FEATURE STORY
We’d like to share what Dusty Mason and his mom,
Sharon, from Gold’s Gym North Carolina have to
say about Ben:
“Ben’s parents were actually Clemson fans with Dusty
and Lauren before his coming on board with us. He and
his family were also Albemarle gym members. I was
General Manager at Albemarle at the time and his dad
knew we were looking for a Front Desk Assistant /
Opener. He popped his head in my office and asked
if we’d be interested in “a guy” at the front desk.
Reluctantly, I asked Dusty his thoughts on hiring our
first “guy” FDA and he immediately said, “Yes, I’d love
to have him!” He was hired with only a brief interview
and we’ve never looked back on that decision. Ben
immediately proved his worth by taking an active role,
not only in all areas of the Albemarle gym but eventually
he became an integral part of our other six gyms.
His relationship with Dusty, Lauren, and their two
children has grown as well. They get together
often and go to Clemson games during football
season. Ben remarks that “I would much rather
spend time with the two kids than Dusty, please
put that in there.”
The club suffered significant damage when the
shopping center where it is located flooded in
September 2018. Dusty renovated the entire
club. They put down field turf for youth training,
new flooring throughout and new cardio. It was
a 6-month project and is now an entirely different
gym. “I could not have bought the gym at a better
time. I have been given such an incredible state-
of-the-art club,” shared Ben.
What Ben would like to see is the entire involvement
and engagement of employees and members in
the surrounding communities to make it better.
“Every day we want to be here for our members,”
says Ben. “We want to consistently be making
improvements from the members’ perspective.”
Ben has been able to experience a lot of things
through all of the opportunities and decisions that
Dusty has exposed him to. He now has a good feel
for the brand and feels like he has already been in
the franchisee role for a while. He feels that the
franchisees have been a big impact, which has
been very positive for the brand as a whole. They
are all in and the synergy is good.
Ben is very excited about coming to the Gold’s Gym
Convention this year as a franchisee and looks
forward to his first Owners’ Conference this fall.
Ben became our Operations Manager after about two
years as Front Desk Assistant. In truth he was more of
a General Manager well before his formal promotion.
He had served as GM for approximately four years.
Ben purchasing the gym was the next natural transition.
His staff is totally loyal to him. He rarely has turnover,
which speaks volumes as to his leadership. Ben is a
community leader and having him at the helm of our
flagship gym ensures the continued success of Gold’s
Gym Albemarle.”
Sharon Mason, VP of Operations
Gold’s Gym North Carolina
“Selling the first club I ever owned was a very difficult
decision for me. A decision that I quite honestly never
thought that I would make. I started planning this club
when I was 22 years old. It was the absolute foundation
for the business growth and success that me and my
family have been blessed to have. However, Ben was the
perfect person to pass the club on to. Ben has been with
me and Gold’s Gym for over 9 years. In that time, he has
become a strong leader who is respected by his peers
and other business owners. As I spent less time in that
location developing other locations and businesses, Ben
stepped right in and became the new face and person-
ality of the club. I always knew that Ben’s dream was to
own his own business, and to pass this club to him feels
more like a family member is the new owner. If I could
sum up Ben in one sentence, it would probably be to say
he is one of the most kind, genuine, trustworthy, intelligent,
high integrity guys that you will ever meet. Ben also has
a great and supportive family around him. We spend
our fall weekends with our families at Clemson football
games and he helps me coach my son’s basketball and
football teams even though he doesn’t have a son that
plays. Most importantly, Ben has become a very close
friend to my entire family, a mentor to my son, and one
of my best friends. I couldn’t be happier and more proud
of who Ben has become over these years and what this
new opportunity for him will lead to.”
Dusty Mason, Owner
Gold’s Gym North Carolina
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