[Correction: This story has been corrected to notes that Jarrod Saracco was let go on Dec. 16 rather than Dec. 20.]
Jarrod Saracco, who became COO of World Gym in June 2020, was let go by the company on Dec. 16, according to a LinkedIn post by Saracco.
Saracco confirmed to Club Industry that he was let go during a meeting on Dec. 20. He was unaware if any other personnel changes were made.
Club Industry reached out to World Gym for comment but was told that World Gym does not comment on personnel matters.
When asked about his departure, Saracco said: "Yes, it came as a surprise, but I have nothing bad to say. I am grateful for the opportunity that the Cammilleri family (owners of World Gym) gave me to be a part of this iconic brand, and to be a part of the leadership team that navigated them through the pandemic and ushered in a new era for World Gym. While I am disappointed that I won't be there to see some of these initiatives through personally, I am confident that the team in place will continue to grow the brand and complete the mission we set out to achieve. I am forever a fan of World Gym and have made many friends who have become like family. I am excited to see all that they will accomplish as they move forward."
During the past year, Saracco had helmed the introduction of two new models for World Gym, both of which are expected to open their first locations in 2023.
In July, World Gym introduced World Gym Legacy as a strength-only model. It is a smaller-sized footprint, ranging from 7,500 square feet to 10,000 square feet designed to fit into markets where larger real estate and/or population demographics wouldn’t support a more traditional World Gym.
In October, World Gym unveiled its second new model, World Gym Signature, which will be a 25,000-square-foot model with one studio, Studio X, to house a combination of live in-studio instruction for both traditional group exercise formats and for the new 25-minute interval training workout program INCINER8 that the company is introducing. Studio X also will offer on-demand virtual instruction and live virtual instruction through the new World Gym+ system.