How the 24 Hour Fitness Founder built a gym empire

How the 24 Hour Fitness Founder built a gym empire

Richard Simmons, Tony Horton, and Billy Blanks – you may know them as the larger-than-life faces of the fitness industry from the past 40 years. You know them in large part because they all came into your home through televised fitness classes and around the clock infomercials. One person from the fitness world you probably haven't heard of is Mark Mastrov, although his impact is no less than those public-facing names. Mastrov is now a 68-year-old fitness industry pioneer who co-founded 24 Hour Fitness in 1983 and transformed it from a single gym into a global powerhouse with over 420 clubs and 4.5 million members before selling it in 2005 for $1.6 billion. Born in Oakland, California, Mastrov identified a critical market gap—gyms weren't open 24/7—and revolutionized the fitness industry by opening up accessibility. After selling 24 Hour Fitness in 2005, Mastrov went on to gain control of Crunch Fitness and founded UFC Gym with the likes of Dana White. He even became an owner of the NBA’s Sacramento Kings. In January 2026, Mastrov teamed up with LongRange Capital to repurchase 24 Hour Fitness and continue its rejuvenation campaign post-2020 bankruptcy. Mastrov joined the Opening Bid Unfiltered podcast with Yahoo Finance executive editor Brian Sozzi to discuss the future of fitness and how to build a successful business time and again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episoder(252)

From near bankruptcy to a $1B deal in just 40 days

From near bankruptcy to a $1B deal in just 40 days

From an entrepreneur to trying to reinvent a claim to fame to win in the era of artificial intelligence. This is where we find Ring's chief inventor, Jamie Siminoff. Siminoff founded Ring in 2013, whi...

9 Feb 24min

Klaus Schwab on Davos, power and why trust is breaking down

Klaus Schwab on Davos, power and why trust is breaking down

Reflecting on decades of work to make the world a better place. That is where Yahoo Finance Executive Editor Brian Sozzi finds World Economic Forum (WEF) founder Dr. Klaus Schwab, who just published a...

5 Feb 27min

This startup is publishing 3,000 AI podcasts a week - on purpose

This startup is publishing 3,000 AI podcasts a week - on purpose

Artificial intelligence is having profound impacts on Corporate America. But it’s also beginning to impact how humans create content and interact with it. It’s hard to imagine this impact doesn’t inte...

2 Feb 27min

The billion-dollar race to fix America’s sleep crisis

The billion-dollar race to fix America’s sleep crisis

The business of sleep has gone well beyond hawking mattresses, pillows, and bedframes. And it’s with good reason that seemingly everyone is analyzing their sleep data on various hardware devices. Roug...

29 Jan 23min

Why Bill Gurley says AI investing is becoming crowded

Why Bill Gurley says AI investing is becoming crowded

One of the most prolific venture capitalists of the past 20 years is looking to share some wisdom to the next generation of investors and job seekers. Benchmark general partner Bill Gurley is seen as ...

26 Jan 26min

Bilt CEO says your rent isn't building your future

Bilt CEO says your rent isn't building your future

Bilt is entering its next chapter. As the payments and rewards platform for over 70% of the top rental companies nationwide, Bilt is now eyeing several new product launches to kick off 2026. The compa...

20 Jan 24min

Patrick McEnroe on competition beyond the court

Patrick McEnroe on competition beyond the court

From the tennis court to the broadcast booth. Yahoo Finance executive editor Brian Sozzi sits down on the Opening Bid Unfiltered podcast with former professional tennis player Patrick McEnroe. McEnroe...

14 Jan 28min

Everyone’s watching tech but the next big deals may be industrial

Everyone’s watching tech but the next big deals may be industrial

There are dealmakers on Wall Street, and then there are the teams at Perella Weinberg. If you have a big deal to get done as a CEO, this is one of your first stops on the Street to try and make it hap...

12 Jan 24min

Populært innen Business og økonomi

stopp-verden
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
dine-penger-pengeradet
e24-podden
rss-penger-polser-og-politikk
rss-borsmorgen-okonominyhetene
pengepodden-2
pengesnakk
livet-pa-veien-med-jan-erik-larssen
rss-politisk-preik
utbytte
morgenkaffen-med-finansavisen
tid-er-penger-en-podcast-med-peter-warren
finansredaksjonen
lederpodden
stormkast-med-valebrokk-stordalen
rss-markedspuls-2
liberal-halvtime
rss-sunn-okonomi
rss-pa-konto