Shari Whitley empathizes with the demands placed on women today. Just like any other working mother of two, the Orland Park resident finds it difficult to juggle work with taking care of the kids and finding time to work out-despite her job as owner, chief executive officer and president of the Women’s Workout World fitness chain.
“It’s more difficult for me to stay in shape now,” said Whitley, 40. “It’s difficult to balance a family, career and try to stay fit. I know how difficult it is.”
Recently Whitley married Jim Revell, a south suburban general contractor. She is the mother of two children: Kathryn, 4, and Jamie, 2. As a result of her experience as a working mother, she is trying to make her clubs more accessible to working women, mothers and any combination of both. Since she purchased the clubs in 1991 from founder Audrey Sedita, Whitley has added staffed nurseries to eight of the 15 corporate clubs, which includes four prototype clubs, one next to the corporate office in Tinley Park. Altogether there are 23 clubs in the Chicago area, eight of which are franchises.
For the past three years, Women’s Workout World has made Crain’s Chicago Business’ annual list of top 25 woman-owned businesses based on revenues (to qualify, women must own at least 51 percent of the firm). In addition, Whitley was honored for excellence in 1992 by the National Association of Women Business Owners. For 1992, the chain’s revenue was $8.6 million, with approximately 200,000 members throughout the Chicago area.
Women’s Workout World is a women’s-only club. According to the chain’s attorney, Frances Krasnow of Chicago, Illinois state law views health clubs as distinctly private places, the same way it views bathrooms. This allows a health club to be separated on the basis of sex.
All clubs offer a variety of aerobic, step aerobic and toning classes throughout the day and evening and include Nautilus equipment specifically designed for use by women.
Sedita said her goal in founding the clubs was to offer a well-equipped women’s club at a moderate price.
“A lot of women’s clubs weren’t well-equipped. I wanted to offer outstanding exercise classes with variety consisting of more than just calisthenics,” she said. “And I wanted to make it affordable to everyone.”
Typically yearly memberships range from $89 for a basic program, which includes unlimied classes and use of Nautilus equipment, to $200 for use of more specialized equipment, such as rowing machines and exercise bikes.
Although relatively new to Women’s Workout World, Whitley is not new to the fitness world. Her interest began when she was studying fine arts at the Columbus College of Art and Design in Columbus, Ohio. While in school, Whitley worked as an aerobics instructor.
“I liked what I was doing,” she said. “I wanted to somehow make it my job.”
While she was working on her master’s in business at Capital University in Columbus, she became an assistant manager for the club where she had been teaching. She never completed her degree. Instead, she became national district manager for the Elaine Powers chain and bought her first franchise. By 1978, she owned eight franchises, all in Ohio, and had met Sedita, another franchisee.
In 1985, when Elaine Powers was merging with the Living Well chain, Sedita sold her franchises and moved to Illinois, where she founded Women’s Workout World.
“I hung on until the end,” Whitley said, adding that she negotiated the sale of her franchises back to Living Well. That left her with nothing to do.
“Basically I was retired at about 30 years old,” she said.
Then came a call from Sedita, who already had opened six clubs in the Chicago area. Whitley said Sedita asked her to move to Chicago to help her set up a franchise division for Women’s Workout World.
In that capacity, Whitley researched potential locations and demographics and focused on site selections for new clubs, all without much knowledge of Chicago.
Whitley went on to become the corporation’s first franchisee, opening a club in Homewood. She followed that one up with clubs in Calumet City, Tinley Park and Naperville.
Her focus on the south suburbs was no accident.
“I felt the south suburbs were untapped,” Whitley said. “Tinley Park was showing a percentage of growth that was very impressive. Calumet City was a good, solid, stable neighborhood.”
Chicago Southland Chamber of Commerce president Michael Seward said he counts Whitley and Women’s Workout World as assets to the south suburbs.
“(Whitley’s) been involved in a variety of things to improve the area,” Seward said. “From a business perspective, if we had more people like her, we’d be better off.”
Despite Whitley’s hold on the south suburbs, Oak Lawn, by Sedita’s choice, remained a corporate club. “(Sedita) basically gave me the territory south of Oak Lawn and I convinced her to also give me Naperville,” she said.
All this was done within a couple of months. “I’m a very quick, decisive person,” Whitley said.
In the meantime, Sedita was following other interests and moved to Saddle River, N.J. Whitley was her natural successor and bought the corporation in July 1991.
“I’ve known Shari for a long, long time and I think she’s a very fine person,” said Sedita, who now owns several Jenny Craig Weight Loss Centers in New Jersey. “I picked Shari because she was an excellent franchisee, a good businesswoman and knew the health club business.”
With Whitley’s purchase came a lot of changes, including the addition of step aerobic classes and the Think Light program, a low-fat living plan.
“Women are more educated now in the world of fitness,” she said. “They want great facilities, good equipment and service and nutritional guidance.”
Terry Mullody Guymon, director of EHS Christ Hospital’s Women’s Health Center in Tinley Park, agreed that women are becoming increasingly knowledgeable about fitness and nutrition.
“Everything you read or pick up has something on fitness in it,” she said. “There’s a higher level of understanding.”
After Whitley’s purchase, the Downers Grove club was modernized and enlarged to double its original size. An architectural specialist on health clubs was brought in to help design the recently opened 11,000-square-foot club in Carol Stream.
“We wanted a new look and image,” Whitley said. “We needed more space and to add amenities, the most important of which was the nursery.”
Staffed nurseries are colorfully decorated and include toys for children from 1 through 10 years old. No reservations are required for the free service, and children are separated from the workout floor.
What came out of this was the prototype for future clubs. A large aerobics floor is surrounded by stations with Lifesteps, treadmills, Nautilus weights for women and free weights. Accessorized with green plants throughout and painted in pale blues, pinks and mauves, the atmosphere is warm and inviting.
“It’s appealing to women and it’s also more modern and upbeat,” Whitley said. “It’s the club of the future. We want to offer top-notch facilities to women and a no-nonsense approach to fitness.”
While costs vary by location size, club size and estimated number of members, an average franchise runs from $300,000 to $500,000, Whitley said.
Lindenhurst resident Sandy Sass was one of the first franchisees. In December 1985, Sass joined the newly opened Women’s Workout World in Highland Park. At that time, she asked the operations manager if there were any franchises available.
“I thought it was great and wanted my own,” she said.
Sass now owns three clubs, in Mundelein, Crystal Lake and Arlington Heights.
“It’s great because of the training that’s available,” she said. “Shari’s doing a fantastic job of bringing the clubs into the ’90s and providing excellent training programs. The communication between corporate clubs and franchises is very good.”
As with the corporate clubs, Sass expanded the Mundelein and Arlington Heights clubs to add staffed nurseries.
“It’s opened new doors for us. Many of our old members can come work out during the day,” she said. “And there’s no interference to women who don’t want little children around while they work out.”
Mark Parsons, an exercise physiologist at Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, said it’s very beneficial for individuals to belong to health clubs because they get use of expensive, state-of-the-art equipment at a reasonable cost. As part of his position, Parsons toured Women’s Workout World and had positive impressions of the operation. He said he thinks the clubs is beneficial and noted instructors are certified; however, he said he thinks clubs tend to be overcrowded at peak times.
“Women’s Workout World is satisfying a certain need,” he said. “It’s also very specific to women. The club is definitely a plus.”
Chicago resident Debra Rizdy joined the Oak Lawn club seven years ago, when she weighed 20 pounds more than she does now.
“It took me about two years to get it off and I’ve kept it off ever since,” she said. “I like the fact there are all women there. Working out with guys makes me feel uncomfortable.”
Although she’s reached her goal, Rizdy continues to go for two hours every day during the week.
“Going there has given me self-confidence. The better I started to look, the better I started to feel,” she said. “It’s a way of life for me, just like getting up and brushing my teeth.”
Orland Hills resident Katie Frederick calls the Women’s Workout World in Tinley Park her “second home.” Her husband bought her the membership two years ago when she weighed 183 pounds. Since then she’s lost 38 pounds.
“I had tried a lot of yo-yo dieting and I always gained it all back,” she recalled. “When I first walked in I was very intimidated because I went during spring break when there were nothing but young girls there. I tried to call and cancel but the manager asked me to come try it for a week.”
That initial conversation inspired her to continue, Frederick said. “It’s become my home away from home. The people who work there are very supportive. I couldn’t have done it without them. I’ve also met a lot of people there and we try to keep each other motivated.”
Currently the clubs in Downers Grove, Carol Stream, Lawrence and Western Avenues in Chicago and Tinley Park all meet the new design. Whitley is in the process of targeting two more clubs for renovation and opening another 10 clubs throughout the Chicago area. She also hopes to expand franchising opportunities to neighboring states.
With so much responsibility, Whitley has had to quit teaching aerobics.
“I couldn’t be put on the (teaching) schedule. Something always pops up,” she said. “It’s more difficult for me to stay in shape. I have to schedule it in. Women are having to balance very complicated lifestyles. I admire them.”
On top of that, she said she wants to continue education for club members and staff.
“Women’s Workout World offers a relaxed atmosphere. Everyone comes here for one reason-to get in shape. The whole key is education,” she said. “There’s no magic, no miracle cure, diets don’t work. What works is a combination of sensible eating and exercise.”
