By Kristen Ritter
In Part 1 in Club Solutions Magazine’s October 2010 issue, “Secrets to Retention through a Natural Profit Center,” we made a very good case that having a natural profit center in your club would be beneficial to both you and your members. We determined that offering healthy recovery options, such as performance shakes and healthy snacks to your members after they exercise, is critical to achieving their goals. After all, your member’s bodies are starved after their workout and most are looking to you, their wellness expert, for products that will help them achieve their desired results.
A “healthy” juice bar is the value added natural profit center that will lead to a bulging bottom line as well as treating your members to necessary nutrition so that they, in fact, will be a member for life!
Now, that a healthy juice bar or café has been chosen as the new profit center, the next step is how to plan, organize, supply, hire and run an efficient juice bar space. In Part 1, we covered Options 1 – Franchise, and Option 2 – Do It Yourself. To summarize: Benefits of franchising include, having all the supplies needed for a juice bar put in your lap without a lot of self thought. However, the pitfalls in franchising were controlling the healthy factor of the products, the royalty fees and the inability to change process and products that are simply not working or fitting your clubs demographics. Doing it yourself means you call all the shots, but that could be a problem if you are already strapped for time and/or this is your first juice bar you are opening, you may run into some unnecessary hiccups.
Let’s explore Option 3, Working With a Juice Bar Consultant.
Working with an experienced juice bar/ café consultant allows the freedom of time and the assurance that you are working with someone who knows the industry and how to make your new juice bar a success, from start to finish. A juice bar/café consultant’s role is to listen to your ideas and help you customize an efficient, streamlined plan that is just right for your club. Once the plan is established, they should be there to help you every step of the way. From designing the space to be the most efficient, to figuring out product inventory control based on your penetration level, to customizing your menu boards and marketing to match your clubs theme and demographics. And, even after the training, to be there to make sure you are successful by following up each week with new program ideas and product offerings.
Now that you see the benefits of having a juice bar consultant to guide you along the way, understand the two potential pitfalls. First, be sure that your consultant has experience working in the wellness industry. Make sure that the one you choose has a complete understanding of what makes your health club tick. A proven franchise, which may yield 10 percent in an airport, may only yield 3-5 percent in a health club. Second, let’s not forget the “healthy” component. The type of products you serve at your juice bar will make or break your business. Your members are very health conscience and they are looking at every calorie they put in their bodies. Those calories must be nutrient dense and free of all artificial and synthetic ingredients. So before you settle on the products you carry, look at the labels, ask questions and make sure you are getting the healthiest products Mother Nature has to offer.
In the end, if you pick an experienced consultant that carries a healthy line of products and recipes, you will have a Juice Bar that best fits the club’s mold while maximizing your profits.
Conclusion: If you are looking to add a profit center to your club in order to hold onto your members, while adding a new source of revenue to the club, consider a Juice Bar or Café. If you are overwhelmed with the process, but want the freedom to make changes along the way, my advice is to work with an experienced Consultant who knows the industry and can help you customize a plan, implement the plan and see it through to the end.
Treat your members well and they in turn will be dedicated to your establishment for life.
About the Author
Kristin Ritter is the Marketing Director of Performance Food Centers. She is accomplished in Juice Bar and Health Club Marketing and Management and she is certified as a group fitness instructor. She can be contacted at 888.PFC.9151, or by email at kritter@performancefoodcenters.com, or visit them online at www.performancefoodcenters.com.
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