State of the Union: Insights from Top Fitness Leaders

December 7, 2018

Fitness leaders recap 2018 and make predictions for the year ahead.

Greta Wagner, Executive Director & EVP, Chelsea Piers Connecticut

What are you proud to have accomplished this year? We did an extensive restructuring of our senior and coaching leadership team over the past 12 months. It was a major undertaking and a stress point for both the business and for me. We’ve stabilized, and I feel good about the long-term strategy, direction of the organization and the people who will help us reach our long-term goals. We have incredible physical plants, but it’s our people who bring our mission to life.

What lessons did you learn in 2018? The landscape of our country and industry is changing, but it’s important to not lose touch with your principle values and the reason we all do what we do — help people lead healthy, productive and prosperous lives which enables them to contribute positively to their communities

What are your company’s goals for 2019? We will continue to expand our brand, Chelsea Piers Fitness. Our first location opened this past June in Brooklyn and we re-branded The Sports Center in our Manhattan location as Chelsea Piers Fitness. Additional locations in the Tri-state area are being surveyed. We will also continue to reinvest in our existing locations and fine-tune, update and focus on our member engagement initiatives.

What trends do you expect will be paramount in the industry in 2019? I’ll be keeping an eye on technology and the new players in our market. Online platforms, virtual training, available apps, wearables and artificial intelligence will continue as a prominent discussion topic. Real-world vetting of the products and services is important; technology for just the sake of having the latest and greatest isn’t worth much. Having a clear understanding and the right people involved in the process of exploring is critical to instituting a new platform or service.