Cycle Bar: Raising the handlebars

Bill Pryor had a passion for physical fitness and loved to play basketball. Unfortunately, a knee injury put a definite crimp in his on-court style and prompted him to rechannel his athletic energies. He turned to indoor cycling but found that he was no fan of the big-box-gym programs he saw. They were popular, to be sure, and they offered a great workout. But the quality of the instruction left much to be desired, Pryor thought, as did the equipment and the overall gym-facility environment. Pryor, a magazine executive at the time, decided to go into partnership with his sister, Alex Klemmer, who was then a stay-at-home mother, to launch an indoor-cycling business of their own. In 2005 they opened one of the first independent cycling studios in the country, in the Boston suburb of Wellesley, Mass. In the years since, Pryor and Klemmer have dedicated themselves to the perfection of the high--energy cycling concept in general, and to the development of their CycleBar chain in particular.

CycleBar facilities aim for a multisensory experience by means of light-and-sound systems, motivational videos and individual performance data, according to Heather Harris, president of Cincinnati-based CycleBar. There is no membership fee — individual classes cost about $20 each, with student and package discounts available. “The concierge-level service and exhilarating experience goes far beyond a great cardio-fitness workout and is all-inclusive to maintain a luxurious experience for every customer in a pay-per-class model,” Harris said. 

Each facility typically employs 10 instructors, each of whom may have charge of as many as 50 riders. Indeed, management prefers high ratios: The more riders within the space, Harris says, the greater the energy level in the class. “It creates a vibe that is so electric, it motivates our riders to push themselves a little further each class,” she said. “CycleBar remains committed to the three original ingredients for a successful indoor cycling experience: great instructors, great music and a great environment.” Management also likes for the riders to feel as though they are, so to speak, “off the grid,” says Harris. This means no cell phones or other distractions — only the bike, the rider, the instructor and the music. “Riders get addicted to the energy we bring to each class, and before they know it, they are coming in telling us that they have lost five, 10, 20 pounds,” Harris said. “The effective workout is what ultimately keeps riders coming back.”

CycleBar operates three company-owned units: the first is the unit in Wellesley; the second is in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Cincinnati; and the third is in Royal Oak, in Michigan’s Oakland County. The company began selling franchises in January, of which it has since sold about 130. “We are thrilled with the positive response from interested franchise partners to help expand the brand into more than 30 markets,” Harris said. “Our overarching goal is to have 100 studios open to riders by December 31, 2016, which will include franchise and corporate locations.” Still, the majority will be franchised, she says. Plans are to have five corporately owned facilities by the end of next year, and 20 by 2018. The next company-owned gym is scheduled to open next year, in Columbus, Ohio. 

CycleBar prefers spaces of roughly 3,000 square feet, Harris says, and ideally the studios should be located in high-end trade areas with lots of retailers that cater to women. “CycleBar thrives in lifestyle centers — premium shopping centers right on the corner of busy and busy,” she said. “We like to be located on the street level, alongside prime grocery centers and restaurants or big-box and little-box fashion retailers focused on the female audience. The CycleBar brand brings females 25 to 54 with discretionary income to our studios. We will filter this demographic to our co-tenants, bringing eyeballs multiple times a week to the shopping centers that will be looking at our co-tenants as well.”

The company seeks to pick from a professionally diverse and sophisticated grouping of community-minded franchisees with a passion for the field, so that it can keep growing in such major markets as Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, New York City and Philadelphia. “We like for our potential franchisees to be current franchise owners, C-level executives, lawyers and doctors, professional athletes or existing entrepreneurs,” Harris said.

The 3,000-square-foot flagship in Casto’s 588,000-square-foot Rookwood Commons, in Cincinnati, boasts such co-tenants as Bed Bath & Beyond, P.F. Chang’s, REI and Whole Foods. “The CycleBar customer profile is upscale female, and locational preferences include lifestyle centers, power strip centers with a strong fashion presence, and high-end or specialty grocery-anchored centers,” said David Nicolson, president of Weitzman Group’s San Antonio office. (Weitzman Group is CycleBar’s national broker.) “Centers where CycleBar locates will benefit from CycleBar’s strong repeat patronage by high-income shoppers with a tendency for cross-shopping within the center for other goods and services in a convenient manner.”

For leasing, contact Jason Rush, director of real estate and construction management, at jason.rush@cyclebar.com.