The majority of self-made millionaire entrepreneurs are idea people – big picture types, usually about branding and marketing who surround themselves with bright minds, and off you go.
Tony Hartl has all of these qualities, it's just that on his way to getting rich multiple times before he was 40, he also did the heavy lifting. Not only did Hartl find Planet Tan, but he ran one of his original three stores seven days a week for years. This wasn't new to Hartl, who grew up in the Midwest, raised mostly by her single mother and aunt, and got her start shoveling snow and mowing lawns.
At 19, Hartl bought his first home, a condo for himself and his mother. The Southern Illinois University sophomore was also the general manager of a local health club.
"I don't think anyone is born with that entrepreneurial or entrepreneurial spirit, and I prefer to be bright, driven, and committed anyway," Hartl says. “You can control the effort and the attitude. I was really hungry growing up because of my living circumstances – we didn't have much. And I was exposed to the success of the business early on, and then it becomes normal. »
Hartl sold his 17 Planet Tan locations to Palm Beach Tan in 2008. The next decade was spent traveling the world and raising his son. He wrote a book, Selling Sunshine:75 Tools, Tips and Tactics to Become a Highly Successful Entrepreneur In 2015, he was associated with the launch of a Malbec wine label, Seed, based in Mendoza, Argentina, which achieved immediate success. But this did not meet the expectations of entrepreneurs.
Three years later, the time has finally come to take the plunge again. Hartl purchased the rights to open 29 Crunch Fitness locations in Texas and after just one year there are over 6 locations, 200 employees and 30,000 members with aggressive growth plans. Hartl says his company philosophy hasn't changed much since his days with Planet Tan:strive to impact the lives of employees and customers.
His work in the tanning industry began in 1995. At just 26 years old, Hartl was recruited for a key sales and marketing position with another tanning company which prompted him to go public. and to purchase stock options. Just six months into the gig, the CEO told him there were cash flow issues and downsizing had begun, with Hartl in charge of selling the stores for capital. In the process, Hartl found three locations that did reasonably well near Dallas. The young businessman was intrigued and bought the stores for $10,000 of his own money and an investment of $40,000.
The immediate changes were subtle but impactful. He instituted monthly memberships, renamed Planet Tan, painted and changed carpets, and hired employees at higher pay rates, committed to the business rather than a high school student simply looking for beer batter. In the first year, the stores made over $1 million in sales.
“The odds of not succeeding were 99%, but I was naïvely optimistic, partly because of my youth,” Hartl says. “I didn't get paid the first year, I had no health insurance, I worked seven days a week, no time off, there were massive trade-offs for the success we had. It was a huge gamble looking back. »
After 13 years of growth and sales, Hartl was starting to think about cashing in. Legendary former General Electric CEO Jack Welch invited him to a seminar around the same time and two of them spoke individually, with Welch offering this advice:"Whenever you can make the decision to change your life forever, do it. Remove all odds from the table. You can always start over. »
Now Hartl agrees with Welch. By 2025, Hartl's goal is to have 50 Crunch Fitness gyms, 1,500 employees and 400,000 members. The fit is ideal for Hartl, who has been an avid athlete, cyclist, runner, and loves the idea of helping people improve. He considered opening gyms under other franchises, but after discovering Crunch Fitness, Hartl was blown away by the company's marketing, its philosophy of not judging its members, and the overall experience after visiting the one of his gymnasiums. The decision was ultimately quite easy.
“I missed having no business,” he says. “I want to feed my employees. I want to create an impact in their lives and those of our members. We all need to be aware of the wake we leave behind in life. Once we move beyond caring for our family, our first question should be how can I impact the lives of others?
“I want to be a vehicle for positive change, and I didn't have that platform when I retired. The two most important things in life are effort and attitude. We want to change as many lives as possible. »
Jeff Sullivan
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Jeff Sullivan is Editorial Director of Panini America and columnist for Dallas Cowboys Star Magazine . He lives in Arlington, Texas.
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