U N D E R
Finding the right franchise is vitally important , says Segura , who has nothing but praise for the 40-year-old educational and fitness gym for children and parents . In college , when she met with the owner at the Baton Rouge gym about a job , she was stunned . “ I couldn ’ t believe what I was seeing . It combined all my gymnastics , cheerleading , and movement studies in one place . It was perfect for me !”
Segura says she ’ s been lucky to have had the complete support of her parents throughout the venture and still counts on her mom to give her the occasional tough pep talk . After her wedding next month , Segura says she ’ ll get back to work on adding a third location . For now , she ’ s staying steady and maintaining her company ’ s signature family environment .
Alex Bingham , COO of The Little
Gym , says Segura is a young franchisee to watch . “ Chelsea is one of our most passionate and driven franchisees . Her success derives from her dedication to making the lives of children and families in her community better , which aligns extremely well with The Little Gym ’ s overall mission ,” he says . “ We are so proud of Chelsea ’ s growth , and look forward to her continued success in our system .”
How did you get into franchising at such a young age ? I worked at The Little Gym of Baton Rouge throughout college at Louisiana State University , and I just knew this franchise concept was made for me . I wanted to bring it to my community at home .
Was becoming a franchise something you ’ d planned on ? It was not . I knew I wanted to be a business owner , and I could not imagine the challenges of doing it all on my own from scratch . I am very thankful for the support and rapport that TLG provides .
Did you have a mentor or inspiration for getting into franchising ? My mom has always been a small-business owner and entrepreneurial spirit . I have always admired this in her . I was lucky enough to have TLG fall into my life .
What jobs , skills , and experience have helped you operate a franchise business ? I would say my outgoing personality and big heart .
Annual revenue : Approx . $ 670,000 ( both locations ). 2017 goals : $ 375,000 at each location .
Growth meter : How do you measure your growth ? Revenue is an obvious sign of growth . However , enrollment plays a major role as well . We like to see a 10 percent growth in revenue and enrollment each month compared with the previous year .
Vision meter : Where do you want to be in 5 years ? 10 years ? I would like each location to be a 500-child , $ 500,000 gym within 5 years . In 10 years , I hope to step back a bit more from teaching to focus all my efforts on operations .
How is the economy in your region affecting you , your employees , your customers ? The past two years have been tough for South Louisiana . This part of the state is fi lled with oilfi eld workers , and with the oilfi eld being down and many people jobless , we have seen a rather large drop in enrollment , especially at our Lafayette location . Covington is experiencing a similar economy , though not as severe .
Are you experiencing economic growth in your market ? We started out 2017 very strong and are ahead at both locations compared with last year . People around here seem to be hopeful that the economy is on its way back up .
How do changes in the economy affect the way you do business ? We are much more conservative than we have ever been . We cut back on some small things like offering free t-shirts and providing balloons at birthday parties . We use less-expensive options for party goods . We also had to discount the program for a certain period of time , which is not something we
LIFE UNDER 30
BOTTOM LINE
I ’ m a people person , and adore the families that walk through my gyms ’ doors . These traits have allowed me to grow not only in my professional life , but also in the franchise world . I want to help the families we serve , the communities in which I belong , and other franchisees in The Little Gym system .
What kinds of obstacles did you face in franchising at such a young age ? Defi nitely a lack of experience in the business world . However , with the TLG training they were able to walk me through every step .
How would you describe your generation ? I think the people of our generation have a big heart and care about the well-being of other people . I believe that we also value ourselves and the importance of a life / work balance . Our generation is all about the experience : we want to enjoy life and be successful in our careers .
Do you see franchising as a stepping stone or a career for you ? Career — it was made just for me .
do too often .
How do you forecast for your business ? We shoot to grow 10 percent each month and each year , looking at enrollment and revenue .
Experience with private equity , local banks , national banks , other institutions ? Why / why not ? We are from a small town and started with our local bank , which ended up being purchased by a national bank . The technology upgrade through that acquisition has been great .
What are you doing to take care of your employees ? We like to provide bonus opportunities each month by setting and achieving goals . We often cook for our team and provide team outings to let loose and bond . We create an inclusive family environment . It ’ s something that we are very proud of .
How are you handling rising employee costs ( payroll , minimum wage , healthcare , etc .)? We ’ ve always been super-conservative , but we continue to cut back in little ways . Keeping good employees is a blessing , but it also means they need raises every year . We have to make that a priority because we want to keep them for as long as we can .
How do you reward / recognize top-performing employees ? During key enrollment periods we have competitions and cash prize incentives . We try to do things year-round that let our staff know how much we appreciate them . We do gumbo for the annual Christmas party , and every May we have a crawfi sh boil where everyone gets a certifi cate of service and a personalized memento to make them feel special .
What kind of exit strategy do you have in place ? I ’ m too young to think much about it at this point !
40 MULTI-UNIT FRANCHISEE ISSUE II , 2017