Kirk Dewaele is co-founder and chief training officer of MADabolic, a strength-driven interval training franchise. Before he attends the hosted buyer event Sibec Americas on May 7-10 at PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, he shared with Club Industry what he sees as the power of in-person fitness, some of his company's successes during the past three years, some trends he sees taking hold in 2023, what he would do if he was in charge of the U.S. fitness industry and more.
This Q&A is part of Club Industry’s ongoing Follow the Fitness Leaders series.
Q: During the past three years of adversity, what did you learn and how are you applying that knowledge to your business today?
Dewaele: I think we all learned that people need human connection, and the world of fitness needs group training. There was a point there where everybody was writing off in-person fitness and convinced that the future was going to be all about the digital game. At MADabolic, we have never bought into that belief because we have seen the power of what in-person fitness can do for people’s mental and physical health.
Q: What successes has your company had in the past three years, and what helped you create these successes?
Dewaele: Honestly, other than shutting down for a few months in 2020, we have been full steam ahead. We continued our approach for growth, we held Zoom-based Discovery Days, and we expanded our footprint from 10 open and operating studios to now 26 open studios. We also sold another 70 franchise licenses to various markets around the country.
Q: We often learn most from our failures. From what failure have you learned the most, and what did you learn from it?
Dewaele: In the world of franchising, we are always learning from past failures and continually looking for ways to support our franchisees in efforts to help them grow, whether that is being more involved in site selection or coming up with different ways to market ourselves when entering new markets. The minute you sit back and think you have everything figured out, problems arise that need to addressed.
Q: What trends are you noticing in 2023, and how are you adapting to these trends?
Dewaele: Obviously, strength training is the talk of 2023. Lucky for us, we have been preaching for years that we are the industry’s first and only true strength-driven interval training franchise. The majority of our locations have not only seen an uptick in new clients coming through the doors but also an uptick in our current clientele attending classes more frequently each week.
Q: If you had the ability to oversee the whole U.S. fitness community, what would you change to move more people to exercise and to ensure governments understand the essential nature of this industry?
Dewaele: I honestly believe that a radical change and improvement in nationwide fitness starts with changing its emphasis within the school system. When I was growing up in Canada, we had PE every single day. Why is that not a thing anymore? Physical activity has been removed from the education system and replaced with more classroom-based learning and more homework. The amount of homework my 12-year-old daughter has is ludicrous to me. Our children need to learn that moving their bodies and gaining strength are not only good for the body but also good for the mind.
Q: What are the top three most important criteria you look for when securing a supplier?
Dewaele: First is quality. We will not sacrifice price if the quality is not there. Second is communication. If we continually have issues trying to get a hold of company representatives, we will most likely start to look elsewhere. Third is functionality. We will never add a new piece of equipment to our program just for the sake of variety. If the tool or piece of equipment will benefit our clients and benefit our program, then yes, let’s bring it in. If it is gimmicky and not purposeful, then we will take a hard pass.