Today, we announced The Yard Trainer LaunchPad, a program that provides business support for nascent and aspiring independent trainers.
This first of its kind program includes:
- Discounted certification and continuing education, via our partnership with NASM
- Guidance on incorporation, tax, insurance, and financial planning matters
- Client referrals and subcontracting opportunities
- General business support and troubleshooting via weekly office hours
The Trainer LaunchPad enables independent trainers to focus on what they do best — training clients — by removing the administrative burden of starting and managing their own businesses. This program is closely aligned with our vision to disrupt today’s personal training model, which put simply, is broken:
- The median income for a fitness professional is just $41K annually or $19/hour [1]
- They often take home less than 50% of client fees generated
- At Equinox, instructors are paid as little as $26 per hour-long session, which costs as much as $160 to the client
- The minimum instructor payments at 24 Hour Fitness and LA Fitness are $7 and $12, respectively [2]
- ~60% of full time fitness professionals do not have health insurance and over 80% do not have a 401k [3]
“Becoming a fitness professional could be called a passion project with career potential. That’s because, despite tireless efforts on the part of trainers, the economics don’t always add up” 一Fitt Insider
In a December 2019 NYT article, employees described working at Equinox as “very hunger games”, citing up to 80 hour work weeks and a 50% annual turnover rate [4].
Enter The Yard. Our mission is to empower personal trainers to thrive independently. Gone are the days of exploitative revenue-sharing and untenable working conditions.
Our trainers earn 5x more. On a $150 personal training session, they take home as much as $124 (83% profit margin). At Equinox, entry-level trainers would take home just $26 on the same class (17% profit margin).
While we pride ourselves on our pricing model, we want to do more for trainers by offering:
- The exclusivity, privacy, and efficiency of the pod reservation model. Our trainers can create programs for their clients, confident that the equipment they need will be at their disposal
- As of today, the business advisory resources offered by The Trainer LaunchPad
We believe that our service model is the future of personal training. If you are a trainer or know one and are interested in disrupting a $13B industry, you can schedule a call with us here!
Sources:
[1] BLS
[2] FitnessMentors.com
[3] ACE Salary Report for Health and Fitness Professionals
[4] NYT: Working at Equinox: ‘It’s Very Hunger Games’
