March 14, 2017

Meet Geoffrey Chait of Unlimited Fitness in Hermosa Beach

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Geoffrey Chait.

Geoffrey, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
We opened in June of 2006 with was at the time a very unique concept of a small group training studio, all the equipment was against the walls and an open floor space in the middle for whatever we wanted to do or use. This concept has since exploded and has been made most popular by CrossFit but at the time to have a 1,000 sq. ft. studio doing groups of up to 12 and seeing 100 people a day with the personal attention and service of private training but at a fraction of the cost was basically from outer space. We spent all our advertising dollars and time just trying to convince people to try it, once they tried it they were hooked! At the time it was the big chains and the big family owned places, the only studios were yoga and Pilates but not general fitness. Our clients quickly realized that they didn’t need the steam and pool and that they were spending an average of 1-2 hours wandering the gym but not being efficient. With our system they show up at the start of the hour and are done 55 min later and burn an average of 600-1,000 calories. This efficiency and high level of customer service is what keeps our high end clients coming back year after year. Our trial signup rates and retention percentages would put any gym in the country to shame, we sign 80% of all the people who try us and we retain over 98% of our clients month to month. Now it is almost 11 years since we opened and it has been a dream job come true for me, I couldn’t be happier with our top notch training staff and I am so grateful for our clientele who have made this place what it is, a small family owned beach shop with high end equipment, trainers and customer service. Sort of a shabby sheek or sandy sheek in our case!

Has it been a smooth road?
It never is a smooth road, after opening in 2006 we had a couple good years then the market tanked in 2008 and as a luxury service we felt the impact dramatically, I raised some money, changed the name and reformatted our pricing and billing structure, 12 months later we were kicking ass again and from 2009 to 2015 we continued to refine and improve our equipment, style, systems, website etc… During the same period I met my wife, got married, bought and renovated a house and had two kids. Finally in 2015 we expanded and opened our second location in Redondo Beach. I designed and built the facility myself in a brand new commercial development and fulfilled all my wishes and wildest dreams creating a studio that would make any gym owner drool, it had all the amenities I had ever wanted but couldn’t get in our Hermosa location and I could not have been prouder with the way it turned out. I found the space in February of 2015, signed a lease in April and had it built from scratch and open for business in July. We threw a raging party to celebrate and had at least a few hundred people turn out to partake. Unfortunately the location didn’t generate the foot traffic and exposure we needed and just this past November we closed the doors for good after a year and a half of business. The past is in the past though and our Hermosa location is stronger than ever and it won’t be long before I am done licking my wounds and will find a new space to expand to. This concept is too good to keep to just one location!

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Unlimited Fitness story. Tell us more about the business.
We are a “by appointment” Personalized Group Training Studio that offers high calorie burning workouts in a small group setting while offering each client personal attention. We pride ourselves in providing a challenging energetic and creative workout environment for all our clients: no matter age, shape, size, or current fitness level… we make sure everyone is working out to their full potential. We offer a minimum 10 hours a day of training 5 days a week as well as 5 hours on Saturday and Sunday, so there is no reason not to get all the classes in per week/month that you would like. Don’t forget we always insist on a free trial workouts so you can see what we are about and if UFIT fits your fitness needs. No Initiation fees and flexible membership options!

How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I think cross fit will continue to decline and studios like mine that are more general and less tied to a niche will continue to grow and expand, the next Zumba and Tae bo is also right around the corner but we are not sure in what form exactly it will manifest itself in. Classpass has been an impactful model on our industry and even though they will also continue to decline I am confident the next version of that model will appear soon in a couple new forms. Big high end gyms (like equinox and Bay Club) will continue to decline and there will always be a place for the LA Fitness and 24 hr. fitness of the world. Half the consumers want cheap and accessible and the other half will want high end and personalized. The fitness consumer is very smart and will continue to get smarter as more niche options are offered. Small places like mine make the clients feel part of the community and neighborhood and that need will continue to grow.

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