Stretching Your Way Healthy with Stretch Zone

by Elizabeth Denham

About Stretch Zone

Different from stretching at home, Stretch Zone employs practitioner-assisted stretching. Programs are personalized for each client and routines are performed by trained practitioners. Using a patented strapping system and proprietary tables to position, stabilize and isolate muscles, certified staff members deliver a life-changing stretch experience to help you move efficiently and effortlessly.

Our very own Kristin Selmeczy and Ray Pillar interviewed Tony Zaccario recently to help viewers and readers learn all about this franchise system.

Most people don’t realize the impact that stretching can have on daily life.

Kristin Selmeczy: I think our audience needs to hear what a Stretch Zone. It sounds like an interesting concept, and it certainly grabbed my attention when I saw it.

Tony Zaccario: For us, it is no sweat exercise. We utilize a pad stabilization system and traffic system and combine that with our proprietary methodology and stretching methodology. We’re essentially able to give a more effective and efficient stretch while the client doesn’t have d too any work at all.

We do all the work, you get all the benefits. It really is that simple. It’s been quite a journey over the past few years. We are up to 200 plus stores and growing. We are at the pace of about two a week. We’re saying we’re staying busy, that’s for sure.

K.S. Well, I love yoga, but I watched a video on YouTube of one of your facilities and what it was like. So, you get on the table and they strap you down, right? The idea of somebody else doing all that work for me and me getting a better fit? Well, I was excited that I don’t have to break a sweat!

T.Z. It’s funny because people come in and either they don’t know how to stretch, which is which a large part of the problem, or they don’t know what to do properly. The straps act as an extra pair of hands so you are more comfortable on the table and get a more efficient stretch. So, there are those that don’t know how to stretch, and then there are another big majority of people that come in that do know how to stretch but are too lazy. That is me and a lot of other people, I see come in the door.

I think the most impactful thing our clients experience is the difference that stretching makes and the emphasis we place on the method we use. Most people don’t realize the impact that stretching can have on daily life.

Just from a basic goal, you are better able to put your socks on in the morning. From a more athletic standpoint, you will be able to feel better playing around the golf or playing with the grandkids. We can support a wide array of goals and create programs around those goals that are really impactful on the community we serve.

K.S. One thing that I found interesting as I was watching your video and doing some reading is that this is not necessarily just for athletes. It’s not necessarily just for injuries. Can you tell us a little bit about who the Stretch Zone is targeting in terms of clients?

T.Z. It is really for everyone, and I think everyone who first gets exposed to the brand immediately gets it. For today’s weekend warriors who are athletes, it is great for preventative and recovery.

But really, the group seeing the biggest difference is the 45 and up group for men and the 50 and up group for women. Also, we don’t want to pigeonhole ourselves as a fitness niche. We always try to align ourselves with a wellness product or lifestyle service.

K.S. Yes, it’s not just athletes. I’m on the other side of 45. And my generation wakes up in the morning and springs into action.

T.Z. One of the most rewarding things for me as a leader is that we always talk about the direct impact it makes on individual lives. Right. And so, Ray, I know you personally, and I think it definitely is something that you can utilize. Ultimately for the older generation, it really boils down to doing what you love longer. And being able to keep up the routine. Ray, you might love to play golf or hang out with your grandkids or going on walks. The direct impact of this is that you are spending more active time with your family members or maybe spending more time with your friends.

There’s so much purpose behind the service itself.,It is a great business model and the economics are great, but our employees can feel good when they go to bed knowing that they’re making a direct impact and a positive impact in their community.

K.S. Tony, this is very niche, right? It’s not a yoga studio. It’s not a fitness center. Where do you see guys fitting in and where would you position all of your locations?

T.Z. I would honestly say that we’re a lifestyle service and a lifestyle. that was one of the most challenging components. We understand that you have to educate the consumer not only about stretching, what Stretch Zone is and the difference it can make.

It’s challenging at first just because people want to label you as fitness. They want to label you as massage. It can create some challenges with business licenses because they want to label you as massage. Well, no, we’re not massage. You don’t want to be tagged as massage because then there’s other red tape associated with that. And so that that was always a challenge. But now that there’s been more popularity and we have been disrupting industry as a whole and I think that that it’s a little easier to help others understand that really this is more of a lifestyle play and really everyone can see the benefits.

K.S. So where do you find your people? Obviously, we’re all having staffing shortages as franchisees right now. Do you do some training for them? Tell me a little bit about that.

T.Z. Yeah. 100%. So there are labor challenges are across the board. I had a conversation with Stan Friedman the other day on our podcast and we were talking about this. And some challenges are obviously affecting some brands more than others. And for us, you know, we’ve always had two major differentiators as a brand: the partner traffic system and our Stretch Zone training program.

We actually were the only ones with a nationally recognized stretch training program which does a few things for us internally. It means that national insurers recognize it, which mitigate liability insurance for franchisees. It also allows the scalability that you want in any service. Whether you are getting stretched in Anchorage, Alaska or Fort Lauderdale or New York or wherever, you get the same quality of service.

So, to answer that part of your question, we are the certifying body. It makes finding labor that much easier because I don’t necessarily need you to have particular certification to come on board. If you pass our certification, you’re going to be deemed safe and okay to work with clients. Now, that being said, obviously you want to find the people with appropriate backgrounds - exercise physiology, personal trainers and sales verification, whatever might be.

K.S. You did mention unit level economics being very strong, and I noticed that some of your growth has been through multiunit expansions. So, what do you find? Are the average franchisees multi-unit owners?

T.Z. It’s really increasing by the day. When Jordan and I started the franchise model, we all thought about doing franchising the right way. And what that means is, we always want to keep a low barrier of entry for our franchisees and give the most powerful leverage where their purchasing power is. We incentivize more per unit growth rather than taking rebates or stuff like that. And so that being said, we’ve never been pushy about forcing people to do multi-unit. What we found over time is that people continually add more and more units to where now the average is probably about three per franchisee. But what we’ve seen especially in the past, is the life cycle of franchising. A lot of these bigger owners are starting to purchase more in their respective regions or buy some other existing units.

R.P. What type of individual you’re looking for to buy your franchise? And how much does it cost to get involved in it?

T.Z. So, the cost is going to range anywhere between $120,000 and $195,000. But also, everyone knows there’s nothing more important than vetting your franchisees and finding the right people that align with the culture of the organization and what you’re trying to build as an organization culturally.

Culture is everything in our organization, and that’s our priority. And so, you know, we’ve focus heavily on making sure potential franchisees align with our core values. We still do in-person discovery days, which is a little bit different.

We’re in a unique position because we have a low barrier of entry. And so, I would like to say, it’s not necessarily someone that has an incredible business acumen, it’s someone who’s passionate about the service, passionate about helping others and really, really, really understands the purpose behind stretching as a business model -- not just a dollar amount behind structure.

For more information on Stretch Zone, visit: https://www.stretchzone.com/