Frank Beam is the owner of Fitness Authority, a fitness center located at 909 West Union Street, Morganton, North Carolina. Frank has a diverse background including 20 years as a Health Care Tech at Broughton Hospital in Morganton, a pastor of a church for 23 years (he is no longer a pastor), owner of a hunting dog business, and owner of a small gym over 20 years ago.
Frank bought this existing business at the end of July 2010. The previous owner was a friend of Frank’s and a local football legend. Frank was nearing retirement from Broughton Hospital and began thinking about entering the gym business. Frank’s previous experience as a gym owner had gone well but the timing was not right at that point in his life. Frank has been passionate about fitness, particularly powerlifting and bodybuilding, since he was a teenager. When presented with the opportunity to buy Fitness Authority this summer Frank, a former pastor and deeply religious individual, spent a great deal of time in prayer before making the decision to buy. After praying about the decision he felt the time was right and God was leading him to buy the gym.
In addition to the decision to buy the business, Frank’s religious convictions and experience as a pastor has affected his approach as an entrepreneur in other ways as well. Frank’s experience pastoring a church as well as the business classes he took for his ministry education has given him an understanding of managing finances. His experience as a pastor also allowed Frank to develop significant social skills which translate seamlessly into a focus on customer service at the gym. He has spent his first few months learning the names and faces of his members so they can be greeted by name when they arrive and when they leave.
This more personal approach is a change from previous owners of the gym. To help make further beneficial changes, one of Frank’s first actions as a new owner was to survey current and past members to find out what their perceptions were of the gym and changes they would like to see. As a result of these conversations with members Frank made a number of changes to the gym and its operation. A thorough cleaning of the gym and equipment resulted from complaints from the members regarding the cleanliness and appearance of the facility. Another common complaint was poor customer service. Frank related a scenario of a customer requesting a protein shake from an employee after a workout only to be told to wait until the employee finished his workout. The employee forgot the shake resulting in the member joining a different gym. Frank also recognized customer service as a problem which he believed was related to the previous owner using a number of part-time employees to operate the gym. Most of these employees were given free memberships in exchange for their work. These employees typically spent much of their on-duty time working out. Frank’s response as a new owner was to reduce the number of employees to two and to establish a rule that they were not to work out when on-duty. Attention to details such as making sure that there are paper towels in the locker room has also been a welcomed change
Another change that was important for Frank to make was to improve the reputation of the gym. The gym had been known, over the years, as a place where steroids could be purchased. These were strictly locker room deals but they were tolerated by previous owners. Frank is adamantly opposed to the use of steroids so he has taken steps to eliminate their use and availability from the gym. He also spends time with younger members to help educate them about the dangers of steroids. He is a valuable resource to all members on dietary and training topics as natural methods to improve health and fitness.
Frank main sources of revenue are memberships and supplements. The previous owner relied mainly on his reputation as a football legend to attract members. Frank has mainly focused on radio ads on a local station which run during Friday night football games. These ads have resulted in seven to eight new members every week. He has also personally contacted a number of previous members to let them know about the changes in the operation of the gym. His efforts have resulted in the return of several previous members. Frank also plans to use events, such as a bench press competition, to help generate excitement at the gym.
A typical day for Frank would find him in the gym by 7am (an employee opens up at 5am). He spends most of his time greeting members and assisting them with their workouts. He gives workout and nutrition advice and often makes the member a shake with protein and other supplements he sells. He closes the gym at 8pm during the week (the gym is open 7 days a week). His hours are somewhat variable depending on the scheduling of his employees.
Frank’s focus on customer service and attention to detail seem to be paying off. Membership is growing and members seem to be very happy with the new owner. Frank is passionate about his new business and is looking forward to years of successful gym ownership.

Frank Beam Owner of Fitness Authority

I conducted this interview with Wayne Kiser; owner of Kiser Builder’s, a Morganton based home building and land development company. Wayne has built over one hundred homes in the Burke County area over the last thirty-five years.

Rick: Tell me a little bit about how you started Kiser Builders.
Wayne: I worked for several years for Rutherford Electric and decided one day in the mid 70’s I needed a change. I built a spec house on a lot that I had purchased (while still employed at Rutherford Electric) and at the time I really didn’t know what I was doing. The first house compared to my houses today was not very good but I learned a lot. Money was tight in the early days of the business and it was very stressful.
Rick: What would you say was the biggest challenge in deciding to start your company and leave the security of Rutherford Electric?
Wayne: Well, I had a young family at the time—three young children. So I was concerned, and so was my wife, about the possibility of failure. If you have a family I believe that you have to consider the possibility that your business will fail and weigh the consequences of that failure. I’m very conservative, by nature, so I must have been very confident, at the time, that I would succeed. I also really didn’t have much money which made things difficult. I was in the business for 2-3 years when the economy really took a nose dive—the Jimmy Carter years. Interest rates were in the high teens which absolutely destroyed the housing market. I didn’t know if I could make it through those years but I did. That economy was something that I wasn’t prepared for but I learned from that experience to work leaner and to never overextend myself. For example, I avoid debt in my business whenever possible. Any debt that I incur is short-term.
Rick: Was the economy worse for you then or now?
Wayne: Much worse then. I’m at a different point in my business now. I’m older and near retirement so I don’t get as concerned now. The interest rates are so much lower now that even with the rest of the economic difficulties I can still sell houses. If the rates rise up to the late 70’s levels there would be no housing market in my area at all.
Rick: How has your past business experiences influenced the way you run your company today? Wayne: I’ve seen how bad things can get so I don’t overextend myself by having to many projects going at the same time. It may cost me some money from time to time. For example, I’ve passed up some great deals on various properties because of other investments that I have made. Some other builders and developers will jump at anything that looks good and many of them have experienced some severe difficulties in this latest downturn. I’ve developed the patience to make good decisions. I’ve also learned to build houses that I know will sell in my market. I sell a lot of houses to school teachers and other state employees that have relatively stable incomes. I also do not hire much of a workforce. I used too by no more.
Rick: What are the most employees that have worked for you at any point in time?
Wayne: I had four employees at one point but the responsibilities and the cost were not worth it. Also in my industry it’s really hard to find and keep good help. When work slowed down they would leave. When it got too busy they would leave once they had enough money to be comfortable for a couple of weeks. My best employee learned enough working for me to go out on his own.
Rick: How many employees do you have now?
Wayne: Just one, actually he’s now more of a partner, my son Pat.
Rick: How long has Pat worked with you?
Wayne: For around 25 years. He started working for me in the summers but after he graduated from high school he’s been fulltime. Eventually it will be Pat’s company.

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