Contours Express vs Snap Fitness Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Contours Express vs Snap Fitness including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees

 
Contours Express Franchise
Snap Fitness Franchise
Investment $35,000 - $50,000$144,798 - $478,762
Franchise Fee $12,500$29,500
Royalty Fee $395/mo.$580/mo.
Advertising Fee -$275/mo.
Year Founded 19982003
Year Franchised 19982004
Term Of Agreement 10 years5 years
Term Of Agreement 10 years5 years
Renewal Fee --


Business Experience Requirements

 
Contours Express Franchise
Snap Fitness Franchise
Experience -"What I want is somebody who is a fitness nut: a personal trainer, somebody who comes from running a health club themselves. The economics of it are second to me." - Joey Aunan, franchise development director

Financing Options

 
Contours Express Franchise
Snap Fitness Franchise
  In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
Franchise Fees No/NoNo/Yes
Start-up Costs No/NoNo/Yes
Equipment No/YesYes/Yes
Inventory No/NoNo/Yes
Receivables No/NoNo/No
Payroll No/NoNo/No

Training & Support

 
Contours Express Franchise
Snap Fitness Franchise
Training - On-The-Job Training: Ongoing Classroom Training: 30 hours
Support Newsletter, Meetings, Toll-free phone line, Grand opening, Internet

# Protected Territory # 5 days of Training at Contours Express University # 3-Day Training at your gym # Adjustable Weight Stack Equipment # 16 Stations - 4 extra stations optional # Butt-n-Gut cd # Preferred Vendor Discounts # Unlimited Ongoing Training # Advertising and Marketing Advice # 24/7 Online Marketing Materials Library # Personal Gym Website # Prepared PowerPoint Marketing Presentations # Nutritional Counseling Program - C.O.R.E. # Site Selection Assistance

Purchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings/Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security/Safety Procedures Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform
Marketing Ad slicksCo-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social media SEO Website development Email marketing
Operations 50% of all franchisees own more than one unit

Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 2

Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (50% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

Absentee Ownership Allowed Number of Employees Required to Run: 1

Expansion Plans

 
Contours Express Franchise
Snap Fitness Franchise
US Expansion -Yes
Canada Expansion NoNo
International Expansion YesYes

Company Overviews

About Contours Express

After operating coed clubs, working as consultants and working in other areas of the fitness industry, Daren Carter, Mike Widener and Charlie Woodward joined forces to create a fitness center just for women. In 1998, the partners founded Contours Express, a women-only center catering to towns with populations too small to support a full-scale, coed gym.

Contours Express members follow a 29-minute cue tape that keeps them moving through aerobic stations and strength training machines. A fitness trainer (the franchisee or an employee) works with the members during their workouts, providing motivation and other services.

Clubs, which are usually located in strip centers, are about 1,200 square feet in size and can accommodate up to 20 members at a time.

About Snap Fitness

Thanks for your interest in owning a Snap Fitness franchise. If you are looking for a proven, affordable and trail-blazing concept in a growing industry, you've come to the right place! Today more than ever, people know it's important to be fit. Their challenge is squeezing exercise into busy lives. With Snap Fitness, you provide the solution, bringing fast, convenient and affordable workouts into their neighborhoods - minutes from their doorsteps - with your own compact, 24/7 state-of-the-art fitness center. The Industry's Fastest-Growing Fitness Franchisor Our first club opened in 2004. Today, with more than 1,500 sold in the United States and Canada, we rank #1 on Franchise Market Magazine's Top 100 New Franchises* and #3 among Entrepreneur Magazine's Top New Franchises**. A Snap Fitness franchise is easy to afford, easy to manage - 70% of our franchisees are absentee owners - and easy to market. As important, you'll find us to be trustworthy partners. Our success is driven by a single-minded focus to make YOU successful and Christian principles that guide us to treat everyone with dignity, respect and fairness. Take Your First Step Towards Freedom and Fulfillment We invite you to take a close look at us as an opportunity to turn wellness into wealth and to live your dream with a degree of freedom and flexibility not possible in the traditional work world. We stand ready to help you determine if a Snap Fitness franchise is right for you. You can contact a sales consultant right now. Thanks again for stopping by, and - be well.

Veteran Incentives  $5,000 off franchise fee

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