With the departure of Jim Snow and the rise of Aaron Watkins to the post of President, there have been some changes in the organization, but not too many. I thought Aaron's talk on how important retention is to Gold's and the industry in general was on point. Gold's Gym continues to expand internationally and domestically via franchising as well as through company owned expansion . This is a testament to the ownership's intentions to continue growing the business which represents the most iconic gym brand in the world.
Eric Chester, the keynote speaker, was excellent. As an author of a number of best selling books that address generation WHY, work ethic, and creating a culture that breeds excellence, he shared many relevant thoughts on how to create an organization of people who will delight customers. This is particularly important for the health club business. You will want to check out his web site, get his books and if you can hire him for a talk I'd advise you to do it. His story and connection to the Gold's brand was very refreshing as well and in fact we had a nice talk by telephone after sharing some tweets.
The GGFA Roundtable on Social Media, which I participated in , was superb with Mike Epstein, Mary Zampetti, and Cindy. What a difference a few years makes in the world of social media. Listening to how professionals in the gym business are working their digital efforts as compared to a few years back reflects how so many are adopting new technologies. effectively.
We were happy to learn that Star Trac won vendor of the year award and we were delighted that several of our franchisee friends in the Gold's system won a number of awards as well including the Southern California Group and Bill Austin, Dave and Kim Kenyon, among others.
We always enjoy the Gold's show and were delighted to be there and look forward to next year.
