Curves for Women – World’s Largest Fitness Franchise
Did you know that? Curves is the largest fitness franchise with 10,000 locations worldwide, according to their website. Curves first began in 1992, in Harlingen, Texas. Curves for Women locations is in 42 countries, including Canada, Mexico, South Africa, Japan and Australia, to name only a few. Curves estimates that they have more than 4 million members.
Gary Heavin is the founder of Curves. After dropping out of a pre-med degree program he could no longer afford, he took over a struggling health club. The rest, as we say, is history. Within a few short years, Heavin owned 17 fitness centers. Through trial and error, Heavin determined that the average person doesn’t prevail at typical fitness center. Heavin began to develop fitness centers that had a relaxed environment that encouraged productive socializing among members and a variety of exercise options.
At Curves, members engage in 30-minute workout routines modeled after traditional circuit training, with a variety of equipment stations placed in a circle. Members spend a set amount of time at one station before moving on to the next. Members change stations at the same time and move in the same direction, and they are able to converse with fellow members on either side of them.
It’s a simple formula and it has made the Curve for Women fitness centers enormously popular.