Craig Benson to
Remain on Planet Fitness Board of Directors
HAMPTON,
N.H., April 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Planet
Fitness, Inc. (NYSE: PLNT) (the "Company"), today announced that it
has appointed Colleen Keating as the
Company's Chief Executive Officer, effective June 10, 2024. At that time, Craig Benson will resign as Interim CEO but will
continue to serve as a member of the Company's Board of
Directors.
Ms. Keating is a proven executive that brings to Planet Fitness
over three decades of experience across hospitality, real estate,
operations and franchise management, with expertise in brand
management and leading customer-facing organizations. Since 2020,
she has served as CEO of FirstKey Homes LLC, currently the fourth
largest single-family rental home property management company in
the United States. As CEO, Ms.
Keating led the strategic direction of the business, increasing
operational efficiency and driving scalable growth. She also
implemented significant brand-aligned digital strategies and helped
drive platform cost reduction while improving the overall resident
experience. Prior to joining FirstKey, Ms. Keating served in a
variety of roles of increasing responsibility at InterContinental
Hotels Group (IHG), including Chief Operating Officer, Americas,
and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
"On behalf of the entire Board, we are thrilled to welcome
Colleen as the next CEO of Planet Fitness," said Stephen Spinelli, Jr. (Ph.D), Chairman of the
Board. "Colleen's appointment is the culmination of an extensive
search process conducted by the Board of Directors. Colleen's deep
operational knowledge, strategic mindset and understanding of
large-scale franchise operations and consumer-facing brands made
her stand out among the candidates considered. She also has a
proven track record of building results-oriented teams and
instilling cultures that put a premium on operational excellence
and rigor, which we believe will be additive to Planet Fitness. We
are confident that Colleen is an exceptional leader with the
desired skills, experience and culture-first mindset necessary to
accelerate Planet Fitness's next phase of growth. I would also like
to thank Craig for stepping in as Interim CEO. His leadership at
this important time in the Company's history has been critical to
our ongoing success, and I look forward to continuing to work
alongside him as a member of our Board."
"As Interim CEO, I have gained a greater appreciation for the
Planet Fitness brand, our franchisees and our team, and I am
grateful to have had the opportunity to serve in this role," said
Mr. Benson. "As we usher in this new chapter in the Company's
journey, I am confident that Colleen is an excellent choice as
Planet Fitness's next CEO, and I look forward to working with her
as a member of the Board."
"As the next CEO of Planet Fitness, I am eager to begin working
alongside the management team and hit the ground running as we
position the business for sustainable growth and value creation,"
said Ms. Keating. "I have long admired the Planet Fitness brand and
could not be more excited to dig in and help the Company reach its
fullest potential."
The Company will discuss Ms. Keating's appointment along with
its first quarter financial results on its earnings call on
Thursday, May 9, 2024, at
8:00 am ET.
About Colleen Keating
Colleen Keating brings over 30
years of experience spanning operations management, revenue growth
and efficiency enhancement. Ms. Keating most recently served as CEO
of FirstKey Homes LLC, a single-family rental home property
management company, where she led the strategic direction of the
business through continuous operations improvement, increasing
scale, optimizing costs and resident experience. Prior to
joining FirstKey in 2020, Ms. Keating served as the Chief
Operating Officer, Americas of InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG)
(2018 – 2020), where she oversaw the operations of more than 4,000
IHG hotels across the Americas region, ensuring franchisee
performance support and company-managed hotel operations. Earlier
in her career, Ms. Keating spent 16 years with Starwood Hotels
& Resorts Worldwide, Inc., serving in a variety of leadership
positions of increasing responsibility, most recently as Senior
Vice President of Franchise Operations and Compliance, North America (2014 – 2016) and Senior Vice
President of Operations, North Region (2012 – 2014).
About Planet Fitness
Founded in 1992 in Dover, NH,
Planet Fitness is one of the largest and fastest-growing
franchisors and operators of fitness centers in the world by number
of members and locations. As of December 31,
2023, Planet Fitness had approximately 18.7 million members
and 2,575 stores in all 50 states and the District of Columbia in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Panama, Mexico and Australia. The Company's mission is to enhance
people's lives by providing a high-quality fitness experience in a
welcoming, non-intimidating environment, which we call the
Judgement Free Zone®. More than 90% of Planet Fitness stores are
owned and operated by independent business men and women.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of the federal securities laws, which involve risks and
uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include the Company's
statements with respect to the Company's growth and other
statements that do not relate solely to historical facts.
Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as
"anticipate," "believe," "envision," "estimate," "expect,"
"intend," "may," "goal," "plan," "prospect," "predict," "project,"
"target," "potential," "will," "would," "could," "should,"
"continue," "ongoing," "contemplate," "future," "strategy" and
similar references to future periods, although not all
forward-looking statements include these identifying words.
Forward-looking statements are not assurances of future
performance. Instead, they are based only on the Company's current
beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of the
business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated
events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because
forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject
to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that
are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of the
Company's control. Actual results and financial condition may
differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking
statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results
to differ materially include competition in the fitness industry,
the Company's and franchisees' ability to attract and retain
members, the Company's and franchisees' ability to identify and
secure suitable sites for new franchise stores, changes in consumer
demand, changes in equipment costs, the Company's ability to expand
into new markets domestically and internationally, operating costs
for the Company and franchisees generally, availability and cost of
capital for franchisees, acquisition activity, developments and
changes in laws and regulations, our substantial increased
indebtedness as a result of our refinancing and securitization
transactions and our ability to incur additional indebtedness or
refinance that indebtedness in the future, our future financial
performance and our ability to pay principal and interest on our
indebtedness, our corporate structure and tax receivable
agreements, failures, interruptions or security breaches of the
Company's information systems or technology, general economic
conditions and the other factors described in the Company's annual
report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, as well as the Company's other
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In light of
the significant risks and uncertainties inherent in forward-looking
statements, investors should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements, which reflect the Company's views only
as of the date of this press release. Except as required by law,
neither the Company nor any of its affiliates or representatives
undertake any obligation to provide additional information or to
correct or update any information set forth in this release,
whether as a result of new information, future developments or
otherwise.
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SOURCE Planet Fitness, Inc.