At Club Pilates, we believe Pilates is for every Body — and the same is true for the business owners behind each studio. There's no single type of franchisee, no one background that makes someone the right fit. Some arrive as long-time members who fall in love with the model. Others find the business first, and discover Pilates along the way.
Jennifer and Adam Dejong, owners of Club Pilates Braeside, were regular Pilates goers before they became owners. Bree Britten had been practising since 2010 when she and Simon McDonald began exploring a career change — and Club Pilates was the answer that kept coming up before they decided to open their Springwood and Cornubia studios. Krista Borg, on the other hand, came to the brand through two decades in marketing and customer experience, drawn to the business model before she ever stepped on a Reformer — and went on to open her studio in Stanhope Gardens.
Different starting points. The same destination.
Club Pilates franchisees don't come from one specific background. They come from corporate careers, from industries with no connection to fitness, from years of thinking about business ownership without finding the right fit. From parents looking for a career change that fits around family life.
What they tend to share is a genuine motivation to build something for themselves — and a belief that health and wellness is worth investing in, both personally and professionally.
"We had thought about owning our own business over the years, but the right opportunity had never really come up," says Krista. "Having never owned a business before made this a new and exciting challenge — but I knew I'd be able to bring transferable skills from my previous career into a wellness environment."
For Bree, the answer to "what should we do next?" was always close to home. "When Simon and I started exploring a career change and he asked what was something I really loved, the answer was simple," she says. They looked at several brands before landing on Club Pilates — drawn in by its warm, community-driven approach. Simon had never even done Pilates before Bree talked him into it. Now he's a convert.
Jennifer and Adam came to franchising with a similar mindset: curious, capable, and clear that they didn't want to figure everything out alone. "Being a new franchise owner has been an amazing experience," they say, "and we could not have done this on our own."
For Amber Wang, who opened her Fortitude Valley studio after carefully weighing her options, three things stood out: the scale of the brand, the momentum of its Australian network, and the honesty of the people behind it. "From day one, the communication was clear and the information was transparent," she says.
For Bree and Simon, it was the systems that made the leap feel possible. "As two people who were completely new to business ownership, having a franchise model with systems and processes ready to go was an immense help," says Bree.
The due diligence process is straightforward when the track record speaks for itself. Nearly 20 years of brand history. 1,300+ studios globally. A growing Australian network with operational systems already refined across hundreds of locations.
"Everything had already been tried and tested, which gave us confidence as first-time studio owners," says Krista. "As someone who isn't an instructor myself, having access to support from the Head of Education and the wider franchise network was a major advantage."
Ask franchisees what surprised them most, and the answer is rarely about operations. It's about community.
"Without a doubt, it's the community we're building," says Krista. "Meeting so many wonderful people, hearing about their goals, and already seeing members experience progress and health benefits within just the first eight weeks has been incredibly inspiring."
Bree echoes that. "Being part of a brand that truly changes people's lives makes the hard work feel incredibly worthwhile," she says. "Watching our members grow in strength and confidence every week is the highlight of our journey — and we're only just getting started."
It's something Bree had seen long before she became an owner. "I'd been doing Pilates since 2010 and had seen how transformative it could be — not just physically, but mentally, especially through some of life's tougher chapters."
Club Pilates franchisees are not a single type. They're former executives and first-time business owners. People who came to Pilates for the workout and stayed for the model. People who wanted to build something meaningful in their community and needed the right structure around them to do it.
What they share is an openness to learning, a willingness to put in the work, and a belief that what they've joined is worth backing.
"Owning Club Pilates studios has been one of the most rewarding things we've done," says Bree. "Being part of a brand that truly changes people's lives makes the hard work feel incredibly worthwhile."
That's what this business is, at its core — a place where those stories happen every day.
If you're ready to find out if that's you, join the Club.
