I worked for a new location for Crunch Fitness, and was the second person ever hired by the first time franchise owner behind only the general manager. I got hired in March of 2020 and the date we opened up to the public was October 2021. I stuck with them through covid and over 12 months of presale, and immediately shifted to major front desk responsibilities as soon as the club opened. Owner, manager, fellow coworkers all loved me as well as patrons of the club. Everything was going fantastic, I was meeting all of my sales goals and leading the team in our main category when selling. However, over the summer a different department severely underperformed due to lack of motivation in management and the first-franchise owner could not make the 500% jump that he needed to in time to have to start paying the bills, which were forgiven for months to allow him time to build revenue. In attempt to save money, the owner would open the club at 5am everyday, work until noon, when the general manager would come in, and work until 7, and then either I or another kid closed the club. Two people out of about twenty employees, and I was one of them. However, this attempt was unfruitful, the general manager quit, the underperforming area picked up slightly but nowhere near where they needed to be, and the owner had to sell the club to a different owner. Before the new owner came in, the manager of a smaller area of the club became interim GM, and she immediately made positive changes in organization and scheduling. She took her job very seriously, and did a great job. Ultimately, however, it was time for the transition of ownership to happen, and so it did. This new owner, however, is actually a corporation that own 19 other locations spread across three states. Learning this, I was not thrilled, but their history of successful clubs made me excited for my moneymaking potential there (yuck but I need to pay rent). Further than that, I was sure my reputation would transfer and I would transition easily.
That was until I was informed this morning over text message not to come into work today and that I was not chosen to be rehired by the new corporation coming in to run the club. Further, they are seemingly getting rid of the babysitting services, something I have spent years advertising and selling memberships because of, in order to give the underperforming area their whole own section of equipment. After two and a half years of unwavering loyalty, a group of people who I NEVER MET informed me I lost my job and did not give any reason at all as to why. Not only that, but I was informed by the interim general manager, who was left in the dark as to why I never got the necessary paperwork to move into the new ownership, until this morning. I am currently actively studying to become a group fitness instructor and a personal trainer, two certifications that Crunch gave me over $1500 off of combined so I could become certified, with a guaranteed job in the field. And a corporation decided not to bring me back, and did not provide a reason. I was not planning on this being my career as I graduated from college last May, but it was something I was hoping to make enough money from now as I built my resume and researched careers in my field. I had plans to be with the club for at least another year, and more if I decided to go back to school, because I genuinely saw it as an avenue that would allow me to do that.
And a corporation laid me off and did not provide any reason why. While keeping and offering jobs to the kids Crunch employees as desk people, as well as keeping most of my colleagues.
I will never go back.