Start a Stride Fitness Franchise in 2024

Franchise 500 Rank: N/R Not ranked last year

Initial investment: $380K - $555K

Units as of 2023: 20 400.0% over 3 years

The fitness franchise industry is booming, so there might be no better time to start your own fitness franchise location today. If you’re not sure what business to partner with, Stride could be right up your alley. Stride is an indoor running franchise originally founded in 2017. It has been franchising since 2019 and is backed by Xponential Fitness, a well-known fitness parent company.

In a nutshell, Stride offers dedicated running spaces for individuals of all fitness levels, including walkers, joggers and runners. This is the first and only indoor running franchise in the country, and classes are led by certified Run Coaches.

Dynamic interval classes and various running machines give every customer the tools they need to enjoy cardio workouts, treadmill-based interval training and chase their physical goals in a climate-controlled environment.

Read on to learn what it takes to start a Stride franchise and why this franchisor is such a good pick for aspiring entrepreneurs like you.

Related: Considering franchise ownership? Get started now and take this quiz to find your personalized list of franchises that match your lifestyle, interests and budget.

Why might you start a Stride franchise?

There are many reasons why you might start a running franchise with Stride, aside from the fact that its brand focuses on empowering, inspiring and motivating customers (a powerful combination).

When you start a Stride studio as a franchise owner, you’ll benefit from things like:

The first mover advantage. Stride has excellent market potential, as this unique kind of fitness studio isn’t found anywhere else or with any other brand.
Extensive support resources. Stride provides franchisees with lots of support, such as lease negotiation, financing help for real estate, wellness training and more.
The executive model. Stride’s franchise model is scalable, meaning you get to determine the total limits of your success. You can start with one studio, then expand into multiple if you enjoy running this business type.
Stride offers a low cost of entry, making it a stellar entrepreneurial endeavor for aspiring franchisees that don't have plenty of money saved up. Good EBITDA margins also mark Stride as having a high opportunity for profit.

Stride studios all offer expansive fitness tools and gadgets for their clients and subscribers, like heart rate monitors, in-studio leaderboards and other proprietary, innovative technology. It primarily uses Art Woodway treadmills: state-of-the-art machines that can reduce shock on the joints and provide your customers with phenomenal experiences from start to finish.

With all these points, Stride might be the best fitness franchise to begin, especially if you already have experience running a business similar to this.

Do you get exclusive territory?

In addition to the above benefits, Stride provides exclusive territories to each of its franchisees. In a nutshell, this means you won’t have to compete with other Stride fitness studios in the same local area.

Instead, you can focus on attracting clients from your local area and competing with other fitness studio businesses. This benefits Stride, as it means that franchisees don’t dip into the same client pool over and over. But it also benefits you, the aspiring business owner.

Your exclusive territory will usually be a few square miles around your Stride studio location. However, the exact territory’s size will depend on its location, how compact the local city is and more. The more people are in your local area, the more Stride studios will be in close proximity.

Stride franchise reviews

At the time of this writing, Stride franchisees have a lot of good things to say about their arrangements. Most current Stride franchisees benefit from the franchisor’s support resources, financial aid opportunities and other benefits. They have had positive experiences so far, and many appreciate that Stride allows them to run their studios as managers and businesspeople first and foremost.

While you can have a hands-on perspective and teach running classes yourself, this is not required by Stride franchisees. Instead, you can focus more on expanding your business and acquiring multiple studios in the same area if you so choose. Thanks to this flexibility, Stride enables franchisees like you to pursue your entrepreneurial dreams.

What support resources are available for a Stride franchise?

Stride doesn’t hang its franchisees out to dry. Indeed, Stride provides plenty of support resources for both new entrepreneurs and experienced business owners.

These start with site selection and lease negotiation assistance. If you don’t know where to set up your Stride studio, Stride’s corporate team will help you find the perfect place based on population concentration, market research and other factors. Once you have the right spot, Stride will assist you in securing a good lease and breaking ground on your studio location if you have to build it from scratch.

Grand opening support and safety and security procedure training are included by default. All franchisees get access to proprietary software, like an intranet platform and a regular newsletter from corporate.

As a business owner, you can attend various meetings and conventions, plus purchase co-ops to acquire supplies and resources for your studio at lower-than-average rates.

Marketing your studio successfully will be vital to acquire as many clients as possible. To that end, Stride will provide you with ad templates as well as national and local advertising support. That way, you can design ads that resonate with your local consumer group, drawing them to your studio in no time.

Online digital marketing assistance is included, too. This extends to email marketing assistance, SEO or search engine optimization assistance and more. You can use the proprietary Stride loyalty program and app to keep your customers coming back again and again, and Stride corporate will teach you how to use it to maximum effect.

How much does a Stride franchise cost?

Every franchise opportunity costs money, and Stride is no different. On the plus side, your initial franchise fee is only $60,000 on average. You’ll need a net worth of about $500,000 and $100,000 in cash, so your total investment will be anywhere between $370,000 and $540,000.

Still, this is a very reasonable initial investment requirement, especially compared to many other fitness studio franchises. Royalty fees are only 7%, but ad royalty fees are a bit low at 2%. You can renegotiate these conditions after 10 years, which is the standard length for a term of agreement with Stride.

All in all, new franchisees with a bit of startup cash shouldn’t have any difficulty meeting these financial requirements. Stride offers genuinely low-cost entry and, as a franchisor, is dedicated to supporting you every step of the way and pushing you across the finish line.

Is there financial aid available?

Stride does provide financial aid via third-party sources, like lenders and financial institutions. Using these resources, you can get monetary coverage for things like your franchise fee, accounts receivable and payroll. If you qualify for these loans, you can almost certainly pay them back over time thanks to the potential profits offered by a Stride franchise location.

What does Stride franchise training entail?

Stride provides training resources, too. This includes one hour of on-the-job training to cover the bare minimum necessary to run your studio franchise, plus 22 hours of classroom training. More importantly, Stride gives all franchisees the opportunity to progress through the Stride Certified Run Program. This is what you need to complete in order to become a fitness coach for Stride customers.

In this program, you’ll learn how to leave class formats, how to practice safe running form and how to empower clients of all ages and fitness levels. If you choose not to complete this program, you’ll have to appoint several designated coaches for your studio location.

In any case, it’s clear that Stride supports its franchisees by giving them all the educational knowledge they need to thrive in this competitive market environment.

Summary

As you can see, there’s no reason not to consider starting a Stride franchise today if you are interested in running a fitness-focused business.

Check out Entrepreneur’s other guides and resources for more information on this topic.

Company Overview

About Stride Fitness

Industry	Health & Wellness
Related Categories	Fitness
Founded	2017
Leadership	Anthony Geisler, CEO
Corporate Address	17877 Von Karman Ave., #100 Irvine, CA 92614
Social	Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram

Business Overview

Franchising Since	2019 (5 years)
# of employees at HQ	21
Where seeking	This company is offering new franchises throughout the US. This company is offering new franchises in the following international regions: Asia, Australia/New Zealand, Middle East, Europe (Eastern), Europe (Western), Central America, Canada, South America, Mexico
# of Units	20 (as of 2023)

Information for Franchisees

Here's what you need to know if you're interested in opening a Stride Fitness franchise.

Financial Requirements & Ongoing Fees

Here's what you can expect to spend to start the business and what ongoing fees the franchisor charges throughout the life of the business.

Initial Franchise Fee Definition: The initial fee paid to a franchisor to join their system What you need to know: Found in Item 5 of the FDD, this may be a flat fee, or may vary based on territory size, experience, or other factors.The franchise fee is an up-front (one-time) cost that a new franchisee pays to the franchisor. This fee is usually due at the signing of the franchise agreement and covers the right to use the franchisor's trademarks, name, and related business systems.	$60,000
Initial Investment Definition: The total amount necessary to begin operation of the franchise What you need to know: The initial investment includes the franchise fee, along with other startup expenses such as real estate, equipment, supplies, business licenses, and working capital. This is outlined in a chart in Item 7 of the FDD, showing a range of possible costs from low to high.	$379,900 - $554,690
Net Worth Requirement Definition: The minimum net worth you must have in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company What you need to know: Net worth is the value of a person's assets minus liabilities. Assets include cash, stocks, retirement accounts, and real estate. Liabilities include items like mortgages, car payments, and credit card debt.	$500,000
Cash Requirement Definition: The minimum liquid capital you must have available in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company.	$100,000
Royalty Fee Definition: A ongoing fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis. What you need to know: Most franchisors require franchisees to pay an ongoing royalty fee, which is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD. This fee is typically a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales, but may also be a flat weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	7%
Ad Royalty Fee Definition: An going fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis to support advertising or marketing efforts. What you need to know: This may also be called advertising fee, marketing fee, brand fund fee, and more, but the basic purpose is the same-- to support promotion of the brand systemwide. As with the royalty fee, it is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD, and can be a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales or a weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	2%
Term of Agreement Definition: The length of time your franchise agreement will last. What you need to know: Franchise terms are typically anywhere from 5 to 20 years in length, but are sometimes instead dependent on factors such as the term of your lease. Once your term is up, you may have the option to renew your agreement, typically for a smaller fee than the original franchise fee.	10 years
Is franchise term renewable?	Yes

Financing Options

Some franchisors offer in-house financing, while others have relationships with third-party financing sources to which they refer qualified franchisees.

Third Party Financing	Stride Fitness has relationships with third-party sources which offer financing to cover the following: franchise fee, startup costs, equipment, inventory, accounts receivable, payroll

Training & Support Offered

Franchisors offer initial training programs and a variety of ongoing support options to help franchisees run their businesses.

On-The-Job Training	1 hour
Classroom Training	22 hours
Ongoing Support	Purchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings & Conventions Grand Opening Online Support Security & Safety Procedures Lease Negotiation Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform
Marketing Support	Co-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social Media SEO Website Development Email Marketing Loyalty Program/App

Operations

Additional details about running this franchise.

Is absentee ownership allowed?	No
Can this franchise be run from home/mobile unit? Definition: The business can be run from your home and/or a vehicle, and it is not necessary to have a retail facility, office space, or warehouse.	No
Can this franchise be run part time? Definition: This business can be run by the owner on a part-time basis (less than 40 hours per week) and/or as a side business; it is not necessary for the business to be open/run full-time.	No
Are exclusive territories available? Definition: An exclusive territory is a fixed area in which you are given the right to operate and in which no other units of the same franchise may be opened. What you need to know: Territory size may be based on factors such as radius, population size, zip codes, and more. Details can be found in Item 12 of the FDD.	Yes