fitness instructor

personal trainer

front desk agent

sales associate

general manager

Row House

I was at this position from July 2020 to July of 2021, and that is not an easy time to try and operate a gym. Between the "phases" we were able to reopen the business in, and local government shut downs due to surges, masks in class (which some members did not enjoy) and the daily stresses of running a gym, there was a lot going on while I was there. Although my former bosses ultimately did the absolute best they could, to say I was always happy with my work life balance or felt like I was truly being heard is not true. 

It's a hard time to be in that industry, we had much turn-around with front of the house staff, and often were under staffed due to the commute time with the West Seattle Bridge being down. But the community of members and co-workers that came together for this location has been nothing short of spectacular. They made the work fun, rewarding and easy to wake up for. The GM who replaced me when I left the company has done nothing but work to bring this company back to what it once was, go out of their way for the members, and gives their all to everything Row House West Seattle stands for.  

This company is fake, and the complete opposite of what they stand for. They are not authentic, which is what they claim to be. Their biggest priority is in spreading their narcissistic gospel, not in genuinely helping people. They are looking for people who submit to an authoritarian regime, nothing more. You don't really need to know much about fitness or have much experience, you just need to agree with everything they say. There is no room to genuinely be yourself, they want you to be like them. The work required for training is absolutely absurd, aimless, and unnecessary. They try to appear on the cutting edge of fitness, by bombarding employees with overwhelming and unnecessary training material, without really caring about or thinking about them as humans. Think cult, think pyramid scheme, and you will get a fair estimate of this ingenuine culture. Save your time, energy, and god-given gifts: go somewhere else. 

Row House does not provide bad workouts, but it is nothing special. While rowing has benefits, I don’t see the mass appeal of this type of gym. It is SO expensive for the mediocre workout it is. I worked as a sales associate and had such a hard time getting anyone to buy a membership. I also had no interest in the workouts so it was hard to sell. I was going to train to be a coach, but the amount of work involved to coach a class is ridiculous for the pay.  I think the workouts are extremely niche and most people find it extremely dull. I would be surprised to see this company still existing in 3-5 years. It seemed by the corporate calls in early 2020 that they were severely struggling, and I can’t imagine how much worse it has gotten since Covid. 

Group fitness relies on motivation, camaraderie, authenticity, and FUN!  Given that rowing on the water is a team sport, rowing has a great place in group fitness.  Coaches prepare for each class and hang out after to complete cleaning and wrap-up tasks.  Training is paid and quite in-depth, but once you test out, you're coaching! Your lead coach should take your class every so often to provide motivation, feedback, and help you grow into new formats and templates.  It can be easy to slip into member acquisition work (prioritizing prospects, converting first-timers into members), but member retention is just as important too. 

Easy and quick training process
Staff and members are welcoming and friendly 
Flexible scheduling times
When I was there they were always switching ownership which was kind of annoying.
Super laid bad job wasn’t very demanding. Selling memberships was really easy once you followed the training. 
The members are wonderful people who you grow close to over time. They are super generous people.
Little perks are given to help motivate you to sell memberships.
You work alone between classes which is pretty nice, that there’s no one breathing down your neck and nagging you all the time.


Row house has a decent business model. They provide fun workouts for clients via a "nightclub atmosphere". However, the team culture has much to be desired. No sense of family here, it truly is a punch in/punch out type of job. Don't expect competitive pay or empathy from your studio owner here. I would highly recommend anyone applying here to consider other options. The best part of the job was building relationships with clients, the worse part of the job was cold canvassing people to try and sign up for out gym.

I enjoy being a part of the Row House family. I come with both a retail background and previous experience with another boutique fitness studio. I fell in love with the culture here! The company has a very resilient mindset and we're looking to move forward and improve despite what's going on in our world. We strive to empower our team and our members at all times, which is something I personally love. The culture is very welcoming and inspiring. We are a growing brand, so as we develop our team will continue to develop as well! 

The management does a great job of being transparent and making you feel supported in every aspect of your job. As a membership specialist, they give you all the training you need - not only for the logistics with membership, but also with how to interpersonally make connections with the members. As a coach, they allow you to grow by giving constructive feedback in a way that motivates you to want to be a better coach. All around, a great place to work if you are looking for not just a job but a community! Not to mention, the members are pretty great!

Row House as a brand, has great values and pillars to stand behind. Inclusivity, team work, encouragement, however as they are individually franchised you have to hope your ownership subscribes to these ideals or its an awful environment. The compensation offered is NOT equal the work load especially in sales and management roles. Do your due diligence with the ownership of your location before agreeing to become an employee

If you are interested in working in an inclusive and exciting fitness environment, then I strongly suggest working at Row House.  Corporate provides extensive support to studio staff members to facilitate success.  Classes are super fun and great workout, definitely jump on a rower in between shifts to get the full experience.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Fitness instructor 64 salaries reported	$35.27 per hour
Personal trainer 12 salaries reported	$33.77 per hour
Front desk agent 6 salaries reported	$16.07 per hour
Sales associate 9 salaries reported	$15.07 per hour
General manager 6 salaries reported	$47,917 per year

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