With gyms and yoga and cycling studios unable to host full in-person classes during 2020 and into 2021, many fitness brands have been forced to pivot to virtual models. And one Chicago company found that its online pivot not only kept it afloat during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, but also allowed it to grow.
GiGi Tonye Arts & Fitness, founded in 2017, was offering in-person workout, Zumba and yoga classes to its members before the pandemic. But unlike other fitness brands, GiGi Tonye Arts & Fitness met its members where they were, as opposed to having them come into a studio. Calling itself a "mobile studio," sometimes that meant hosting classes at an office. Other times, it meant at a park or at someone's home.
“We provide creative wellness services through dance and fitness,” said founder Garley ‘GiGi Tonye’ Briggs. “The unique approach was the mobility of it. Instead of them having to travel to us for classes, we would either travel to their home, or location of preference.”
But when the Covid-19 pandemic hit last year, Briggs had to quickly adopt a virtual model. That meant setting up a Zoom account and teaching classes remotely.
The virtual model was an adjustment, Briggs said, but added that it has helped GiGi Tonye Arts & Fitness reach an even bigger audience. By offering virtual classes, the company has been able to offer classes to people outside of Chicago.
Revenue increased 50% from the year prior and the staff more than doubled from seven to 15, Briggs said. GiGi Tonye Arts & Fitness now counts the YMCA of Metro Chicago and Blue Cross Blue Shield among its clients.
The growth GiGi Tonye Arts & Fitness has seen is an anomaly in the fitness industry, which has largely been damaged by the pandemic. The industry has lost more than $15 billion in revenue and cut 480,000 jobs since the pandemic began, according to Bloomberg.
GiGi Tonye Arts & Fitness offers classes for a range of people, including kids and seniors. Besides fitness classes, the company also provides salsa and meditation classes.
Looking ahead, Briggs said she wants to continue offering digital classes even after the pandemic is over. With help of the University of Chicago’s Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Briggs is working to develop a custom app for GiGi Tonye Arts & Fitness that she envisions being able to license to other fitness brands that are also looking for ways to digitize their offerings.
