Imagine you could gain access to 400-plus years of combined experience in the fitness industry in the span of 2.5 days. What insights could you glean from lessons learned, challenges overcome, mistakes made and successes achieved?
Each year, the Club Solutions Leadership Summit makes this dream a reality, bringing together 25 of the top leaders in the fitness industry for networking, roundtables and a one-of-a-kind experience at The Kentucky Derby.
“This event allows you to work on issues or solve real, day-to-day problems in a group setting with some of the best club owners in the world,” said Steve Ayers, the director of franchise sales for Workout Anytime and an attendee of the 2019 Summit. “You are provided 2.5 days with these club owners to develop plans that you can take back to your clubs and quickly implement. The knowledge and wisdom this event provided me really is priceless.”
This year’s event, which ran from May 2-4 during the 145th running of The Kentucky Derby, was moderated by Blair McHaney, who led attendees and sponsors through four high-level roundtables. Topics included:
Aligning People With Strategy
Your Customer Experience Strategy and Online Reputation
Excellence in Your Customer Experience Strategy
Deliberately Delivering Memorable Moments
According to McHaney, the goal of the roundtables was to create clarity surrounding a club operator’s strategy, and how they can differentiate themselves from competitors.
“There is nothing quite like experiential learning,” said McHaney, concerning the format of the Summit. “It seems to be the best way to make things stick. Moving out of your operational environment and into a completely different setting around an event like the Kentucky Derby and with other outstanding club operators and suppliers can unleash your creativity.”
Outside of the roundtables, another key benefit to the Club Solutions Leadership Summit is the relationship-building aspect, creating an environment where club operators and suppliers can bond over a shared experience and learn from each other’s wealth of knowledge.
“It goes much deeper than ‘networking,’” said Bill McBride, the president of Active Wellness, who makes room in his busy schedule for the Summit each year. “You are with a relatively small group of very smart operators with various business models and suppliers with immense exposure to the industry at large. You form friendships, talk, share, learn, teach and generally leave with deeper relationships and broader perspectives.”
Ultimately, the Club Solutions Leadership Summit stands out due to its unique format and setting, relationship-building opportunities, and ability to bring together 400-plus years of combined fitness industry experience together in the span of one event.
“I believe one of the most underutilized resources we have in our industry is each other,” added McHaney. “The Summit helps build your network and lastly, it is just so much damn fun.”
P.S. Thank you to our sponsors for making the Club Solutions Leadership Summit possible, including premier partner Cielo Global Holdings and platinum partners ABC Financial, Epsilon, InBody, Jonas Fitness, Les Mills and Matrix Fitness.
The 2020 Club Solutions Leadership Summit will take place April 30 – May 2. Interested in attending or sponsoring? Email carrie@peakemedia.com for additional info.
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Rachel Zabonick-Chonko is the editor-in-chief of Club Solutions Magazine. She can be reached at rachel@peakemedia.com.
