Your network is growing rapidly. How do you explain this success?
First of all, because it meets customers’ needs which were not satisfied beforehand. Bring a space for women to take care of themselves, of their health, with no time restraint. In 30 minutes, with no appointment, they can exercise and obtain good results rapidly.
To sum it up, we meet an actual need, the concept is very well targeted, and it’s simple and enjoyable!
We have a little “secret” too, that can explain the concept and our success: for the price of one equipment that can be found in traditional fitness centers, one can get the whole Curves circuit! Furthermore, well known centers in France target about 10% of the population. People who already practise sport. At Curves, our target is aiming at 50% of women.
In United States, this concept only developed thanks to word-of-mouth. We never advertised to get new franchisees. In most cases, centers members actually decided to create their own center. That’s also where our strength is. That’s why we’ve been able to do in 6 years what Mc Donald’s did in 25 years. That is unique in franchise history.

Who are your franchisees and how do you recruit them?
Candidates like the concept because they feel like managing a center is simple. Right from the beginning, they feel like it’s so easy they can do it themselves. No stocks, no perishable products.
As far as profiles go, what really counts in our industry is passion. During training sessions, we can turn a passionate non professional into a good center manager. Nevertheless, we can’t do it the other way around. There is no success without passion.
Our franchisee must want to be useful, to satisfy her center members. She pledges to serve their health. These are proximity centers, no sport centers. People skills, conviviality are very important. Each center is its owner’s reflection. Even if everybody uses the same methods, you can feel each franchisee’s personality.

How much would one need for the initial investment?
Between 80,000 and 100,000 euros of global investment, including the franchise, training, software…Minimum personal contribution is about 25,000 euros. It’s also a key to success. Simple and a limited investment, for a sales figure after two years around 220,000 euros.