With a new round of gym re-openings going into effect this week, Orangetheory Fitness is ready to welcome back clients eager to restart their workout routines.
The chain expects to have 1,000 studios open by the end of this week and is hoping to get all 1,400 global locations back to business in the next few months, said Dave Long, the brand's CEO and co-founder.
While the boutique fitness brand has offered free at-home workouts to help members exercise throughout the pandemic, the company is now making a number of changes to promote a safe return to the class-based studio. "Everyone is pre-booking a set schedule. We know who's coming in and we've reduced the capacity by at least 50 percent," said Long. "Between each class we're doing a very deep clean in the studios."
Besides cleaning, the CEO said the fitness studio is also promoting mask-wearing. "We encourage masks wherever the local regulations require it -- we do have all the members wearing masks in those spots. And then globally our staff is always wearing a mask from top to bottom."
Even with the safety restrictions, the CEO says clients are eager to get back to working out and have not resisted these policy changes.
Despite the new safety restrictions, Long said his team is finding pent up demand from clients who want to be part of a community like Orangetheory. "This ha[d] become the new happy hour in a lot of areas pre-COVID... and we believe that will come back even stronger."
So far, the studios that have opened are doing well, said Long, but the pandemic has clearly thrown a wrench in the company's normal schedule.
"We're certainly not set up as a business to be running at half capacity for months or years, but our franchisees and our members have really flexed to figure out how to make this work in the short-term. We've also stood up classes outside of the studio, Orangetheory Outdoors," said Long, noting those classes are held by almost 300 studios globally.
The brand has also found success with its at-home offerings. "We didn't realize how much that would take off so we've done over 16 million workouts with that product."
The at-home option rounded out the company's fitness offerings so members can go to a studio, workout online, or even head outdoors. While the company has always wanted to promote online workouts, the pandemic has helped to speed up this process and Long believes the new digital offerings will stay popular post-pandemic.
Long emphasized the importance of keeping up with fitness regimens even when people are stuck at home. "We stood up Orangetheory At Home so that we could keep members in a routine," he said. "We know that with wellness and with mindset the routine is maybe one of the most important things."
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
Starbucks’ AI barista aims to speed service and improve experience. Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune Business Editor, explains its impact on workers and customers.
