In the Media
2005-05-01, Alberta Venture Magazine
Fitness and Beauty Goes Mobile
Sometimes it feels like the only way to make it to the gym in the morning is to spend the night there. Securing time for yourself – even if it feels good – is hard to justify in a jam packed day timer. A new movement in the health and beauty industry is capitalized on both the rapid fire pace of people’s lives and the cocooning trend.
Fitness and spa-service providers are going mobile to save their clients time and travel. No longer a novelty, businesses on wheels are posing real competition to their fixed-address counterparts.
“Research found that a third of Canadians prefer to exercise at home,” says Alexandra Senkow, fitness director for Defining Eve. The Edmonton exercise facility offers both in-studio and mobile services, with nearly 400 clients getting fitness training at home. “It just made sense to offer this service.” As a marketing bonus, Defining Eve’s eye catching fleet of Mini Coopers serves as movable billboards.
Mobile spa services are also gaining a devoted following. Successful spas on wheels like Vancouver’s Beauty in Motion and Toronto’s The Grooming Team have carved out a niche in recent years. In Calgary, Jessica’s Mobile Beauty Services has been rolling alone since 2001. “I worked in a salon for 10 years before I started the business.” Says stylist and esthetician Jessica Taylor. “People would ask if someone could come out. I didn’t know anybody who was doing it. I have lots of clients with home-based businesses and find that it’s just a bother to leave.”
While Taylor’s services run approximately at the same price as a day at the spa, Defining Eve charges a travel fee of up to 10%. But as Senkow puts it, clients, especially those with children, find the mobile advantage out weighs the small premium. “We deal with a lot of people who value their time,” she says. “Getting to the gym and back can take an excess of an hour so it’s a minima; discretion for most people, and well worth it.”
