How dirty can a health club get?

I have worked in health clubs for 29 years. Some of the more egregious examples of the lack of upkeep in health clubs that I have seen:

· Mushrooms growing out of the carpet in the wet area. I was amazed by the phenomenon as much as I was disgusted.
· An infestation of worms crawling around in the steam room
· The smell of urine on the hot rocks in the sauna
· A layer of mildew that spreads like soylent green throughout the wet area
· Tattered and torn carpet -not just a little here and there. It was the dominant theme throughout the workout area.
· A quarter inch layer of dust on top of equipment
· Feces in the whirlpool
· Equipment that remained in disrepair for months at time

I have worked for more than a dozen owners. As a rule they don’t stay in business very long. They have great projections, but very soon costs outstrip the incoming cash flow. At that point they cut costs and let the facility go to pot. That is the beginning of the end. The very end comes when they slash prices to squeeze a few dollars out before going out of business. At one facility where I worked they offered yearly memberships for 55 dollars. A couple of weeks later they closed their doors.

To remain open in any competitive field you have to offer value to the customer to keep them coming back. Keeping the place clean is just part of it. Rather than downgrading what we offer we have endeavored to expand what we offer over the years and keep the quality high. The end result is that we have continued to grow even in these difficult financial times.

Fifty percent of businesses do not survive past their third year, and eighty percent close the doors before their ten year. Kelly’s Austin Personal Trainers is in its fourth year, and New Orleans’s Ultimate Fitness Trainers has been open for more than nine years. To our loyal patrons we are extremely grateful for making that possible and hope to earn your continued business in the future.