How Orange Theory Created a Worldwide Following with Its Unique Fitness Model

Since its inception in 2010, Orangetheory Fitness has created a name for itself in the inundated gym industry and become a nationwide workout phenomenon.

The name draws in curious consumers while the science behind the gym’s workout gets them hooked. The concept was created by Ellen Latham, a Pilates instructor with a degree in exercise physiology, who looked to create a concept that mixed muscle-building Pilates with fat-burning, high-intensity interval training. Participants are led by an instructor through rigorous routines for an entire hour while wearing a heart-rate monitor to stay on track with targets throughout the duration of their workout. This innovative concept allows for an extremely productive sweat-session that keeps burning calories for up to 36 hours post-gym, producing results that keep clients coming back time after time.

Orangetheory Fitness opened its first location in Fort Lauderdale, Florida back in March 2010, and since then, it has expanded at an incredibly staggering rate. The brand has over 400 studios in the United States and abroad, including countries such as Colombia and Australia, and has an audacious goal of reaching 700 studios by the end of 2017. In April, the company signed a master franchise agreement to open 70 studios in Japan throughout the next decade. The first of these studios will open this fall in Tokyo. In addition to tremendous expansion, Orangetheory has ringing endorsements from Olympic and professional athletes. In June, the brand hit another huge milestone by becoming the Official Fitness Center Sponsor of the New York Yankees.

Scott Breault joined Orangetheory Fitness back in February 2015 as the Director of Marketing, and he firmly believes in the brand’s philosophy and potential. Prior to joining Orangetheory, Breault was the Vice President of Marketing and Branding from 2011 to 2014 at the Learning Experience Franchise – an international franchisor of child development centers offering child care, kindergarten and more. In his position, he was responsible for all marketing and communication strategies and led a team of 10 through the implementation of these methods. While at the company, Breault helped double the number of franchise units and revenue.

According to an interview with CMO Outlook in April, Breault says the unique workout concept and the driven people behind Orangetheory are what make the company truly unstoppable. He says the brand’s initial expansion was mainly fueled by word of mouth as current clients who were happy with their results referred new members. Now, under his direction, the brand has elevated its targeted marketing efforts and focused more on why humans make certain decisions and what the driving force behind these choices is. This is the central theme of the campaign “Keep Burning” that Breault has helped to create, which focuses on asking people, “What do you burn for?” Essentially, the campaign is a catalyst to get people thinking about what inspires them to be better, and acts as a platform to share those inspirations via social media or on a glass wall at an Orangetheory gym.

“It really resonates because it gets people thinking of the deeper reasons for their commitment. It also evokes a sense of pride and accomplishment. Members upload their photos and share across social media. Our responsibility is to build the brand and to flood the sales funnel with as many leads as possible,” Breault said. “We’ve been doing that, but our success as a company is a total team effort. Our entire corporate team, our partners, our franchisees, our trainers and our studio staff is what truly allows us to keep burning down the road of success.”

And his advice for future leaders? Breault tells CMO Outlook it’s incredibly important to focus on long-term goals, always keep learning, appreciate the hard work and dedication of your employees and support them throughout the good and the bad. So far, it’s been an astounding and record-breaking year for Orangetheory Fitness and with goals established and a devoted team hard at work, the company is positioned for unbounded success through the rest of this year and for years to come.

“The future is a very bright Orange! It’s just amazing as we grow and our brand gets out there, people proactively reach out to us, wanting to be a part of our brand, from celebrities to TV shows, fitness pros, but it all started with Ellen’s vision and her passion for delivering proven fitness results for a healthier world. Who wouldn’t want to be part of that future?” Breault said.