![From Client to CEO: Bryan Myers and the Rise of [solidcore]](https://d296qbqev3kq48.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/06151333/CS-NovDec25-CoverStory-3.jpg)
How a transformative workout, a strong team and strategic growth turned [solidcore] into one of the fastest-growing boutique fitness brands in the country.
When Bryan Myers first walked into a [solidcore] studio 11 years ago, he had no idea it would shape the next chapter of his career.
Growing up in a military family with parents from modest backgrounds in North and South Carolina, Myers developed an early obsession with business. He earned a degree from the University of Virginia and cut his teeth in strategy consulting, and then worked at Sweetgreen where he helped scale the brand from 20 to 100 locations.
It was during this time that Myers discovered [solidcore]. Introduced by a college friend — who later became one of the company’s earliest coaches — Myers became a dedicated client and was captivated by the transformative strength-training experience. A few years later after connecting with [solidcore]’s founder, Myers joined the company, and today serves as CEO, guiding the brand through rapid growth and innovation.
When Myers took over the reigns in 2021, he was faced with a tough challenge — navigating the brand through the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I stepped into leadership at a tough time that was marked by laying off 98% of our staff — then rebuilding the team, taking a 70% pay cut and remaining on a reduced salary longer than any other [solidcore] team member, and navigating the shifting fitness landscape as in-person fitness was declared dead,” explained Myers.
Despite these challenges, Myers rose to the occasion. He navigated the challenges of the pandemic by focusing on three key strategies:
- Identifying opportunities in every crisis to reinvent and accelerate growth.
- Doubling down on the brand’s unique strengths that resonate with its members rather than chasing distractions.
- Committing to building a strong, capable team to tackle challenges, recognizing that sustainable success requires collective expertise and collaboration.
And Myers’ hard work paid off. When he joined, the brand only had 25 locations. He’s helped grow that number to over 150 studios and has grown revenue by more than 25 times over the course of his tenure. Today [solidcore] is one of the fastest-growing and most successful boutique fitness brands in the country.
Capital from private equity partners has been instrumental in fueling [solidcore]’s rapid expansion, particularly in supporting the company-owned and operated model that allows the brand to maintain quality and consistency across studios.
Beyond funding, partnerships with firms like L Catterton — which acquired a majority stake in [solidcore] in September 2024 — have provided the strategic expertise fueling the brand’s next stage of growth. As a consumer-focused investment firm, L Catterton has helped [solidcore] deepen its understanding of its customer base through research, navigate macroeconomic and market trends, and strengthen talent acquisition and organizational planning. This combination of capital and guidance has enabled [solidcore] to scale quickly and sustainably while maintaining its culture, mitigating risk, and pursuing thoughtful expansion opportunities.
“They’ve been incredible thought partners to me, but also our broader leadership team as we’ve thought about what are the boxes and sticks that should be on the org chart as we think about growing this business relatively rapidly as we look into the future,” explained Myers. “Not just the boxes and sticks, but also when we actually start talking to candidates, what are those things we should be listening and looking for from an experience standpoint that are really going to help us build a strong, durable and sustainable business.”
And that sustainability is key.
Myers said [solidcore]’s biggest challenge will be continuing to sustain their success while maintaining the elements that make their brand special as they continue to grow and scale across the country, and — eventually — across the globe. “Simply said, we want to prove that boutique fitness doesn’t have to be a fad,” he said.
Boutique fitness as a niche within the broader fitness landscape has a reputation for having boom and bust cycles. It has moments where things come into the cultural zeitgeist, they’re really popular and then they fade away. But Myers’ fundamental belief is that fitness is no different than any other consumer brand or product, but as an industry, it’s less mature than other consumer-oriented industries, like restaurants, hardware and other goods. So what he tries to do at [solidcore] is run the business not just as a best-in-class fitness company, but also a best-in-class consumer company.
“As humans, things change,” said Myers. “What we like changes, how we like to do them and how we like to be spoken to about them. All of that is constantly changing and evolving. As a leadership team, we think a lot about really deeply understanding our consumer so as they evolve, we’re evolving alongside them and continuing to stay relevant. So that’s the first bucket. And then the second bucket I think a lot about is building a team that has experience beyond fitness. We can learn a lot from these other industries that have been around for sometimes hundreds of years and have developed these really critical muscles for building long term sustainable businesses.”
When you look across the [solidcore] team, you’ll find people who are from the technology world, SaaS businesses for consulting, accounting firms and everything in between. And it’s because they want that expertise around the table. “We want those perspectives, those learnings from those other mature businesses, and how do we take them and apply them to a boutique fitness sort of landscape,” explained Myers.
While once-dominant brands in the boutique fitness space appear to have hit a plateau or have declined, [solidcore] has quietly redefined the category. Myers has credited this to their capital partners, hardworking team and truly understanding their clients, but there’s one key item that keeps members returning — the workout.
A [solidcore] workout is a high-intensity, low-impact, full-body strength training class using a Pilates-inspired reformer that’s custom built for the brand. The workout focuses on slow and controlled movements designed to break down muscles to failure, leading to muscle growth and increased strength. Classes are typically 50 minutes long and are led by expert coaches who guide participants through the exercises.
“Workout classes and studios are extremely popular; they bring a sense of community and motivation that not everyone feels at their local gym working out independently,” said Myers. “People often put [solidcore] in the same category as Pilates, but it’s a completely different experience. [solidcore] is built around targeted strength training with a focus on intensity, efficiency and results. Our mission is to challenge every client to seek their strongest self. And, sure, there’s a core part of that journey that’s physical, but we’re also proud of the mental tenacity and strength that [solidcore] helps build for our clients.”
While the workout itself and the results it delivers are central to [solidcore]’s appeal, Myers emphasizes that lasting success comes from staying true to what makes the business unique. The intensity and effectiveness of the classes are what draw clients in, but the company’s focus on mental strength, community and a differentiated experience is what keeps them coming back. That’s why he recommends to other operators not to always be chasing the next best thing.
“Remember that your business has something special and unique about it, and to really lean into that,” said Myers. “In a hyper-competitive industry, it can be tempting to chase the ‘shiny object’ of the latest fad or trend, but I believe the best, most sustainable businesses grow by doing what they do best, better than anyone else. And when they need to evolve, they evolve in a way that doubles down on what makes them special to their customer.”
Beyond the effectiveness of the workout and the tight-knit community it fosters, [solidcore] has also made inclusivity a cornerstone of its growth strategy. Myers and his team recognize that boutique fitness hasn’t always been accessible or welcoming to all, and they’ve intentionally designed programs, spaces and experiences that invite a broader range of participants. By combining a results-driven workout with a community-first mindset, [solidcore] is not only strengthening bodies but also creating a culture where more people feel empowered to claim their space in fitness.
“I’m really proud of the work our team has done to build a more inclusive brand within boutique fitness,” said Myers. “I’m proud of this work because at a time when our country continues to face a health crisis, our community-first approach is bringing more people into our sector and modality than otherwise may have felt comfortable. This unlocks life-changing strength — both physical and mental — for underserved communities all over the country.”
