Fitness franchise for Fernley

Fitness has always been a big part of Alex Hilgenberg's life so much so that the 29-year-old University of Nevada, Reno, graduate is staking his fortune in the fitness industry.

Hilgenberg chose booming Fernley to open a 3,370-square-foot Anytime Fitness franchised location. It's one of 700 locations nationwide for the company headquartered at South Hastings, Minn.

A former sales manager for the Las Vegas and Phoenix regions for Automatic Data Processing Inc., Hilgenberg says he bought into the Anytime Fitness franchise model for two reasons: it's financially sound, and he was lacking zeal for his job.

"In sales I needed passion to keep my day fresh, but my passion always has been the fitness industry," he says.

Hilgenberg hopes to cash in on Fernley's dearth of gyms and its ever-increasing manufacturing and industrial workforce.

"Fernley is an explosive market in terms of new commercial and industrial," he says. "It's the seventh-fastest growing county in the country. Fernley really is a 24-hour town when it comes to the industrial park there. They have a number of different shifts, and really the model of Anytime Fitness is that you can use the gym whenever want to. You have 24-hour access to the facility."

Anytime Fitness is located at Chisolm Crossing, 1201 Penny Lane. Hilgenberg expects a soft opening between January 15 and February 15 depending on construction. He used personal funds and a bank loan to secure the building and more than $100,000 in new equipment, with franchise costs running $10,000 to $15,000 depending on a territory's population density.

Janna Page and Joel Grace with NAI Alliance represented the landlord, Fernley Partners Retail LLC, in the lease transaction, while James Lowey of Morrissey Realty represented Hilgenberg.

Reno has two franchised Anytime Fitness locations: 18603 Wedge Parkway and 6370 Mae Anne Ave, with another location expected at Caughlin Ranch. Hilgenberg hopes to expand the brand to Winnemucca and Elko.

"There are a lot of people out there interested in fitness, and they need another option," he says.