioning yourself as a personal trainer in order to find success in your market no matter how often the environment changes. The concept of positioning might sound easy, but actually going through the process is where the difficulty comes. Just remember, you don't have to be the best in the world, you just have to be the best in their world. If you have helped someone or a group of people, you have the right to share your knowledge and expertise to get it out there and help people and share your passion. Richard and Steve also talk in more detail about their views on social media, the idea of being an expert, tricks on finding success while working with a partner, and a whole lot more takeaways. Listen to find out more!

In this episode of Industry Change, I sat down with long time fitness industry expert, Geoff Jowett. Geoff was involved as an original founder of Vision Personal Training, where he saw great success in building boutique personal training studios. He went on to have major success with the BodyTrim brand. And yet even after all the fame, all the money, all the ego - he hit rock bottom. After going through rehab and alcoholics anonymous he realised that he needed to find his true north again. And so set out to discover that what he was really passionate about, what lit him up inside was building communities and seeing people succeed in those communities. You see communities are a game changer. In a world where we have more 'social' interaction than we've ever had before - we're actually more lonely than we've ever been, we're more disconnected than we've ever been. Communities, whether it be online, offline or a hybrid of the two - create a place where people realise that they are not along. That other people are on the same journey as they are. Geoff shares with me his three rules for building winning tribes: 1. Communities Need to be a safe place. 'What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas,' right? That's exactly how communities need to be built. Everyone needs to know that the tribe is a safe place to share - that what they share will not go outside the group. 2. Leaders must lead. If you want people to be open, vulnerable and honest in the group, then you as the leader must exhibit that behaviour first. No exception. You can't just tell people what to do you have to lead by example. 3. Share the wins. Make your communities a place where people can share their wins. Because, unfortunately we live in a 'tall poppy' world, where you get cut down quickly if you share your wins. So communities MUST be a place where everyone is able to share their wins. Geoff has been around the personal training industry for a while and believes that even on a small budget personal trainers can have real success through building communities, creating social proof through before and after photos, testimonials, etc. weight loss challenges (everyone loves a bit of competition) and bringing people together online and offline. To find out more about Geoff's new method - The Jowett Method. Visit his Facebook Page here.

This week on Industry Change, Richard talks with Justin Tamsett who is the founder of Active Management and part of the fitness industry for 30 years! Just is a business coach for gyms and personal trainers and travels the world teaching business owners how to retain clients and run a more successful club. Last year alone he trainer in more than 70 clubs! Everyone knows someone who has a gym membership, but never goes. It's become a standard in the industry and something that gym managers have become quite used to. What JT reveals to Richard is the shift that is happening among gyms right now. You see, when your members actually attend your gym, they start to see actual results, then they tell their friends, and suddenly their friends are also attending your gym. And BOOM, just like that - you're reducing your marketing spend. Well, it's easy enough to say you need more people to actually set foot in your gym, but how do you make that happen in reality? JT and Richard reveal four tips for getting more people into your gym: 1. The Onboarding Process How you welcome people from the moment they sign up is critical for the long term success of them at your club. It's important to make sure they feel comfortable, that they know where everything is, how they can get help, who to speak to, what the etiquette is, etc. 2. Create A Community Love it or hate it, you can't ignore the fact that people love Crossfit. And it's not just because they love the high intensity workout. People want to feel 'part' of something. They might come for the equipment and the workout, but they stay because of the community. 3. Time To Grow Up Ok, real talk here. It's time to move your business from the kitchen table into the board room. OK, so not literally. But as a fitness professional you need to shift your mindset from the kitchen table and act like a CEO. Yes, your passionate about fitness, but to be successful you're also going to have to increase your business acumen to keep up with the big players. 4. Create Unique Experiences We get it, as a fitness professional it's important that your clients are performing the right form and technique. But if you're constantly correcting form in classes, instead of creating fun, unique experiences - it won't be long before that get's super boring. Make workouts fun, high five your clients, laugh, have fun. You can guarantee they'll go to work and tell Suzi how great your class is.

On Industry Change this week I sat down with Steve Jensen, hall of Fame Lifestyle Industry entrepreneur with over 30 years experience, to talk about the evolution of sales and marketing. Steve bases his sales practice on the inspirational model. You need to inspire excitement and happiness in the customer for your product, or service. If you're dealing with a customer who is excited and inspired they will be happy to go ahead and spend money. This form of sales is designed to engage with what Steve calls the ‘Green Brain' otherwise known as the limbic system. This part of the brain is where the majority of snap decisions are made. What you're trying to avoid with inspirational sales is engaging with the ‘Red Brain' or neural cortex, which deals with more logical processing. To inspire your customers Steve emphasises the need to market yourself as a unique business. What is it that makes you stand out from the crowd? Use it to win the customer over, let them know that they can't get this service anywhere else! Customers need to be convinced before they even walk into a store these days. The inspiration model is a great way to convince people to purchase your product, to get them in the door. As technology has developed sales has had to change. Things like online shopping and even credit cards have changed the way we buy and sell. Steve was on the cutting edge of direct debit when the technology first came out. By establishing direct debit in his gyms Steve was able to make sales that other businesses would have missed out on. Being on the cutting edge, knowing what's coming out in tech and what's about the trend is invaluable to your business. Customers these days are smart, they do their research they shop around for what they want. As sales has evolved it's become more interlinked with both marketing and customer service. These three aspects are what drive your businesses' success.

This week I sit down with Dan Henderson from Function Training Institute to talk to him about the functional fitness space. Interestingly, 5 years ago I did a similar interview when functional training was just in it's infancy. It was great to get him back and see how the industry has evolved over that time. At the time, 5 years ago, his business was still in it's infancy and operating more like a hobby based business. Fast forward 5 years and the industry is booming and Dan and his co-founder, Tarek, can be found speaking and training trainers worldwide. Dan talks to me about how the industry has changed as it's grown. Particularly as more gyms and fitness professionals have embraced the movement as well as more and more research revealing what Dan and the team have been teaching for the past 5 years. These days there's not that many gyms where you wont find battle ropes, kettlebells, powerbags and other functional type training equipment. We discuss the challenges that new fitness professionals face coming into the industry as well as the three things that Dan focusses on each day that help him continue to deliver services with passion and drive. Listen to the full episode to find out more.

On Industry Change this week I'm in the beautiful Maldives, speaking with James Schramko from Super-Fast Business. When you're running your own business, it is difficult to establish a work life balance. Many people put themselves at the centre of their business and work themselves to the bone trying to make it a success. You might be under the assumption that this much hard work is what it takes to make. The reality is that your business, and your stress levels, will benefit from you being able to take a holiday. James has had many successful companies and now works coaching others on business marketing and strategies. He has successfully built a team that runs smoothly on their own, allowing him to come on trips like this one to the Maldives. This amazing lifestyle is more achievable than you would think. Your business doesn't have to revolve around you, if you build a great, trustworthy, team of employees who know what they're doing taking a RDO is not going to be the end of the world. Simple things like; scheduling your time wisely, and keeping your inbox sparse can drastically cut down on the time you spend working. Delegation is another great time saver, you're the boss you're not there to fix every tiny problem that comes up. Once your business is established your lifestyle becomes a choice between extra revenue and extra time. Which is it that you want? Watch the whole episode to find out more of James's ideas and strategies, and check out the Super Fast Business website for more information on them. https://www.superfastbusiness.com Watch the episode to find out more or Subscribe via Apple Podcasts to listen.

While I was in Malaysia I got the chance to meet up with Jason Campbell from Mindvalley. During our interview we spoke about the importance of sales for business. Mindvalley's mission is to push Humanity forward through education. They are a company that recognises that there are gaps in traditional education. Mindvalley focuses on teaching in four key areas: Mind Body Spirituality Impact They teach both through online courses and offline with events like Awesomeness Fest. Mindvalley's founder Vishen Lakhiani's goal is to impact one billion lives worldwide! In the interview Jason explains that sales is usually viewed as a bit of a negative thing. A necessary evil, that you have to use in order to grow your business. However sales doesn't have to be like this, the sales philosophy at Mindvalley is unique in that they focus on how each sale creates a positive energy, a positive impact on the world as a whole. Jason describes the three sales loves as; Love Yourself Love Your Product Love Your Customer If you can implement these three loves into each and every one of your sales then you will be able to make a positive impact! You might have worked previously making sales without much confidence in the product and this most likely had a negative effect. Sales without integrity don't feel right. If every time you make a sale it makes the world a worse place, you won't leave the office feeling good. That's why sales have gotten this bad rap, because people are pushing products and services they don't truly believe in. If you're business is something that you love and believe in, you have a responsibility to share it with the world! Watch the whole interview to learn more about the three loves and Mindvalley's positive sale philosophy and don't forget to check out the Mindvalley Academy website! http://www.mindvalleyacademy.com Subscribe via Apple Podcasts to listen.

Welcome back to this week's episode of Industry Change where I speak to my good friend Sam Cawthorn. Sam is an international best selling author and sought after keynote speaker around the world. We chat about the future of speaking and how, as business owners, it's imperative that we know how to communicate effectively. One of the things that holds most people back when it comes to public speaking is not wanting to look bad in front of family, friends or colleagues and talks me through how we need to shift our thinking into how we can make a difference, rather than worrying about what people think. Sam talks to me about how to get your message across as a business owner whether that is on stage speaking or online through video. Firstly, if you are going to succeed in getting your message across, you need to get over yourself. The biggest barrier to succeeding is worrying about what other people are going to think of you. Subscribe via Apple Podcasts to listen.

Welcome to Industry Change Episode 5, where Richard talks to Malcolm Gunning, the Principal of Gunning Real Estate and also the president of the Real Estate Institute of Australia. They discuss how the consumer has changed as vendors have become smarter as more information has opened up to them via the internet. In just 10 years the face of the real estate industry has changed dramatically. Where 10 years ago consumers would sit on a Saturday morning and look through the classifieds of the newspaper. Now they are sitting on their iPads browsing through new real estate portals and platforms online. The classifieds are now a fraction of what they were. They also discuss the rise of new platforms like Purplebricks and how agents now have to add even more value to their clients to justify the traditional pricing models of the industry. Listen to the episode to find out more.

In this week's episode of Industry Change I'm talking with PR expert and founder of The Comms Department Bec Brown about the significant changes to the PR Industry especially in the online space. Bec Brown began The Comms Department as a publicity consulting business in 2012, under Bec Brown Communications. Since then the business has evolved with the changing industry and grown to a team of 6, located in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, before rebranding in 2016 to The Comms Department. The PR industry has undergone a massive change in the last few years and Bec talks about how they have transitioned from just concentrating on traditional media to taking advantage of new online platforms. Bec will be joining me at COM's upcoming Digital Marketing Business Summit to help business owners learn new skills about online marketing and craft their own press release.

This week on Episode 3 of Industry Change Richard interviews Gary Ng, the CVO of EWeb Marketing in Sydney about what's next in business. Gary Ng has been in the Digital Marketing business for 18 years and has built his company to a point where he doesn't have a day to day role in the running of the company. Instead, he pursues his passion for socialpreneurship & other enterprises. Richard talks to Gary about how he gradually stepped away from the day to day running of the business and how he conquered the fear of handing over those responsibilities to somebody else. Gary spends most of his time now as the Chief Visionary Officer, building a strong company culture around his life message of success, happiness and fun. They explore the concept of building a life vision around your passion, rather than just your business and how to pursue that passion beyond just what you do in your business life. Click on the video to watch the full episode as they chat about the exciting time that we're heading into in the technology space and how that will effect businesses moving forward. Thanks for watching Episode 3 of Industry Change with Richard Toutounji. For more great episodes, be sure to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or YouTube as well as like and share on Social Media.

Welcome back to Industry Change Episode 2 with Fitness Australia CEO, Bill Moore. Bill has been in the fitness industry for over 3 decades, starting his career as a Personal Trainer with his own studio in Balmain through to co-founding one of the largest online training programs in Australia, 12 Week Body Transformation with Michelle Bridges. And is now currently the CEO of Fitness Australia, the peak health & fitness association in Australia. Having been in the industry for over 30 years he has seen the transformation of fitness businesses from predominantly operating an offline model to having to compete in the online space. This is best represented in his experience with co-founding Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation online program. The industry is in a massive shift at the moment, with fitness rates at an all time high but at the same time obesity rates higher than ever. Bill predicts that the future of the industry lies in aligning fitness and nutrition so that we're not just training fit people to be fitter. Thanks for watching Episode 2 of Industry Change with Richard Toutounji. For more great episodes, be sure to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or YouTube as well as like and share on Social Media.

This week I am proud to launch the first episode of COM's new show Industry Change.This is a show that is dedicated to interviewing industry leaders on changes that are occurring in their specific industry. We're talking to masters of business who have prospered by adapting to changes in their industry. In the first episode, I am proud to announce that our guest is President of CAFBA, David Gandolfo. CAFBA is an industry body of professional leasing/finance brokers who represent the interests of its members by assisting with regulatory, governmental matters, bank and finance companies issues. CAFBA survives by continuously and proactively lobbying governments at all levels on behalf of its members to create changes in the industry that will benefit members. As a leader in their industry, they are often sought out by the media for comments on industry related issues.