Earn Your Stripes, a fitness studio brand out of Lakeland, Florida, is now officially licensed to franchise. This is just the beginning as the brand plans for a nationwide expansion to highlight its model of elite training and culture centered on recognition and results.
Earn Your Stripes (EYS) was founded by Matt Wright, a long-time veteran of the fitness industry, and Scott Marchakitus, a former executive at Goldman Sachs. The brand combines Wright’s hands-on coaching experience with Marchakitus’s business expertise, along with their Chief Operating Officer Brian Davis’s military background to lead a disciplined, strategic and mission-first company.
“We are building more than gyms, we are building communities where people grow stronger mentally, physically and emotionally,” said Wright, in a statement. “Franchising gives us the opportunity to expand that impact with the right leaders in local markets.”
Wright explained EYS combines the community aspect that boutique-style gyms bring along with a military-inspired model that focuses on accountability to bridge the gap between fleeting motivation and lifelong transformation. With their unique programs, EYS Fit, EYS Combat, and EYS Core, members are continuously engaged and can achieve goals on a week-to-week basis.
With a focus on purpose, progression and recognition, EYS continues to set standards and accountability that are unmatched and allow members to give their all. “Seeing members raise their achieved rank is the badge of honor we want to give them to keep them moving in their best direction to be the best version of themselves,” said Wright.
One of the ways they do this is through their custom EYS app. The app provides real-time tracking of progress, engagement and monthly challenges which are shown on their in-studio jumbotron that adds to the member experience. The app allows for EYS to recognize and reward members in unique ways and the challenges keep members working towards something.
As EYS plans to prioritize markets in Florida, the high growth market will allow them to find partners that follow their mission of being purpose driven. “EYS isn’t chasing cookie-cutter operators, we want warriors with heart,” said Wright.
The brand will also look to push into Texas and the Carolinas, where the markets are big on boutique-style facilities but will allow space for EYS’s unique take on fitness with a high military presence and challenging but rewarding workouts. Earn Your Stripes’ plan uses rigorous onboarding and ongoing training that will support the new franchises, according to Wright.
“We believe that by pouring into our people, they will in turn pour into the communities we serve,” said Wright.
Future goals are to expand globally with international licensing and to partner with corporate wellness programs in order to feed the mental-resilience aspect of the brand.
And while expansion is a goal for the brand, staying true to their mission and identity is EYS’s main focus. “We’ve built a model that works,” said Wright. “And now we’re focused on finding the right partners to bring it to life across the country.”
