personal trainer

pilates instructor

housekeeper

front desk agent

membership representative

Fitness Formula Clubs (FFC)

What is the best part of working at the company?
I worked for FFC for about 7 years, and three different club locations at different points. I was a commission worker vs hourly and it's a night and day difference in how you experience working at FFC. It was easy for the most park working as a massage therapist bc of the autonomy given to your schedule. Its tons of kind people, I had a supportive staff and could always get help if I needed it. It's not the same for hourly workers, it's helpful, but your often stuck doing your job regardless of extra help or not. The free membership was amazing to have access to all the clubs, I was in the best shape of my life. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
As a commission worker (I was employee status but paid as a contractor) the massage schedule at the gym was always random and you always get paid a different amount. It's hard to budget, hard to plan your life financially because bookings are unpredictable. You could make a decent amount of not easily. It doesn't make a great job for paying your bills on time which reflects in you as a person when your working knowing it's not enough bookings or pay. The pay was OK, a hair above average, nothing exciting. It stresses me out that some people loved working there while others constantly left. It is a highly revolving door. They are always hiring vs finding the issues and fixing them so people will stay. It's a job you can easily be with for years, they wouldn't loose people if they upped the pay and make sure everyone got the support they needed. Oh and they constantly say they will train you but often that's left to other employees to show you the ropes so your left to figure out a lot as you go. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It is a friendly and welcoming work environment. Is very diverse, very LGBTQIA friendly. You can grow as a person with this company and get to know some of the best people. It's very clean, they always hire great cleaners. It's encouraging. It's not a body shaming place or a muscle gym it's really a health club. I will say there are some higher ups in corporate that are not as friendly as everyone else and they need to work on that.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
As a massage therapist, but typical day would be coming in, setting up my room and greeting my first clients. They have an intake process, receive there massage, they pay and leave or go into the club. Sometimes I needed to troubleshoot clients that are no shows, didn't pay, reaching out to clients to rebook, speaking to members etc. I got to leave early if no one booked, which happened a lot. Generally good days at work. Sometimes I'd have to sit around and wait for a client or I can freely go get lunch, take a walk, etc during breaks.

I worked at FFC for nearly 2 years, and I left due to a lack of career advancement. I have a Masters degree, and I was quite frankly bored as just a personal trainer. I stated my career objectives early on, and I communicated with my supervisors my desire to be more than just a trainer; however, I brought in numbers for the company, and they were not willing to lose me in a revenue producing position. 

 The pay for management positions were not enticing at all considering the amount of required hours, responsibilities, and managing others included in the supervisory roles. I turned down a management position because I would have been making practically nothing compared to being a full-time trainer. 
  
 Overall, this company uses young, working adults to produce revenue, it retains the middle aged/older employees in the same positions for years, which leaves little movement in the higher positions for the younger employees. The ultimate drive for this company is money and not employee job satisfaction. It is great if you like the hustle of competing with your co-workers, but not if you want a reliable income.

Know how to give your clients great sessions, get connected with the Membership Team, & find at least 2 or 3 friends on the Personal Training Team, & you'll find that FFC is a great place to be a Pilates Instructor. I had abundantly more clients & leads there than at the private studio I was at previously. The toughest challenge for me was making goals for monthly sessions; But that's why it's wise to know the Membership Team, especially if selling isn't your strongest skill. 1 thing FFC does well is encourage collaboration between departments. Even the Housekeeping Staff helps b/c they're keeping everything squeaky clean 24/7/365. The pay was decent with opportunities to advance when you meet the requirements to go up a level, plus access to cont. ed. workshops (sometimes free, sometimes discounted). 1 of my favorite things, though, was the opportunity to meet so many different clients from different backgrounds with different levels of ability & different goals. Great opportunity to grow as a person & as an Instructor.

The only few  good things about this job was having a free membership (starting at $130+ per month) and awesome vibes from members you won’t find at any other gym. HOWEVER, working here sucks! Starting off by having a management team leadership that does not care about their HARD WORKING DEDICATED EMPLOYEES but rather favorable towards those lazy workers that do the bare minimum ! . I worked here for nearly a year , always tried to go above and beyond as it’s supposed to be a high end fancy gym yet my efforts were never acknowledged or valued. I was never offered a promotion despide my work yet promotions were given out to less skilled individuals who weren’t hired longer than I was. Came to a point a manger told me “do you want a cookie for working so hard?” . Their shift managers (MOD) all lazy themselves who don’t care about the job and only there for a paycheck. No type of accountability from management. 

Nice facilities and students, decent enough pay, but I have never felt less welcomed by colleagues as a new person in a workplace.  The other GFIs seem to have a long standing rapport with each other + a territorial mindset over their classes/students, and no interest in integrating newcomers.  Ex:  Passing by I would say hi and they would pretend not to see/hear me, or I walk into a room where a few of them are and none of them would look at me or greet me at all.  It bummed me out.

Is a good enough spot if you are comfortable with the get in, do your thing/connect with your students, get out sort of position, but if you are seeking community with the staff/a workplace that "feels like home" it's not the best spot in my experience.

Very difficult to make sales when the monthly rate and training prices are so high. Customers are warm, but very much wary of training. Most of your customers will take advantage of the 2 complimentary sessions but will not continue. Very hard to keep afloat, expeicially with no base pay and very low total commission prospects. Expect to make well below minimum wage for the hours put in.

Company is warm and welcoming, and almost every employee is fantastic and kind. Very educational environment for a new trainer, but almost every employee agrees that for someone coming in without any clients, burnout is extremely high and most new trainers leave within 3-4 months

I’ve been at FFC almost two years and this place has been a second home for me. My coworkers are amazing and have become such great friends. My manager under the cafe has been so amazing and influential for me. I work multiple departments and have always been recognized for my work even when I don’t see it myself.I’ve worked cafe, housekeeping, bar and front desk and each role is so crucial for our gyms to stay standing and I don’t think that’s recognized as much as it should be. I love FFC and everything it’s given me as a worker in college, someone working on their health and as an individual. 

FFC was a great fit for me as I started my fitness career in Chicago. Though the company desires to be seen by members as a high end/ luxury club, cost cutting and low pay for staff creates a culture of mediocrity and contributes to it missing the mark. Though there was good opportunities to grow and get promoted within the company for those that excelled in their fields, the compensation for the work was not aligned to keep the best people. The company’s purpose statement and core values aligned with my own mission and values, but when they are not upheld and lived out by the owner and executives it made it hard to want to stay part of the company.

First off the stipend is only 30 days after which the job is 100% commission. I'm not sure if this is the same for all but at my location, they ignored me for 6 weeks and only had me doing complimentary sessions. I was set up to fail from the get-go. The team was secretly competitive and the team members talked behind each other which I didn't like. 

As a new trainer good-luck building a full book of business as this will take over 5 months.  

This makes the benefits less enjoyable as they are coming from your paycheck which results in you working for free until you get 40 sessions per month.  

Love working with my clients to better there fitness levels and improve their quality of life. Over the last three years I haved finally created the hours I want to work. 6:00am to 3:00pm, which leaves me more opportunities to make more money. I find the hardest part of the job is the physical demand , but I love the fact I am almost 60 years young and still keep myself in the top ten trainer out of 30 as far as sales, revenue, and sessions taught.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Personal trainer 49 salaries reported	$57.31 per hour
Pilates instructor 33 salaries reported	$59.26 per hour
Housekeeper 53 salaries reported	$16.33 per hour
Front desk agent 53 salaries reported	$16.06 per hour
Membership representative 9 salaries reported	$58,722 per year

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