How Lindora Supports Franchisees in the Real Estate And Construction Process

Lindora, the Xponential Fitness-backed leading provider of medically guided weight management programs and wellness solutions, excels in offering comprehensive support to franchisees throughout the real estate and construction process. From the initial site selection to the final build-out, Lindora ensures that franchisees have all the necessary resources and guidance to succeed.

Here’s a closer look at what that process looks like. 

How Lindora Assists Franchisees in Finding the Best Locations

Adopting a shared services support model at the parent level, Xponential Fitness works with brokers nationwide that are familiar with its brand requirements across the family of brands, putting these experts out in the field to look for the best sites possible. And because the family of brands sit within fitness and wellness, there is the opportunity to locate them nearby each other as they complement one another.

“We prefer to co-locate in grocery-anchored centers with female-centric cotenants,” said Jill Matthews, regional director of real estate at Xponential Fitness. “We’ve been using this system for many years and continue to follow it.”

The local brokers also assist franchisees with letter of intent (LOI) negotiations, which the corporate team oversees. These local brokers know the nuances of each local market but — from a corporate and franchisor perspective — Lindora knows what they want in an LOI, as well.

“We actually provide the LOI template, which is very tenant-friendly to the franchisee,” said Matthews. “Once we come to deal terms on the letter of intent, we go into lease negotiation. We have a panel of attorneys we have worked with for many years who have done the vast majority of leases for our franchise partners and know what each brand owner needs.”

Ensuring Construction Meets Brand Standards

It’s not just about finding the right location — it’s about making sure the location is up to brand standards so that franchisees can be set up for success. First things first, the Lindora team focuses on the foundation with brand standards built in from the start.

“The real estate team, as well as the broker, are looking at our minimum requirements before they even show a space to an owner,” said Kristen Sims, senior director of construction support at Xponential Fitness. “So, between the real estate team and myself in construction support, we’re going back and forth if it doesn’t meet the requirements but we think the space might be okay. Then we start working with our design team. We do test fits to ensure that we fit in the space and that all of our brand standards are met.”

Next, Lindora works closely with the architects who perform the site surveys to verify the accuracy of the information provided by the real estate team. This process builds a solid foundation for choosing the best locations possible.

Training and Guidance Offered During the Real Estate and Construction Phases

“Immediately, when they sign their franchise agreement, I jump in to let them know what will happen in the construction phase,” said Sims. “But first it starts with real estate. Once they’re in a place where construction can start, I start telling them steps and homework that they can do before they sign their lease.”

When it comes to timeline and budget, Lindora does its best to save owners as much money as possible. 

"Regarding the timeline, I'm closely coordinating with the owners and their construction team," Sims explained. "I'm ensuring our vendors are informed about key dates and keeping the corporate team updated on when they can proceed with the soft opening, start presales, and any other critical milestones."

Lindora places a strong emphasis on budget considerations right from the start, aiming to build out its studios cost-effectively. During the design phase, the brand carefully evaluates materials and space requirements to help owners save money. If materials specified by the architect can be locally sourced by general contractors without compromising brand standards, Lindora will apply value engineering throughout the process to reduce costs.

“We become a family from the very beginning,” said Sims. “Once the owners get comfortable, they work a lot with the construction team. I may be the go-to person for any questions they have, even if they’re not related to my specific role. If it’s a construction-related question, we have the construction support team to help. If something gets damaged that is equipment-related, we work with the vendors and the owners to ensure it’s taken care of. They never lose us; we’re always in communication, so the support is always there, 100%.”

To find out more information on the costs of buying this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/lindora/info.