HALO Talks: Elevating Wellness

A former NHL Hall of Famer, (Top 100 all time NHL), Stanley Cup Champion, NHL MVP and 2x Olympic Gold Medalist (4x Olympian,) and now President of Well Inspired Travels, Chris has gone "all in" on his strong beliefs around the "healing power of travel, and how it can take your personal and professional life to that next level." A family owned business, their agency caters to elite athletes, entertainers, C-level executives and business owners. It's been a ". . .passion project for my wife Lauren and I for many years." Chris discusses the catalyst behind the business, some key carry overs from athletics to business, how fitness, spa and other offerings continue to take on a new level of importance in the travel world, and more!

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Sal has been in the industry since 1979, first as a club owner and then in 1984 when he moved to selling equipment. "You have to put yourself in the position of the customer . . . you have to see what's happening in the field and need boots on the ground. You need to see what customers are doing!" he states. He recently returned from his first 6 day road trip post-COVID and brings good news! He gives his take on the current "temperature" of the industry, some positives that have resulted from the pandemic (adaptation to tech/virtual), and reports on trends emerging inside the clubs. In a notable positive development, many of his customers are raising their prices as "the race to the bottom doesn't do anybody any good." He chats about his excitement around the sale of Precor to Peloton, opines on where the industry is heading, and more! This timely, bullish podcast from an industry veteran is a must listen--especially now as things continue to open up!

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A former investment banker for almost 24 years with entrepreneurship in his DNA, Todd is the CEO of Title Boxing Club and Co-Founder of Box Union. He chats with Pete about his experiences going from banking into the entrepreneurial world of building a brick and mortar business from the ground up. On the parallels (and differences) between the two, he jokes, "Investment banking is an unbelievable training ground . . . we're not going deal to deal, but rather within the company, topic to topic so it's kind of similar. It works well with my A.D.D!" For anyone considering buying into a franchise, this episode in particular provides some fantastic takeaways and questions to ask.

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"We're going into these deals with the intent of partnering with Founders, that they're going to continue to be involved, and the last thing we want or need is for them to be surprised or disappointed with something along the way," states Rob Fioretti, Managing Director of Palladin Consumer Retail Partners.

Rob has been in the private equity space for more than 25 years and in this chat with Pete, he provides extremely valuable information on what Palladin looks for in companies as well as the benefits of partnering with institutional partners versus using personal capital. He and Pete shed important light on the "business" of raising capital, why a firm may say no, some "behind the scenes" thoughts on valuations, what questions to ask before deciding to partner with a venture capital or private equity firm, the return of the studio model, and more!

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"We do not have any tech available that's better than our ears and our mouths . . . we've spent 300,000 years becoming the best communicators this planet has ever seen using our voices and our ears," states Celeste Headlee, a journalist for over 20 years, author and TED Talk speaker whose video hit over 24 million views. "Email is not faster, is more prone to miscommunication, and makes people more prone to irritation . . . all of the assumptions we make to avoid actual conversations are just flat out wrong," she continues. Learn more about why it's not wise to just "trust your gut," the most effective ways to get members back after the pandemic, thoughts on Town Halls, surveys, the one unique phrase everyone from every culture responds to, how to become a more caring organization, examples of brands that were "rehabilitated," and more! This is a must listen to anyone in the HALO sector, especially now as it continues to open back up.

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"We do not have any tech available that's better than our ears and our mouths . . . we've spent 300,000 years becoming the best communicators this planet has ever seen using our voices and our ears," states Celeste Headlee, a journalist for over 20 years, author and TED Talk speaker whose video hit over 24 million views. "Email is not faster, is more prone to miscommunication, and makes people more prone to irritation . . . all of the assumptions we make to avoid actual conversations are just flat out wrong," she continues. Learn more about why it's not wise to just "trust your gut," the most effective ways to get members back after the pandemic, thoughts on Town Halls, surveys, the one unique phrase everyone from every culture responds to, how to become a more caring organization, examples of brands that were "rehabilitated," and more! This is a must listen to anyone in the HALO sector, especially now as it continues to open back up.

Click here to view transcript.

Eleiko is a Swedish based, 60+ year, family owned, seminal brand in the HALO sector founded in 1920's which has a massive following among strength athletes globally. "Quality has always been at the core of what we do," states Erik Blomberg, CEO. "We want to bring design into strength equipment, an area that's been lacking for many years . . . We're looking to create the ultimate lifting experience for people that feels as if it's part of your body." Pete chats with brothers Erik and Rickard on the increased use of technology for retail purchases (in-club and corporate wellness) forthcoming products, processes behind the development and rollout of new products ("speed is fun!"), where to allocate dollars inside a company, and more.

Eleiko is a Swedish based, 60+ year, family owned, seminal brand in the HALO sector founded in 1920's which has a massive following among strength athletes globally. "Quality has always been at the core of what we do," states Erik Blomberg, CEO. "We want to bring design into strength equipment, an area that's been lacking for many years . . . We're looking to create the ultimate lifting experience for people that feels as if it's part of your body." Pete chats with brothers Erik and Rickard on the increased use of technology for retail purchases (in-club and corporate wellness) forthcoming products, processes behind the development and rollout of new products ("speed is fun!"), where to allocate dollars inside a company, and more. 

Praveen Kashyap is the CEO of Smart Health Clubs and a self- professed, "Born inventor, engineer, and now entrepreneur!" He came to the USA in 1987, did his Ph.D in Computer Science, and among his many other achievements, led the Samsung digital R&D group for the very first smart TV. He partnered with Mike Alpert, COO, and a 20+ year industry veteran. "We took the vision Mike had of single platform that does everything and would be member facing . . . and that's what we built." They chat about the response of the industry when promised an "all in one" solution, how they were able to grow their customer base in the middle of COVID (30 locations to over 100, increased customer acquisition 19%, and revenue growth 34%.), how to prioritize updates to a SaaS product while balancing consumer demand, and more.

Praveen Kashyap is the CEO of Smart Health Clubs and a self- professed, "Born inventor, engineer, and now entrepreneur!" He came to the USA in 1987, did his Ph.D in Computer Science, and among his many other achievements, led the Samsung digital R&D group for the very first smart TV. He partnered with Mike Alpert, COO, and a 20+ year industry veteran. "We took the vision Mike had of single platform that does everything and would be member facing . . . and that's what we built." They chat about the response of the industry when promised an "all in one" solution, how they were able to grow their customer base in the middle of COVID (30 locations to over 100, increased customer acquisition 19%, and revenue growth 34%.), how to prioritize updates to a SaaS product while balancing consumer demand, and more.