Every gym owner must raise prices at some point—and it can be nerve wracking. Today on “Run a Profitable Gym,” you’ll learn exactly how to implement a rate increase, step by step, without generating a flood of cancellations. In this episode, Mike Warkentin chats with longtime Two-Brain mentor and former gym owner Greg Strauch, who shares Two-Brain’s battle-tested plan. Greg has helped 81 fitness entrepreneurs increase rates and stabilize their businesses so they generate profit and allow the own...
Jun 10, 2024•43 min•Season 3Ep. 572
Imagine paying yourself $16,000-$38,000 per month as a gym owner. Today’s guest on “Run a Profitable Gym” does just that. In this episode, host Mike Warkentin sits down with top-earning gym owner Darren Thornton of Defy Functional Fitness in Toronto, Canada. Darren, a regular on Two-Brain’s leaderboards, shares actionable steps you can take right now to grow your business and pay yourself more. For starters, he says to figure out how much you need to earn, then work backward to determine how man...
Jun 06, 2024•26 min•Season 3Ep. 571
If an emergency pulled you away, could your gym operate without you? In this episode of "Run a Profitable Gym," host Mike Warkentin and Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper dive into one of the most crucial aspects of running a successful gym: systemization—aka, building a business that runs smoothly even when you’re not there. They lay out the steps you need to take to create effective standard operating procedures (SOPs) for every task from cleaning to sales, and they explain why these systems are e...
Jun 03, 2024•25 min•Season 3Ep. 570
Saara Snellman has succeeded where many other CrossFit affiliate owners have failed: CrossFit Kreis 9 in Zurich, Switzerland, has 340 members and generates most of its revenue through group classes. While many gym owners struggle to acquire and maintain 150 members, Saara loses only 10 of 340 members a month. To replace them, she just goes to her waiting list—so her marketing costs are $0. This model was once the ideal for many affiliate owners, but gyms like Saara's are rare in the market becau...
May 30, 2024•30 min•Season 3Ep. 569
Two-Brain’s March leaderboard tracked net owner benefit (NOB)—profit, salary and anything extra the gym pays for. Every gym owner on the leaderboard brought home more than $16,000 USD in March, based on a rolling three-month average. The top number? Way over $30,000! In this episode, Two-Brain founder and CEO Chris Cooper reveals the Top 10 NOB figures and then tells you exactly what these gym owners did to achieve elite earnings. A few themes came up in the top earners’ interviews: business sys...
May 27, 2024•14 min•Season 3Ep. 568
Today on “Run a Profitable Gym,” host John Franklin is joined by Jason Khalipa, 2008 CrossFit Games champion, founder of NCFIT Gyms and TRAIN HARD online training, and host of the “Jason Khalipa Podcast.” Jason gives listeners a sneak peek into his value-packed presentation for the 2024 Two-Brain Summit, set for June 8-9 in Chicago. Between his business ventures and responsibilities as a husband and father of two, Jason is pulled in a lot of directions. To stay present and productive in each are...
May 23, 2024•42 min•Season 3Ep. 567
Every sale you don’t close at your gym costs you time and money. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” host John Franklin is joined by Matt Temby, head of sales at Two-Brain Business and owner of Vault Health & Fitness. Matt’s on the mic to share proven tactics for improving your close rate. He walks you through the sales process from start to finish: how to discover a potential client’s real problem, help them realize your solution is perfect and close the sale. Sounds simple, right? B...
May 20, 2024•39 min•Season 3Ep. 566
When should you not buy a gym? In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” host Mike Warkentin dives into this question with Nick Habich, Two-Brain mentor and owner of Shark Bite Fitness and Nutrition in Cape Coral, Florida. Nick has bought a couple of gyms and passed on several others, and he’s acquired a few horror stories along the way. Some of the red flags he’s learned to look out for include high expenses—such as a ridiculously costly lease—and mismatches between financial data in the gym’s...
May 16, 2024•37 min•Season 3Ep. 565
When a gym owner sells or closes a business, it’s often because they’re burned out, broke or forced to sell for some reason. But what does a “good exit” from gym ownership look like? In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper talks with two former gym owners who had successful exits—Taryn Dubreuil and John Franklin. Both entrepreneurs explain why they opened gyms in the first place and detail how successful their gyms were at peak. Then they share what helped them ...
May 13, 2024•43 min•Season 3Ep. 564
Using mostly unconventional marketing methods, Mike Doehla built a nutrition company that sold to Anytime Fitness for eight figures. In today’s episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” host John Franklin chats with Mike, former owner of Stronger U Nutrition. Prior to its sale, Stronger U had over 50,000 lifetime members, and about half of those members were in its Facebook group, where Mike focused on sharing knowledge and building community. Outside the group, Mike’s marketing tactics ranged from sti...
May 09, 2024•53 min•Season 3Ep. 563
Conversations equal conversions. If you’re a gym owner who’s tried running social media ads, blogging and posting reels without seeing a bump in your member count, it’s time to start initiating more conversations with potential clients. “But how do I do that?” In this episode, Two-Brain chief marketing officer John Franklin shares proven strategies for having more conversations and getting new members in the door with zero ad spend. His tips involve reaching out to leads on platform, looking for...
May 06, 2024•26 min•Season 3Ep. 562
Specialty programs can significantly boost a gym’s revenue—if they’re set up properly. The key? Don’t run every specialty program under the sun. Determine which option might serve your current clients and local market better, then test it with several six-week blocks before putting a full, ongoing program on the official menu. Today’s guest on “Run a Profitable Gym,” Brian Foley, is an expert when it comes to running successful programs for older adults—often called “masters” or “legends” classe...
May 02, 2024•31 min•Season 3Ep. 561
What happens when you find your niche in the fitness industry? Bill Parisi turned his passion for youth performance into a multi-million-dollar business. His company, Parisi Speed School, has more than 100 facilities around the world and has served over one million athletes, including more than 130 eventual NFL draft picks. But Bill isn’t focused on the guys who run world-class 40-yard dashes at the NFL Combine. They appear later because he’s locked in on helping younger kids get faster so they ...
Apr 29, 2024•39 min•Season 3Ep. 560
After six months of mentorship with Two-Brain, gym owner Wesley Kalkhoven doubled his income, earned more time with his family, and claimed spots on the February 2024 leaderboards for set rate and show rate. His gym, Calisthenics Amsterdam in the Netherlands, had a whopping 76 No Sweat Intro appointments booked, and 37 people showed up. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” host Mike Warkentin talks with Wesley, who shares exactly how his mentor, Gary Walsh, helped him rev up his marketing ...
Apr 25, 2024•31 min•Season 3Ep. 559
Gym owners often ask “how do I get more leads?” when they really need more customers. The problem usually isn’t lead generation—it’s leads that don’t move down the marketing funnel. How do you know if your funnel is clogged? You have to track and analyze metrics. To help you add more clients, our February 2024 leaderboard show dials in on three critical lead-tracking metrics: set rate, show rate and close rate. How many leads set appointments, how many people show up, and how many buy? In this e...
Apr 22, 2024•18 min•Season 3Ep. 558
Make his gym profitable by Christmas or shut down. That was the goal set by Brandon Sundwall, owner of Virtuo Personal Training in L.A., around this time last year. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain Business chief marketing officer John Franklin is joined by Brandon, who shares his gym’s epic turnaround. In just six months, Brandon doubled his gym’s revenue and cut his working hours in half—all with the support of his Two-Brain mentor, Anastasia Bennett. The keys to reaching h...
Apr 18, 2024•45 min•Season 3Ep. 557
When you buy mentorship, you buy speed. In today’s episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain founder and CEO Chris Cooper walks you through the mentorship process to show what’s possible and how fast you can move. It’s all about setting a goal, creating a plan with expert assistance, and having someone hold you to the plan so you get the results you want. At the start of the program, we’ll help you score quick wins. We want you to earn the money you need to pay for mentorship, so your mentor ...
Apr 15, 2024•14 min•Season 3Ep. 556
Does being a good coach make you a good gym owner? In today’s episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” host Mike Warkentin dives into this question with one of the top coaches in the world, Ben Bergeron. Ben has trained numerous CrossFit Games and Affiliate Cup champions, and he’s also the founder of CrossFit New England and CompTrain, as well as the author of the book “Chasing Excellence.” According to Ben, it takes a lot more than just a passion for coaching if you want to run a successful gym in 20...
Apr 11, 2024•43 min•Ep. 555
Who’s my target market? How many class options should I offer? How much should I charge? These are questions all gym owners must ask, no matter what type of gym they run. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper dives into these topics with Jimmy Davidson, a parkour athlete turned gym owner and mentor. Jimmy owns a three-location parkour gym, Freedom in Motion, and he’s a coach at Motion Mentors, a mentoring practice for parkour businesses. By dialing in on his k...
Apr 08, 2024•33 min•Season 3Ep. 554
Today’s guest has driven up revenue in his gym by 3.5X since starting mentorship with Two-Brain, and his January 2024 total earned him a spot on the Top 10 revenue leaderboard—which ran from $58,000 to $125,000 USD. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Mike Warkentin sits down with revenue leader Chad Pinther, co-owner of Colfax Strong Strength and Conditioning, a CrossFit affiliate in Denver, Colorado. With the help of a mentor, Chad and wife Esther identified a few key areas where they c...
Apr 04, 2024•38 min•Season 3Ep. 553
If you’re not selling personal training in your gym, you’re missing out on a lot of revenue. In today’s episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” host Mike Warkentin and Two-Brain CEO Chris Cooper show how gym owners can boost revenue by $10,000 or more without adding any new clients. Chris explains exactly how to use Goal Review Sessions and the Prescriptive Model to start selling personal training to your existing members to help them meet their goals more quickly. And he even tells gym owners what t...
Apr 01, 2024•28 min•Season 3Ep. 552
Titans Sports Academy, owned by Chance Beam, made Two-Brain’s Top 10 leaderboard for revenue in January 2024. Each gym in the top 10 brought in over US$50,000, and the top gym grossed over $125,000! Chance has been in business for over 20 years, and his program has propelled several athletes into Major League Baseball. In fact, seven of his former players are in the big leagues right now, including World Series champion Nathaniel Lowe of the Texas Rangers. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gy...
Mar 28, 2024•31 min•Season 3Ep. 551
Six-figure monthly gross revenue at a CrossFit gym? It can be done, and we have proof. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain founder and CEO Chris Cooper presents the January 2024 Top 10 revenue leaderboard. The numbers, which are rolling three-month averages, run from $58,330 to $125,606 USD. After the Top 10 rundown, Chris shares quotes straight from the gym owners so you can replicate their success in your fitness business. A quick summary of their advice? Keep it simple. Focus...
Mar 25, 2024•18 min•Season 3Ep. 550
Check out these monthly marketing stats from today’s guest: About 60 leads, 25 appointments, 23 shows and 18 closes. These are great numbers, and gym owner Kieran O’Dwyer isn’t breaking the bank to post them. In this episode, host John Franklin sits down with Kieran to learn how he’s built such a successful marketing funnel on a small budget at Bathurst Strength and Conditioning and Orange City Strength and Conditioning in Australia. Kieran’s marketing strategy starts with posts on Google Busine...
Mar 22, 2024•44 min•Season 3Ep. 549
In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” host John Franklin is joined by Two-Brain founder and CEO Chris Cooper. They provide a glimpse into the upcoming Two-Brain Summit, happening June 8 and 9 in Chicago. Some of the incredible speakers for this year’s event include Jonathan Goodman, Jason Khalipa, Brian Chontosh and coaches from Mayhem Nation. Attendees will also get to grill a panel of experts from Kilo, PushPress, WodBoard and Wodify with questions such as “why aren’t gyms keeping clients...
Mar 21, 2024•46 min•Season 3Ep. 548
In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Chris Cooper and Mike Warkentin run through the jaw-dropping speaker lineup for the 2024 Two-Brain Summit, which goes down June 8 and 9 in Chicago. At the Summit, gym owners will hear about everything from building $1-million net worth to leveraging the four different personality types found in a business. Coaches will upgrade their skills and learn how to build careers in fitness by generating more revenue for themselves and their gym. Among those taki...
Mar 18, 2024•38 min•Season 3Ep. 547
Have you ever heard of a gym with a waiting list? CrossFit Leiden in the Netherlands has capped its membership at 400 clients. Instead of adding more people, the gym is focused on retention, increasing value for clients and raising average revenue per member (ARM). In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” host Mike Warkentin chats with gym co-owner Jeroen van Duijn to learn how CrossFit Leiden obtained—and retained—so many clients. One of CrossFit Leiden's top strategies for getting new client...
Mar 14, 2024•28 min•Season 3Ep. 546
Focusing on retention can improve just about every metric in your gym, from average revenue per member to length of engagement. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” host Mike Warkentin talks with Chris Cooper, Two-Brain founder and CEO, about all things retention. They dial in on the five pillars of retention: results, fame, compatibility, consistency and referrals. Chris explains what each is and why it matters. Then he provides five actions you can perform today to start keeping clients ...
Mar 11, 2024•33 min•Season 3Ep. 545
Could you acquire over 400 members for your gym? And if you hit that total, could you hold onto them? Today on “Run a Profitable Gym,” host Mike Warkentin chats with Rune Laursen, owner of BoxLife/CrossFit 5512 in Denmark. Rune made our December 2023 Top 10 leaderboard for client count, which ran from 324 to 1,034 members. Rune’s already improved on his late-2023 stats: His gym now has 512 members and is steadily growing. He explains how he brings in and retains so many clients by using No Sweat...
Mar 07, 2024•30 min•Season 3Ep. 544
Gym owners often think they have a marketing problem when they actually have a retention problem: It doesn’t matter how many new clients you bring in each month if they aren’t sticking around! In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Chris Cooper presents Two-Brain’s Top 10 leaderboard for client headcount in December 2023. Each gym on the leaderboard has over 300 members and is super profitable. These gym owners have mastered both marketing and retention, and they’re sharing their top tips wi...
Mar 04, 2024•15 min•Season 3Ep. 543
