As the mornings get colder and the afternoon’s grow darker, it takes more effort to get out of the house and exercise. I’m always amazed at the level of energy fitness professional’s can bring to group training at those early morning sessions – pair that ability to appear sprightly with someone who is running their own business and raising a young family, and you’ve got a truly remarkable human! I got to meet some of these unicorns recently – the owners of Fitstop Wollongong.

The friendly fitstop Wollongong family

Sometimes, just dragging your backside through the doors of the gym is a huge achievement in itself, regardless of what happens from there onwards. I cringe when I see group fitness instructors go all “drill sergeant” on clients and make them pump out a set of burpees for showing up a few minutes late. Everyone is carrying a load around, whether it’s the sleeplessness of having young children, caring for a sick family members, work stressors, injuries, or the cost of living woes. The gym should be a place where you get both physically and mentally stronger – a place where you feel supported, encouraged, and celebrated… especially in group exercise environments. Thankfully, here’s a place where you’ll find just that.

When Mitch and Georgie decided to open their own Fitstop franchise, they took the bold leap of moving to a new city, where they didn’t know anyone, with their young family. In only twelve months, they’ve been able to grow a friendly fitness tribe that is thriving and supportive.

Starting out in the fitness industry

No strangers to the fitness industry, the pair had already created a successful fitness business on the Central Coast. Mitch opened up a boot camp in his early twenties, which was so popular that in 2017, he ended up opening a space that became a boutique fitness studio in Gosford. He and Georgie were dating at the time and she came on board as an employee. Georgie used her expertise in nutrition to assist clients, as well as handling admin and customer experience aspects of the business. It was a perfect pairing, with Mitch as the fitness coach, and Georgie as the nutrition coach. As their relationship, and the business grew into a more established partnership, their studio developed a niche community of mums with school aged kids. “They were so much fun, and we still keep in touch with them via socials”, says Georgie.

Mitch decided to sell the business in 2019, right before the pandemic hit, and continued working as a PT and coach, but had wanted to open another studio. For obvious reasons, they couple waited to see what the post-covid world would look like, before deciding it was time to start another business venture.

Choosing Fitstop as a franchise owner

There are so many different ‘flavours” of exercise out there that it’s a great time to be alive as someone who wants to work out, because the choice is endless. When it comes to being a franchise operator though, how does one decide the best ‘fit’ as a fitness business?

“We did our research when it came to what kind of gym we wanted to open,” says Georgie. “We wanted to do functional group classes, and we decided on a franchise because of the marketing, branding and 1:1 support we would receive. Fitstop was the best fit based on the type of training we believe in and like to do ourselves! We like that it includes enough high intensity training to support cardiovascular health. We don’t believe you need to train at a high intensity for an hour every single day – the Fitstop program includes the perfect amount. It also incorporates heavier weights which we both love, so that was non-negotiable.”

Fitstop has been around for a while – the first Fitstop launched in a Brisbane shed back in 2013. By 2020, the owners of Fitstop had expanded to 22 franchised locations. In a stroke of good timing, Fitstop had just launched a workout app as the country went into lockdown, which was well received by members.

Long story short, Fitstop emerged out of the other side of the pandemic as a fitness force to be reckoned with and has gone from strength to strength since. The recipe obviously works, because Fitstop has successfully expanded into the US, off the back of it’s continued growth here in Australia.

Who are the Fitstop Wollongong Fitness Community?

Fitstop welcomes adults of all ages and fitness levels, but what about the gang in Wollongong? “We have communities within the wider Fitstop Wollongong community, and often people find their crew in the regular class time that works for them,” says Georgie.

“If I try to put our community into one niche, I really struggle because we have all different ages and demographics who love Fitstop! We call our target audience the “everyday athlete” – someone who simply wants to stay fit, strong and healthy, and they want to show up as their best self to their jobs, families and friends. They are all people who don’t feel motivation or enjoyment from training alone… we have a very social bunch!”

A successful start for fitstop wollongong

While Fitstop as a brand is achieving success across the globe, how has this Wollongong studio been received during its’ first twelve months? It’s fair to say that the Illawarra community are enjoying the energy at Fitstop Wollongong, seeing as the business was recently named as a finalist in the 2024 Local Business Awards. Winners will be announced at the awards night on July 17th, but to gain this level of recognition already is a testament to Georgie, Mitch and their team.

“A lot of people worry that group classes aren’t for them because they don’t know the movements yet or they don’t feel fit enough”, says Georgie. “We hear those people and offer exactly what they need to get started and feel really comfortable in group classes. We LOVE seeing the look on our community’s faces when they achieve something new, lift heavier weights than they ever have before, or reach a milestone! This is why we do what we do. If you’re unsure, the best thing to do is get in touch with us and we can have a chat!”

From 17th – 22nd June 2024, Fitstop Wollongong are holding Open Week, which means anyone can train for FREE. All you need to do is download the Fitstop app and the sessions are all open to book in. It’s not too late to book in!

Georgie says, “Our Saturday morning Sweat session will be a big one, it’s the final day of our 12 week block for our members, and we are putting on a fun morning to celebrate the end of Open Week as well! BBQ brekky, lucky door prizes, we have our local business partnerships involved, and discounts and extra goodies for new members! It’ll be a vibe!”

To get on board and try Fitstop for yourself, whether it’s during Open Week or not, you can reach out to the team: