Father-and-Son Franchisee Team Take Over Corporate-Owned Workout Anytime Gym in Milton, Georgia

Russ Yoe lives and breathes fitness. Yoe began working with a personal trainer prior to attending college and that relationship ended up changing his life. He found his true passion in the fitness world, supporting strong man competitions and becoming a personal trainer himself. 

Yoe’s father Bill is an ophthalmologist who owned his own practice in Columbus, Georgia. When Bill ended up selling his practice, the father-and-son duo began looking for a new business opportunity to embark on together. That is when they found Workout Anytime, the Georgia-based, 24-hour health and fitness concept with 160-plus locations open throughout the U.S.

“With my dad’s practice, I saw the community that he was able to bring together by owning his own business,” said Yoe. “After the pandemic hit, we started looking for businesses in the area and saw that the corporate-owned Workout Anytime gym was being sold. The more we looked into the Workout Anytime franchise opportunity, the more we saw that they were doing everything right amid COVID-19. When we walked into the Milton gym, we were very impressed with the array of workout equipment, the size of the space and the professionalism of the staff.”

The Yoes signed on to purchase the Milton gym, with Bill as the owner and Russ as the operating partner. “Because of the pandemic, the training and onboarding process was complicated, but the corporate team was incredibly supportive,” said Yoe. “We learned everything from how to train staff and how to use the CRM platform to the ins and outs of the mobile app and more. We officially opened in November and are excited to continue growing in the area.”

In regards to the Milton market, Yoe notes that Workout Anytime provides two things that the area is craving right now: community and health. “Every member that comes in knows someone on the staff, and that creates a super-close, community-oriented vibe that everyone can feel when they step into the gym,” he said.

Yoe says that he is also excited to continue supporting his staff. “Every member that comes in raves about one of our personal trainers, Janelle, and she has been with the brand for a long time,” he said. “We have an amazing staff and we are excited to continue supporting them so they can help more members meet their specific health goals at a great value.” 

In the future, Bill and Russ plan on opening or taking over more gyms in the area and growing with the Workout Anytime brand. The Alpharetta-based brand already has 40 developed locations in Georgia.

“It is great to be partnering with qualified and passionate franchise owners like the Yoes in order to continue expanding the brand, especially in the time of COVID-19,” said Terri Harof, director of franchise development for Workout Anytime. “We’re growing across the country, but we’ve selected key areas with strategy in mind. In Georgia specifically, we already have a really well-established clientele. Now, it’s about introducing more of what people already love about the convenience of 24-hour fitness and making our brand even more available to our communities with the help of new franchisees.”

The startup costs for a Workout Anytime franchise range from $562,850 to $1,008,550, including the franchise fee. To learn more about franchising with Workout Anytime, visit https://workoutanytimefranchise.com/.