SUCCESS STORY

Brooklyn Bridge Bootcamp

Industry: Fitness

Interviewed: Ariane Hundt, Founder

Location: Manhattan

Open since: May 2008

Using MINDBODY since: April 2008

Services offered: Outdoor and indoor bootcamp programs, nutrition workshops, personal training

Website: www. brooklynbridgebootcamp.com

Ariane Hundt, Founder

Since May 2008, the Brooklyn Bridge Bootcamp has been offering “New York’s toughest workout” in an hour-long, 2.2 mile workout that combines both cardio and strength training in the shadows of the Manhattan skyline. Over 1,000 people, ranging from busy moms to executives from age 15 to 69, have experienced the workout. Creator Ariane Hundt was inspired to create her unique, interval-based workout while on the subway staring at a picture of the iconic bridge and the Manhattan skyline.

Ariane also offers a month-long Slim & Strong program that is designed to deliver quick, measurable results. It combines indoor and outdoor workouts, nutrition education and before/after measurements, delivered to a larger group of clients than her outdoor bootcamps.

We spoke with Ariane about how MINDBODY helps her manage all the varying components of her business.

MINDBODY: What is your favorite aspect of managing your business?

Ariane Hundt: I love helping people create changes that last a lifetime. I enjoy teaching my clients how the body works, how it responds to food, and how new behaviors can create a healthy, fit, lean body. And I love seeing not just the physical changes, but the mental changes. For example, I have a client who can now get on an airplane without feeling anxious, whereas before she had to take medication. I love that I get to see my clients gain confidence.

MB: How long have you been using MINDBODY to run your bootcamps?

Ariane: Since April 2008. I started using MINDBODY before I opened my business. It’s been amazingly helpful in cutting down administrative work like signing people up, handling payments, processing refunds, and cancelling classes. I would be spending countless hours on the phone if I didn’t have MINDBODY. It’s such a great tool. And it’s really inexpensive, especially considering the amount of hours that it saves!

MB: We love hearing that! What made you choose MINDBODY?

Ariane: I thought it was a great, independent way for my clients to schedule their own fitness activities. I’d actually used MINDBODY before, but as a consumer. I had used it to sign up for yoga and fitness classes, and I thought it was a really unique way of scheduling myself and handling my payments online. And, as a customer, being able to see how many sessions I’d paid for, how many I had left, and looking at my own schedule, was a really valuable aspect of the software.

MB: That’s so interesting that you discovered it first as a consumer. Now that you’re a business owner, what are the major challenges that you face?

Ariane: My biggest challenge is handling all the administrative work – answering emails, handling payments and managing my expenses. All that red tape that goes along with running a business really takes a heck of a lot of time. But MINDBODY really helps keep it all under control. If I didn’t have the software, I would have to hire someone to handle all the signups, cancellations and payments. I know of some other bootcamp businesses in the area that use PayPal only, and I don’t know how they do it. They must have so much paperwork!

MB: Do you have a favorite MINDBODY feature that you’d like to share with other business owners?

Ariane: One feature that I find tremendously helpful is being able to look at the many different reports that the software offers. I can see how many classes I sold, what types are most common, where most of my revenue comes from, what times people prefer, when most cancellations occur… all this information is really important. I find the referral report particularly useful. I like seeing where people heard about the bootcamp, and I use this information to target my advertisements. I think this feature is essential to running a business and it helps generate more clients and more publicity.

MB: What lies in the future for you and Brooklyn Bridge Bootcamp?

Ariane: Good question! I want to expand class participation on a more consistent basis – getting people excited for classes and sticking with them. I’d like to generate more programs that reward high participation. And I definitely want to capitalize on the publicity and interest that the bootcamps have generated.