Pure Barre: Forming Strategic Partnerships, Leveraging Customer Data, and Amplifying Brand Awareness

A part of Xponential Fitness, a large global franchise group of boutique fitness brands across verticals including pilates, barre, cycling, rowing, dance, yoga, and more, Pure Barre is a barre-focused franchise boasting over 600 wellness studios across the U.S. and Canada. Thousands of members of all fitness levels enjoy Pure Barre’s low-impact classes every day in support of strength, cardio, and flexibility goals. A standout in barre and fitness boutiques, Pure Barre ranks in Entrepreneur Magazine’s Franchise 500 List each year.  

Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Caroline Linton, CMO of Pure Barre, about forming strategic partnerships, leveraging the power of fitness challenges to increase engagement, and the brand’s recently launched ClassPointsTM program on the Pure Barre app. 

Watch the full interview here: https://youtu.be/oQh4WCAE_lw

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:05

Good afternoon, good morning. This is Mark Johnson from Loyalty360. I hope everyone's happy, safe and well. I want to welcome you to another edition of our Leaders in Customer Loyalty series. In this series, we speak with leading brands about what they are seeing and hearing on the front lines of customer channel and brand loyalty. Today, we have the pleasure of speaking with Carolyn Linton. She's a Chief Marketing Officer at Pure Bar. Thank you very much for taking the time to speak with us today, Carolyn. How are you?

Speaker 2: 0:28

Absolutely. Thank you, mark, doing well.

Speaker 1: 0:31

Great. First off, we like to start these on a more personal level, so we'd love to know a little bit more about you yourself, your role at Pure Bar and even maybe a fun fact or passion you have outside of work.

Speaker 2: 0:43

Sure, I am born and raised in Southern California where our corporate office is located. I am a former Division I athlete. I played volleyball, graduated out of UC Irvine, university of California, irvine I guess this could be part of my fun fact. I have another fun fact but I graduated with a criminology, law and society degree but really realized my background and passion for fitness and have been in marketing mainly for CPG brands before Pure Bar and startups in health and fitness for the past about 15 years. So a lot of my roles customer service for other active lifestyle companies and landed distribution with retailers like Target exporting goods. So on the retail marketing space, working on private label items for athleisure brands in the hydration space. So definitely have seen the evolution on the retail side, on the health and fitness side of the active lifestyle, the targets, the Amazons coming in. So it's been a really interesting journey.

Speaker 2: 1:55

In terms of PureBar, I started about five years ago. I started as director of marketing and I recently took the position of chief marketing officer. So I was with PureBar for four years, director of marketing and I recently took the position of chief marketing officer. So I was with Pure Bar for four years, director of marketing. I moved on to become CMO of a smaller exponential brand over last year and then have just returned last month to take on the CMO role. My fun fact would be, I've been a member of PureerBar before working for the corporate office, so I discovered PeerBar in 2012. After a few years, after I graduated, I was searching, going through all of the group fitness modalities, searching for a place motivating but still group fitness workout, and discovered PeerBar in my local studio here in Orange County, and I've been a member ever since. So I have been able to see the evolution of Pure Bar not only from the marketing perspective but from the member point of view.

Speaker 1: 2:56

That's excellent At a high level. Where is fitness in our country? In a number of gyms, unique or different or similar to you, are out there growing number. Are you seeing results? You know we continue to read that obesity continues to rise. Obviously not within your client, necessarily, but overall. Where is our society from a health and wellness perspective?

Speaker 2: 3:20

I see the health and wellness society continuing to evolve and prioritizing their health and fitness and we see that with the growth of our studios, just in terms of fitness trends, even the trend this year really having that focus on group exercise, strength training, which really hits our modality, the low impact, so that we're able to stand on our brand pillars and welcome any fitness level, and also widening the age range of fitness in general, with the rise of pickleball over the course of the last five years as well. So truly it's balancing out all the different modalities to fit our consumers needs, for what they're looking for, not only in fitness but also for longevity as well.

Speaker 1: 4:07

Absolutely it's. You definitely have a very unique approach in that regard and, being a D1 athlete, I've my wife is a D1 athlete. I just played club soccer at my school, but I have two D1 athletes daughters, freshmen. One swims, one plays soccer. So fitness is very important to them and to me. It's great to hear what you guys are doing for everyone. It's great to hear for sure.

Speaker 2: 4:29

And congratulations to your daughters. That's a huge feat to land D1 in sports.

Speaker 1: 4:36

Yeah, thank you. It's a fun ride. One's actually in the transfer portal now. Way too much information.

Speaker 2: 4:42

I completely understand the evolution of collegiate sports and what's going on right now.

Speaker 1: 4:48

So it definitely is changing. So when you look at customer loyalty, customer loyalty is very important to brands today, right Understanding the customers, their interests, how you can market to them, how you leverage the data they give you in a very relevant but in a trusted manner. When you look at your customer loyalty strategy at PureBar, how do you keep customers engaged and loyal to your brand?

Speaker 2: 5:12

Absolutely. First and foremost, it's understanding exactly who our target, our secondary target, our demo is and from there, analyzing all of our data.

Speaker 2: 5:23

For us, experience is everything. So our PureBar teachers go through a hundred hour teacher training, onboarding, and this really provides a premium and consistent experience across all of our PureBar studios. With that this year how we've continued to innovate. Actually, over the last year we launched two brand new class formats. So one is our very first moderate intensity class, that's pure bar align. So really looking at the data and making sure that we can welcome in those that might just be stepping in to their fitness routine or looking for a little bit more stretching, a little bit more of the flows, but with that pure bar feel and that technique.

Speaker 2: 6:09

On, the other half of that. We took a look at the data and our consumers and our members and prospects were saying they are going outside of our four walls to look for the heavier strength training. As I mentioned, the rise of strength training, the heavier weight training. So in June we launched Pure Bar Define, which we've seen utilization jump so upwards of 80% in the month of March one of our highest utilization months for a single class that it's resonating with our members and ultimately our goal is to make sure that we not only help our members reach their fitness goals but we provide a well-balanced offering so that we can be that place that they can go to a few times a week and find all of their different fitness needs met.

Speaker 1: 6:59

No, it's interesting when you have children who are athletic and have a third daughter who will be a runner somewhere, wherever she wants to go it. The lifting is so important, right, the strength training, and most people get into cardio and then obviously there's some gains. You can see that too, but it's truly changed that your body. You need strength training, right, you need resistance training, and it sounds like that. That and and and. That's something I would think too, because people get to see some difference right after a month. You start seeing bigger arms or a slimmer waist or whatever, and I would think that gives that that dopamine drop for them to continue and continue to be committed to the brand.

Speaker 2: 7:37

Absolutely, and I also think the differentiator is we're low impact.

Speaker 2: 7:41

So, whether you are starting your fitness routine, whether you are cross training for an upcoming event, whether you're like me and you're a former D1 athlete and you want a challenging workout and getting in the strength training. And then there's days where you listen to your body and you'll go and take a pure bar, a line, because you know that day you just need a little bit more of a recovery day, but still getting the lactic acid out and getting moving. So absolutely, it's the overall offering that we can offer and on that note, we leverage the data. So we absolutely take a look at our post-class surveys. That helps us inform not only opportunities on improvements at the local level and national level adjustments, but our future innovations, which last year was very exciting to be able to release two new classes in one year, based on what our goals were strategically from a training and technique perspective, but also making sure we're continuing to innovate.

Speaker 1: 8:44

And that's an interesting question as well, kind of the point you made. Training and technique is very important in any form of fitness training, especially a novice who may not be in good shape. They a lot of injuries, right? They're not stretching, right If they're not listening to your body. I mean that's very important, right? So if you're tired and even from a food perspective, right, you can have a very strict diet, but someday you'll just crave french fries, you will crave salty food or your quaid crave chocolate. And listening to your body is very important because then it doesn't become taboo. You know, but not that you want to eat chocolate or french fries all the time, but sometimes your body's just craving like a steak or some red meat. And listen to your body whether it's sore, that that's a huge thing. How do you get your members to understand that? Because I think that's one of the most salient things you said is listening to your body, understanding your body and not trying to push it in the wrong direction.

Speaker 2: 9:40

We do, because our process, when we're onboarding new members, one of the first questions is what is your fitness goal or health goal? And from there we can create that personalized experience, whether our modality can really welcome in anyone that maybe they are recovering from an injury. I myself, I'll share, I'm recovering from an ACL injury, so from playing volleyball post-college recently. So whether you're recovering from an injury, whether you're going through prenatal, postpartum and need those safety modifications which our teachers can provide. So it really is depending on their fitness goals and we wanna make sure that they, one of the terminologies we will say listen to your body. So you know we're going to help you modify, knowing that you have previous injuries or what state of your journey and your fitness and health journey you're in. But that becomes really important so that we can ensure that our teachers provide and they're trained to do so the modifications that they'll need, or maybe off mic recommendations and modifications, because we have created that relationship right from day one with the member.

Speaker 1: 10:54

Yeah, well, hopefully your ACL recovery goes well. It's not a fun recovery, but I'm sure you'll do great at it.

Speaker 2: 11:02

We're doing great. The align's been great. All of our class formats truly has been fantastic. As I've stepped back into the realm of getting back to where I was Awesome, okay.

Speaker 1: 11:15

So, when you look at partnerships, I know you just announced a partnership with Princess Cruise at the Pure Bar at Sea for the summer of 2024. Can you share us a little bit more about this partnership and the initiative and how it came to be?

Speaker 2: 11:32

Yes, we are extremely excited that we're embarking on a historic milestone for Pure Bar. So, although we've launched our Pure Bar offering with Princess Cruise, we've launched our Pure Bar offering with Princess Cruise. This is our very first branded Pure Bar focus cruise where we are engaging our most loyal Pure Bar members, franchise partners, team members in our community to be able to continue to be a part of their everyday lifestyle, and that includes being on vacation on the side of leisure. So some of the activations to make it extra special for all of the guests that are on the cruise Each day it is going to be jam-packed with Pure Bar special classes. So, for example, we have a Tiki Bar Beach class experience, a Neon Sunset Bar class, sunrise classes workshops, sunset bar class sunrise classes workshops, should they want to learn more about different class formats and how they can improve or modify.

Speaker 2: 12:29

And then, knowing that we are meeting them on their travels and vacation, we're doing other really engaging events such as a bar brunch and everything gets personalized and specialized all the way to the drink bar with fun beverage names like barberry. And then we understand our network. So we really want to be conscious of their needs. So we will have mocktails. We do make sure there's all the way down to dairy-free options, things like that. So we're very, very down to the detail in terms of that. And then, in addition, formal nights, we'll paint the town Pure Bar Red, we'll have Pure Bar foodie sessions, bar and art sessions, and then, of course, ultimately, we're bringing in members and community members from so many different studios. It's uniting all of our studios in one place, with Pure Bar meetups as well.

Speaker 1: 13:22

Okay, when you look at the partnership with Princess Cruise, how does that align with your overall customer experience and customer loyalty strategies?

Speaker 2: 13:31

It aligns very well because, beyond our four walls of our in-studio experience, we want to make sure we provide the ability to take not only class in studio at home on the road, but now in again in that everyday lifestyle element where Pure Bar, our brand loyalty from the member perspective, is so strong that it extends out onto the sea. So not even on the ground, we are in the ocean and it is top of mind when they're traveling. So we don't want to be just that modality or that brand that they think about when they're at home or near work. Right, we want to be a part of their full lifestyle and ecosystem. So they're talking about us when they're out traveling as well.

Speaker 1: 14:21

Absolutely.

Speaker 2: 14:22

And actually, on that note, I do have a fun story. All Absolutely, and actually, on that note, I do have a fun story. I was just recently on a family trip a couple weeks ago, and was ready to walk out of the hotel lobby. I had made the plan to go to the local peer bar studio take class. It's a great way to not only visit studios that I normally wouldn't get to visit, but also a way to again see how the teachers and team are doing at the local studio servicing our amazing members.

Speaker 2: 14:48

As I walk out into the hotel lobby with my Pure Bar shirt on, I hear somebody yell do you do Pure Bar?

Speaker 2: 14:54

And I, you know, had to turn around and, you know, very startled, and it was a member from the East Coast who had done over 1100 classes. And it was a member from the East Coast who had done overall 1100 classes, was out on vacation as well, and I then encouraged her to do the same thing If you can't make it today, go tomorrow to the local studio, go take a dropping class. If you can't do that, you know support and purchase some local gear. And she did end up doing that and I have since connected with a franchise partner and the member. But that is the example of that 360 moment of customer loyalty. They not only could recognize the brand on a t-shirt, but they've been with the brand for so many years, full circle. They're so excited about Pure Bar that they did the next day go and visit the studio and that's our ultimate goal. You know, when not only home at work, but when you're out on your own leisure time, you're an excited brand advocate of our modality and offerings.

Speaker 1: 16:03

That's awesome. When you look at these initiatives you have, they seem very focused on engaging the customer, very personalized as well. Can you tell us a little bit more about the Earn your Watch Challenge? There were award members that you just went through or was going through.

Speaker 2: 16:21

Yes, so we actually do have another exciting program on the customer loyalty front, but definitely the Apple Earn your Watch.

Speaker 2: 16:29

A high percentage of our current members operate on Apple iPhone and so that is what really created us to partner with Apple and create the Earn your Watch challenge for our members to not only track their activity on the Apple Watch, be able to get the additional benefits of the reminders before class, but they would also be able to receive funds back from their initial purchase after they completed a certain amount of classes in the year.

Speaker 2: 16:57

So that has been a great program because challenges for our network is a big part of our loyalty strategy. Our community thrives on in-studio class count challenges. We just completed our highest class count 20 classes in 30 days in the month of March, our Bar Stronger Challenge, which has been running you know beyond the five years that I've been with the brand and then we do have, you know, multiple class count challenges throughout the year, including a new member challenge where it's completing their first 10 classes in a month. Ultimately, it drives and increases lifetime value for our studios and our brand and they really dive in and engage and commit to themselves to hit higher class counts than they ever would have expected otherwise.

Speaker 1: 17:50

OK, awesome, when you look at personalization we talked about a little bit Very important from a health and wellness perspective to understand the customer. As you talked about all the efforts you have out there, you know, as individuals come into exercise and look at their fitness routines from different perspectives, how do you leverage some of the data and insight that they give you, their goals, their interests to you know, to personalize and meet those fitness goals? I know you talked about a little bit, but holistically how do you use that data to personalize and measure?

Speaker 2: 18:21

Yes. So we use all of the class count data that comes in the post-class surveys so on the local level they'll be able to personalize that interaction. But what we really see work so well for our brand is that celebration. So it's one thing to, you know, have them reach a milestone. But we have a formal celebration process where along the way the first 10 classes they'll get a celebration, first 50, a hundred, 250. And we formalize that.

Speaker 2: 18:54

So in studio they're able to sign a standalone bar. So they're a part of the milestone club. So they, every single time they step into the studio, they see, you know, taking the number of classes they're taking paces them towards their personal goals. Maybe it's getting stronger, Maybe it's recovering from an injury, Maybe it's coming back postpartum and getting back into a routine, Maybe it's starting a fitness routine for the first time. But those class being able to take classes and and hit their personal goals. And then, in addition, they see visually oh, I want to hit the 100 club, I want to, I want to sign my name on that bar. So we formalize that. And then, of course, we equip it on the other end with email automations at push notification so they know that we are celebrating them along the way as well.

Speaker 1: 19:45

That's awesome. When you look at the customer experience strategies that you have, having that hundred hours of training is very important. I would assume hiring someone for fitness is probably easier than maybe hiring someone at a fast food restaurant, because they're going to have that passion, that emotional connection that's going to draw them in. But how do you ensure that the customer experience is consistent and especially in line with the loyalty strategies as you develop these new initiatives?

Speaker 2: 20:16

Absolutely so. We make the recommendations to our local studio owners on the hiring strategies that they'll go and implement. But how we do that is we basically showcase the general managers, sales managers, that are utilizing the process so very well the sales and marketing process and just some of the ways that they are ensuring that not only are they following the process but they are being authentic, they are making sure to be personal, because this is boutique fitness studio, Our members are coming in for that personalized experience. So knowing people by name, knowing you know all the details, so that they can encourage that loyalty. So we absolutely are able to amplify the voices of our team members that are continuing to do a great job of that and cascade that out to our network.

Speaker 1: 21:13

OK, when you look at customer loyalty, even technology in general, it's changing very rapidly, very quickly. How do you keep up with trends? What emerging trends or technologies would you like to learn more about that you may be able to add to your customer loyalty strategies? It sounds like you have gamification down pretty well. Are there others that you may be considering?

Speaker 2: 21:36

Well, I'll stay on gamification, because this week we just launched class points on our PureBar app.

Speaker 2: 21:42

So that's our national loyalty program, which functions similarly to an airline loyalty program, where our members will earn points for consistently taking classes.

Speaker 2: 21:54

And also they can do that by upgrading their in-studio memberships and that'll increase them to the next tier. It literally just launched on Wednesday, but it's tiered bronze memberships and that'll increase them to the next tier. It literally just launched on Wednesday, but it's tiered brown, silver and gold, and rewards will include retail offers, a free birthday class, gaining access to prize opportunities, priority booking, complimentary guest passes each quarter, and we're layering that in with our partnerships as well, such as Princess Cruise, so they will unlock access to partner perks as well. And this is really designed to take basically, technology and gamification, and this is our next level. I know you know that's what this is, what's next for us currently, and we want to continue to drive those positive behaviors that we already see in our member base to create that increase in not only retention but for them. They can see it's really gratifying when you load the app because it will roll over all of the lifestyle points you would have accrued based on your class count and just jump into the thousands.

Speaker 1: 23:01

If you've completed many classes already, that's awesome when you look at other customer loyalty programs are there other programs that you uh admire are loyal to from a customer loyalty perspective.

Speaker 2: 23:14

You know what do you like about their uh programs and why are you loyal to them yes, I would say one of the top ones Amazon Prime, the perks and early access to new products and events, and how they offer the exclusive deals, the early access. They really built it all together. That would be one of them. On the streaming side, in terms of clothing, lululemon has a great customer loyalty program. They offer member perks like free shipping You'll see the personalized shopping experience in the app access to the events I have so many, so this might be I'll try to keep it short no-transcript being able to earn points for every dollar, and they've done such a good job with their Nordstrom notes. And then, in addition, they have many other early access to their semi-annual sales, personalized service like alterations.

Speaker 2: 24:15

Target Circle is great. They just rebranded to call it Target Circle, but earning the percentage back on all of your purchases. They have little. They've started to put in those mini challenges on spending and they're time bound as well. And then they do a good job of incorporating the philanthropic give back side of things with a loyalty program. Starbucks is a fantastic one where they have done a good job of gamifying challenges, certain timeframes and then you rack up your rewards. Sephora is another great one as well the Insider Program. I know every person who is part of the Sephora Beauty Insider. They make sure they go in for their birthday reward. And of course, there's so many more Southwest Delta, american Express, marriott, bonvoy, but all really similar but they're doing a great job in their respective categories to ensure that continued customer loyalty and, ultimately, usage.

Speaker 1: 25:14

Excellent. And last question we have somewhat self-serving but what can?

Speaker 2: 25:18

Loyalty360 do to help you and your team with your customer loyalty efforts yes, I took a look at the your recent uh publishing of the um, the 360, the brand, uh, the brand guide that you had brand marketer research, excuse me, um, so it's things like that, where it's a accumulation of what's out in the industry, what other brands and organizations are looking at in terms of what's next and even looking at what are some roadblocks to overcome in terms of technology or weather, staffing or what resources. So I think these type of papers are great, because it really does accumulate everything into one spot of what the industry is seeing from a customer loyalty perspective.

Speaker 1: 26:07

Absolutely. Thank you for that. You have a growing brand membership 125,. Some brands are growing. Partnerships are very important. We have open discussions every week just to understand where things are going, and this week we talked about corporate social responsibility, sustainability, and it's great getting to talk to smart people like yourself, very passionate people on professional loyalty. So I would love to get you and your team more involved at some point, absolutely. So now we have the wonderful quick fire question part of the interview. I'd like to limp these to one word or short phrases or I get in trouble with Nick and the content team. So, first off, what is your favorite word?

Speaker 2: 26:47

My favorite word is learn.

Speaker 1: 26:49

What is your least favorite word?

Speaker 2: 26:51

Cannot.

Speaker 1: 26:52

What excites you?

Speaker 2: 26:55

Full circle moments like the one I mentioned. I have two little ones as well. So when I say full circle moments is when you've tried to, you know, teach them something new or a new way, and it's that full circle moment where it just clicks.

Speaker 1: 27:12

What do you find tiresome?

Speaker 2: 27:15

Redundancies, but I think our team and we just, whether in life or at work, do such a great job of seeing how we can get more efficient.

Speaker 1: 27:25

Okay, what is your favorite? Pure bar class.

Speaker 2: 27:28

This is a tough one. I've had eras. I used to be an empower, it used to be my favorite, which is our more high-impact cardio, and then, as I came back, I was only really able to do a line and classic. And of course I love the define for the heavier weights as well. But over the whole course of my tenure as a member, it's classic. That is our bread and butter and on the majority of our schedule. So I am. If I have to choose one, it's a hard to choose one, but it's classic.

Speaker 1: 28:01

Perfect. What is your favorite book recommendation to colleagues.

Speaker 2: 28:05

Yes, right of a Lifetime by Bob Iger really is a great, not only fascinating look behind his journey and tenure at Disney, but it's a great book on leadership and really even further than that, on the marketing side, leading on the creative side as well, talking about innovation. So that would be my favorite recent one.

Speaker 1: 28:32

Excellent. What profession, other than the one you currently have, would you like to attempt?

Speaker 2: 28:37

That's a tough one, you know. Of all of all the questions today, you know, I think it really would be taking all of my experience and going the entrepreneurial route. I'm not positive what that is just quite yet, but that would be the next round here.

Speaker 1: 28:57

Who inspired you to be the person that you are today?

Speaker 2: 29:00

Yes, I actually have two people. It'd be my maternal grandmother and paternal grandfather, I think so. I am second generation and the ability to come from overseas to a place that is very new and overcoming some of those massive challenges and creating something really incredible and building a family and being successful. I think it's that work, ethic and strength, and also being able to have and lead a family with integrity and kindness. So that's truly the story of the American dream, and without their bravery, resilience, I wouldn't be here, here where I am today.

Speaker 1: 29:44

What do you typically think about at the end of the day?

Speaker 2: 29:48

A lot of things, but I do a quick synopsis of just a recap of the day where, as a leader and marketer and person, I can and we can improve and maybe just some different strategies if we're working through projects and visualizing the short term. So what's happening for the next day and long-term, you know what we need to continue to break down in all realms and reviewing really just the most important items for the day, the week and long-term as well, and honestly, where I can make the best impact, and that's you know. In long-term as well, and honestly where I can make the best impact, and that's you know in all of my roles that I have.

Speaker 1: 30:26

Okay and last question how do you want to be remembered by your friends and family?

Speaker 2: 30:31

Yes, this one's a good one. I want to be remembered as somebody that was resilient but also dependable and warm, and, ultimately, for my friends and family, that someone who showed up when it mattered the most.

Speaker 1: 30:46

Okay, excellent. Well, thank you, Carolyn, for taking the time to talk to us today. It was great to getting to know you a little bit better and also a good deal more about Pure Bar. Looking forward to hearing more from you and your team over the next year. So thank you very much for taking the time to share with us today.

Speaker 2: 31:00

Absolutely. Thank you, mark, and good luck to your daughters and all of their endeavors in their D1 and so on, and so thank you for having me.

Speaker 1: 31:08

Thank you very much, and thank you everyone for listening today. Make sure you join us back again soon for another edition of our Leaders in Customer Loyalty series. Until then, have a wonderful day.