- Words by tessVan Straaten Photography by Don Denton

As an athlete who played college football and some professional football and who has coached lots of kids鈥� sports, president and CEO Chris Smith is used to taking hits and overcoming setbacks. But the COVID-19 pandemic definitely put him to the test.

鈥淭his has been the most challenging business environment I think any of us have ever seen,鈥� says the 47-year-old father of five.

Chris had a pretty good sense of what he was getting into when he decided to buy the company, after Steve Nash Fitness World鈥攐f which he was also president and CEO鈥攆iled for creditor protection in the early days of the pandemic.

鈥淚 had the unfortunate task of terminating thousands of employees in a matter of seven days, which is terrible and one of the worst things I鈥檝e ever had to do,鈥� Chris says. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if I needed redemption, but I really felt I needed to get this business back up on its feet, and I just had a strong feeling that if I didn鈥檛 find a way to open the business with a new partner, nobody else would take on that risk. That would have just left me with unfinished business and a sick feeling in my stomach.鈥�

But as the public head of the company, Chris faced a lot of backlash from people who didn鈥檛 understand what had happened.

鈥淲e were one of the first businesses in the pandemic to publicly face challenges and people were looking for someone to blame,鈥� Chris says. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 own the business, I wasn鈥檛 an owner, but what do you do during the pandemic if someone gives you lemons? You make lemonade and in this case, I got dump trucks full of lemons.鈥�

Chris was convinced the company could re-emerge stronger, bigger and better than before. After talking to thousands of Fitness World members, he and others worked to change everything about the business, from the pricing model to the membership agreement.

鈥淚t was a consumer-driven strategy,鈥� Chris explains. 鈥淲e went and changed everything鈥攍iterally everything鈥攁nd I鈥檓 really proud of that. We鈥檝e gotten better and we鈥檝e grown the business every single month.鈥�

Chris鈥檚 passion for exercise and its benefits began in his youth. His divorced parents didn鈥檛 have much money, and playing sports was his salvation.

鈥淟ifting weights, exercise and wellness changed my life,鈥� Chris says. 鈥淭hey provided for me like nothing else could.鈥�

He鈥檚 now spent his entire career鈥攃lose to 27 years鈥攊n the fitness industry, after getting into the business as a personal trainer.

鈥淚 stayed in it because I found something that I love that can truly make people better and something that makes a difference,鈥� says Chris. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what I love鈥攎aking a difference for others. There鈥檚 nothing else I鈥檇 want to do with my life.鈥�

In mid-December, the BC government once again announced that all gyms would have to close down the next day, for at least a month, due to rising COVID case counts fuelled by the highly-transmissible Omicron variant.

鈥淲e were shocked, along with the rest of the health and wellness industry,鈥� Chris says. 鈥淭he information that鈥檚 available is overwhelmingly supportive of the fact that gyms, fitness centres, and health and wellness facilities should be open. Frankly, you鈥檙e in a lot more danger going to a grocery store than a gym.鈥�

Chris was once again faced with laying off staff鈥攖his time, more than 500 of Fitness World鈥檚 650 employees. And he struggled with how to explain the government mandate to their 75,000 members across 15 locations when he says there鈥檚 been no data to support gym closures.

鈥淚 think there鈥檚 definitely a lack of understanding around health and wellness, and the role exercise plays in not just physical health, but mental health,鈥� Chris says. 鈥淥f all the things that are essential, health and wellness are as essential as it gets. The number one thing you can do to keep yourself healthy overall is to exercise three times a week.鈥�

But despite the setback of a second COVID-19 closure, Chris says he鈥檚 still feeling pretty bullish.

鈥淚鈥檝e been operating as a frugal chef for a long time now, and making sound decisions for the business from day one, expecting the unexpected, and always kind of preparing for those worst-case scenarios,鈥� he says. 鈥淎fter the first shutdown, we made strategic decisions to operate the business in a different way and while it鈥檚 been very challenging, there have been lots of curve balls thrown at different periods of time, so I鈥檓 fortunate to be surrounded by great people. My team is able to react to these situations and find ways to turn negatives into positives.鈥�

Chris says the biggest lesson he鈥檚 learned over the years is around attitude and the kind of mindset you choose to have.

鈥淥ne of the phrases I live by is, 鈥榶our attitude determines your altitude,鈥欌�� he says. 鈥淭here have been a lot of times I could have personally given up, and a lot of times where people on my team could have given up, and the consequences of that giving up would have been bad for a lot of people. What I鈥檝e learned through all of this is you have to keep yourself centred, and centred in a place of positivity, because if you don鈥檛鈥攅specially as a leader of a business鈥攊t鈥檚 a slippery slope you don鈥檛 want to find yourself on.鈥�

As for whether he鈥檚 regretted buying a business during a pandemic, it should come as no surprise Chris has another sports saying for that.

鈥淣o risk it, no biscuit.鈥�

Story courtesy of , a Black Press Media publication
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