Remix Fitness During COVID-19

Remix Fitness in the Philadelphia suburb of Horsham, PA, started in the homes of its two co-founders Mary Cate Wampler and Tricia Goodman—so Wampler and Goodman aren’t making too big of a deal of bringing the studio back home due to COVID-19 restrictions.

“As our business has evolved, it's gone from teaching out of our basements and our front lawns to what we have now,” Wampler said. “I think there's a reason all of these things happen.”

“It is taking us back to before we started,” Goodman added. “Of course, we're not together, but it's similar.”

Remix made the choice to teach online early. Goodman’s son’s school was one of the first in Pennsylvania to switch to online instruction, and she realized that there was an opportunity for the studio to make the switch, as well.

“I thought it was a great way for our members to interact,” Goodman said. “Before all this happened, though, we always had a members-only portal with videos and other content. If they went on vacation or couldn't make a class, they could still get their ‘Remix on.’”

In normal times, Remix offers a variety of fitness classes in one studio, from indoor cycling to boxing and barre to yoga. When the time came to move classes to online instruction, Wampler and Goodman had to choose which classes to continue to offer and when they should be held.

“We opened it up as a question on Instagram, asking what times work best for everyone,” Goodman said. “Right now, we generally have classes in the early morning, mid-morning, and at night. And then we can always add as needed.”

“If we can create some sort of normalcy and continue our routines through this and be that support system our customers need... that's what we want,” Wampler said. “And we need it for ourselves, too.”

What Goodman and Wampler quickly realized, though, was there was more opportunity with online classes than just looking at their current members. They began recording short workouts on Instagram TV for the public to try for free, created a drop-in price for non-members to try one of their workouts, reached out to local media outlets to get coverage, and created a special class called Remix Recess for the kids who were home from school.

“If we can create some sort of normalcy and continue our routines through this and be that support system our customers need... that's what we want,” Wampler said. “And we need it for ourselves, too.”

Their efforts have proven successful. Despite the limitations brought by COVID-19, Remix Fitness has acquired new members and built their brand through social media and Philadelphia press, and most importantly, kept revenue incoming.

“I'm a little scrappy,” Wampler said. “I think there's nothing to lose if we can keep the momentum going and try to make the best out of this situation. That's really how this all came about.”