GymGuyz Founder on Why Human Connection Always Wins
Athletech News caught up with Josh York, the founder and CEO of mobile personal fitness franchise GymGuyz on his industry-disrupting formula for success and what’s next
At a time when convenience is king, GymGuyz is leading the charge in transforming the fitness industry with a fresh approach. The in-home and on-site personal training franchise is disrupting traditional gym models with its mobile method — meeting clients on their own time at the location of their choice — and is prioritizing human connection and accountability.
If you haven’t seen a GymGuyz van in your neighborhood yet, you will soon. Athletech News caught up with founder and CEO Josh York on what’s in store for the fitness franchise in 2025 and beyond.
The Art of Convenience
“Convenience will continue to rule the world, and that’s not going anywhere,” York says.
It’s at the heart of GymGuyz, which has remained agile at a time when brick-and-mortar-based businesses have wrangled with securing costly real estate.
GymGuyz clients can easily book a personal trainer to meet them anywhere—at home, the office, a local park, or even virtually. The trainers offer one-on-one sessions or can lead a small group, while also offering customizable plans. Businesses have also enlisted the services of GymGuyz to bring fitness services to employees at schools, hospitals, and more.
“Ninety percent of people who have a gym membership don’t go,” he continues. “Treadmills become the most amazing clothing racks. Apps don’t work…AI — it’s not going to happen. People need human interaction and accountability, and some of the most successful gym models out there are based on you not going to the gym. Who’s going to cancel for $10, $20 a month? It’s more like psychological play and they’re still unhappy — they still want to lose weight or become stronger, or be able to play with their kids for a longer time and build up their endurance — whatever their goals may be — and we’re able to do that.”
York points out that GymGuyz clients are consistent, training and stretching two to seven days a week.
“We have businesses using our services seven, eight hours a day, five, six days a week,” he says. “I call it aggressive recurring revenue. But at the end of the day, everything’s about convenience, and that’s why we’re continuing to dominate and disrupt the entire fitness industry.”
Food for Thought
Part of what gives York such valuable insight is his own experience as a trainer, with a deep understanding of the highs and lows.
“When I started this from day one, I always knew that it was very hard for clients to come,” he says. “Clients would never show up. They would sometimes show up late, or they couldn’t make the session. The whole idea came when one client said to me, ‘I wish you could come to my house. I don’t have any equipment,’ and I was like, wow, no one’s ever professionalized that concept. No one’s ever franchised it. I’m going to do it.”
He also offers advice to personal trainers who may feel uneasy about advancing technology in the fitness industry, particularly with the rise of artificial intelligence designed to hyper-personalize workout programs.
“It will never happen,” he says. “I used to be mentored by a very good friend of mine, and he used to say not to chase shiny objects. AI — it looks like a shiny object, but it’s not going to last very long. You need human interaction.”
York also doesn’t hold back on the practicality of scaling as a personal trainer.
“You cannot be doing (personal training) when you’re 60 years old, 70 years old,” he says. “You could, but do you really want to be? I love training my life, but I knew that I had to be able to make money when I was sleeping.”
GymGuyz, he says, offers a career path for fitness professionals and has led to numerous opportunities for team members. The model also allows franchise partners to break into the booming fitness industry with a low investment cost and a relatively quick launch.
“You start as a part-time trainer, you go to full-time training, go to a territory manager, an area manager, a GM… and we have many scenarios where people literally not even having to put money up – their hard work, the sweat equity they put into their business – they’re getting partial ownership within that franchise,” he explains. “Then I have some owners that have actually gone into business with their team members and opened new franchises. So you can really be a trainer and have a career within our organization, which you really can’t do in many places.”
What’s Ahead for GymGuyz
The personal fitness franchise is gearing up to launch a new food partnership and is looking to open additional locations in the Florida, Illinois, Texas, California, Seattle, and Nevada markets. Open territory is available in the Carolinas.
“Boston’s another big market,” York says. “2025 is going to be a massive, very exciting year for us.”
Having franchise partners with the right mindset is imperative to the brand, York says, sharing that GymGuyz is mindful of finding suitable franchisees.
“This is not a one-day-a-week thing; it’s not a two-day week thing. It’s an everyday thing,” he says. “And when you do that, and you continue to stack small wins over and over and over again, eventually you have an incredible business. I always make it very clear: we don’t sell franchises; we award them. We’re looking for the right people. It’s very important.”
While GymGuyz plans to add more services for its clients, one of its major strategic initiatives going into the new year is to continue adding more revenue streams for its franchisees.
Earlier this fall, GymGuyz unveiled GG Drive at its eighth annual Recharge Convention in Cancun — a data platform that allows franchisees to boost their business and discover insights across areas like leads, sales funnels, client interactions, cash collections, fitness package utilization rates and digital marketing efforts.
GymGuyz also introduced assisted stretching services for its clients — a service that has become quite popular in the pursuit of wellness.
“Stretching has been huge. It’s going really well, and it’s continuing to scale and grow,” York says, noting that GymGuyz’s assisted stretching services provide a more private experience compared to brick-and-mortar locations where clients share a room with others.
Long term, GymGuyz plans to service the entire U.S. and scale its international footprint. But York appears most excited about the number of lives GymGuyz will change.
“As I like to say, it’s great to make a living. It’s much better to make a difference,” he says. “And that’s what we do. We help people. We make a difference. We make change in the community, and that’s going to continue to keep growing.”
