Name: Katie Kopka
Location: Deansgate, Manchester
Franchise: TRIB3
Date launched the franchise: 1 Nov 2021

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and what you were doing prior to buying a TRIB3 franchise?
I’ve worked in the learning and talent space for the last 16 years. I founded my own small boutique consultancy that works with organisations to help them unlock the potential and performance of their people. This is something I’m still doing and am lucky to work with some amazing brands and people.

Can you also tell us about the franchise you have bought?
TRIB3 is a global franchise with presence across eight different countries offering group HIIT classes - classes take place across three zones (Treadmills, Resistance and Intensity) for a full-body coach-led 45-minute session.

Why did you go down the franchise route? What made you choose the fitness industry? And why TRIB3?
Franchising was something I had been exploring with some of the most well-known franchise brands on and off over the past couple of years. For me franchising was about taking a huge leap and doing something radically different in terms of industry, whilst having the support of a known brand, with processes and learnings to mitigate some of the risk.

Fitness has always been part of my life from a very young age, and I also see the connection to ‘the day job’ in working with and developing people.  It was during a short career break I read an article in the Guardian about the rise of fitness boutiques in the UK which featured TRIB3. I picked up the phone and called Kevin and within a week I was over in Spain experiencing the brand. TRIB3’s values truly align to my own so how could I say no!

How did you raise the finance?
Patience, perseverance, and leaving no stone unturned.  Timing couldn’t have been worse or better!  This is a glass or a bottle of wine story… but to keep it short the initial funding got pulled when the pandemic hit. Banks weren’t lending – some were more transparent about this than others. TRIB3 were a huge support and used their network to open doors with lenders who bought into the business vision. The pandemic gave me more time to earn more cash and not taking no as an answer!

What training and support did you receive initially and ongoing?
An opportunity to enter into a management agreement with TRIB3 International surfaced itself.

It’s been great and a real impact in having their operational knowledge shared and have them part of the day-to-day store team from day one. I have weekly check-in’s with operations to make sure we are all aligned.

In terms of support I have received, it has been everything from finance, through to recruitment and property maintenance. Any support that’s needed I just need to pick up the phone.

How would you describe your day-to-day role as a franchisee
Coach, chief towel washer, handyperson, social media manager and financial controller and whatever other hat is needed that day!

Even with the management agreement I have made the choice to be as hands on as I can to support the early scale up phase of the store. My other commitments can mean some periods I’m physically there a lot and other times I can’t be.  Regardless, I am in daily contact with the team.

Provide information on challenges overcome as well as your key successes to date. Please also detail the steps you have taken to manage the business during the Covid-19 pandemic.
There have been many challenges along the way from finding a location (and a landlord) through to securing funding and the pandemic itself.

My biggest success is getting the doors open in 2021! I would place a joint first with finding the right management team for the store.  We are still very new and know there will be many more ‘win or learns’ along the way, but we celebrate what we can when we can.

Has becoming a franchisee changed your life?
Personally, I value networks and the people within them. Franchising has opened a whole new world and I have met some of the best people I ever will. The skills, knowledge and experience I’ve gained I have also applied into my other business and those are things you carry with you always.

How do you achieve a work-life balance?
Someone once said the reward for hard work is more work and it couldn’t be more true. I have an ambition that in the next 9-12 months I want to be somewhere in the process of opening store number 2 whilst also stepping back from the day to day to focus on the bigger picture, so I am keeping the momentum high.

I think it really depends on your personal situation, other commitments and goals.

If you have staff, how do you retain your best staff and keep morale high and productive; how do you incentivise your staff and recognise success?
It has been tough to attract talent in the current climate. Being a new brand to the area, at first people were wanting to wait to see what we are about. Having said that we opened with a full team. Now we are getting enquiries to join the team daily which is fantastic.

The key to keeping moral high is being transparent with your vision vs the reality of where you are now and build the picture of how we will all grow if we focus on the right things. Spending time on key metrics allows us to focus defining the right behaviours to nurture & reward.

We are still new but have regular team meetings, weekly objectives for all team members and spot cash prizes rewarding sales & service.

Can you tell us about any community involvement, including any local partnerships, incentives or charity work you are involved in?
One of our valued customers Max is raising money for the stroke association. It’s a charity very close to my heart having lost my father to a stroke last year. On Monday 31st Jan Max is attempting to complete all eight TRIB3 workouts that day.  That’s a huge task and we’re going to really get behind him on this.

Being in the centre of Deansgate is a really good vibe and we’re just starting to look at some exciting partnerships.

What is the most invaluable piece of advice you could give someone looking to buy their first franchise?
Be crystal clear on how much cash you have; how much you are prepared to invest and what the limit is. It’s so easy to get carried away in the excitement and completely blow the budget.

In your opinion, what makes a successful franchisee?
To be successful you have to come at it with a growth mindset. Worry less about looking smart and put more energy into learning. Also realise the franchisor is wanting to learn too. You are likely bringing a skillset/mindset/perspective that’s valuable to the overall success of the brand. Early on realise you are operating within and outside of three teams – your own team in my case the store team, your home team – whoever’s got your back like a partner, friends or family members and the franchisor team. Skills to navigate people and everything that comes with them are crucial.

What are your plans for the future?
Breakeven. Make profit, open another site, and repeat. The plan is to open more stores and take more of a back seat in the day-to-day operations.

If you had to do it all again, what would you do differently?
Apart from the brand, the location and the team - Everything!

I have learnt so much during the process that honestly outside of the above there wouldn’t be one thing/approach that I would keep the same. But that’s part of the journey.