It Takes a Village: John Santerre Builds Community

In this continuation of my interview of Anytime Fitness Lebanon gym owner John Santerre, John talks about community. It takes a village and John is no stranger to this concept.

A Family Feel

Q: They say it takes a village, and Anytime Lebanon certainly has a family feel. Please walk me through what running Anytime with your parents and family is like. It must be very fulfilling to grow this with them.

A: When the opportunity to own this gym came about, I had no thoughts of including my parents, as they were living an hour and a half away. It wasn’t until about a month later that they had decided to move to Lebanon to be closer to us and to their grandchildren. It was at that point that I mentioned my plans, and they asked if I wanted partners in this venture. My Mom has been an incredibly successful businessperson for her entire career, and my dad, who was a Stay-at-Home Dad has been interested in health and fitness his entire life and was the one that instilled hard work and discipline in us as children, so I jumped at the opportunity. We have had our share of differing opinions, but we have the respect for one another to understand our strengths and weaknesses, and ultimately, we each have our own roles within the business. It’s not a matter of pecking order, but rather understanding that we all want the same thing. To impact lives and to be successful. It has been truly amazing to be in business with both, to see them in their elements, thriving, and all the while my kids are able to have a relationship with their grandparents that I never really had the chance to do while growing up. It can certainly feel like “Everybody Loves Raymond” at times, but it’s better than the other way around!

How Do You Adapt

Q: How has the fitness industry evolved, and how do you adapt to these changes?

A: Over my 12 years in the industry, I would say my favorite change has been the technology we have at our disposal. Especially since becoming the owner of this gym, we have had access to technology to track the KPIs for our employees, to manage our membership and our leads, and the personal training software is on another level than what I’ve ever encountered. Credit to Anytime Fitness, they are an amazing organization, and I am so lucky to be a part of their universe. When I began training, I would handwrite workouts, transcribe them over to spreadsheets, etc. We now have the resources to create a product with extreme ease of use for our members!  One challenge we have found, and will continue to find are the fads, “diets” and Tik Tok workouts. With shortening attention spans, people are wanting quicker and quicker results and are unwilling to allow these adaptations to occur in due time. Our role is to educate, educate, educate.

What Challenges Have You Faced

Q: What challenges have you faced as a gym owner, and how have you overcome them?

A: Moving from a Personal Trainer to now Gym Owner while still managing a PT clientele, I would say the biggest challenge I have faced is time management and my prioritization. Shifting my mindset from focusing almost entirely on my clients and how to create and foster change in them to now sharing that focus with expanding our business, improving our social media presence, building club culture and community outreach, it has become a lot of hats to wear. Now in Year 2, I believe I am finding that balance and getting into a groove and am getting back to having FUN!

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Success Stories

Q: Could you share your members’ success stories or transformations that inspire you? You can leave names out. A:

A:  I have had so many transformations over the years that have just left me in awe. I have one client that makes me smile whenever I think about her. Prior to working with her, she had yo-yos with her weight, if I had known her. She’d be in the gym every day for a month, and then I wouldn’t see her for months. At this time, I had a full load of clients and didn’t have the time to reach out to get to know her better. Over the last year, I had the opportunity to have a great conversation with her. In her past, she had bariatric surgery, which over time left her feeling emaciated, which led to a huge bounce back in her weight, close to her highest ever. I also learned how incredibly busy her life is, with two kids in every activity imaginable, a husband she loves that has made a decision that has left her fractured, and responsible for all of it. She needed someone to listen, someone to care enough to be there, and someone to tell her it was ok to take some time for herself, to focus on herself, and to love herself! Over these last several months, I have not only seen her get stronger and leaner, (lost 30+ lbs. of fat), but I have seen an emotional weight lifted. She is smiling again, and she’s confident. 

Another One of My Favorites

Another of my favorites has been you. You’re one of the most inspiring people I know, having gone through your struggles with drugs and alcohol, the relationships that had been broken, etc. The way you have taken your life into your own hands and become a beacon for others going through what you had once been through, and your brutal honesty about all of it are just amazing to me. You are making the world a better place, and I see that when people are given second chances, truly wonderful things can be done! 

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