For the last 24 years I have held two diet and fitness classes at the Holiday Inn in Leicester city centre on a Monday evening. It has been a long and happy relationship and five years ago the Holiday Inn have even named a meeting room after me – The Conley Room. Hundreds of ladies and some men have happily come along to enjoy a workout and dietary advice every week during that time. In fact the classes were being held there even before my famous Hip and Thigh Diet was written or published. Today, 15 or so of my members have been attending for over 20 years! And yes, they do get a concession!
This Holiday Inn was built in the 1960’s and right next door is an NCP car park. This is a perfect scenario. Lots of parking next to a large hotel in the centre of a city. However, the problem that has arisen is that NCP have decided to increase their tariff to a level that makes parking there just too costly. For one of my members to park for the 1 ½ hour class duration, it costs £3.10. That means that for someone paying the full class fee (i.e. not someone who has been coming to me for the last 20 years) has to pay £5.50 + £3.10! The Holiday Inn has no control over these charges and it must be really tough for them. If you stay as a resident at the hotel you obviously get your ticket stamped and the hotel pick up the tab. If you are attending a function or meeting, obviously they don’t. I dread to think what the increased cost must be doing to their business.
Anyway, back to my class. I have now taken the decision to relocate my class slightly out of town. I have found a beautiful suburban golf club who are happy for me to book their function room and offer free parking, and my members have been amazingly accommodating. Some have had a trial run in their cars, some have consulted the bus timetables and others have arranged car-sharing to get there. I am grateful to them. We start in our new venue on 2nd November.
The funny thing is that I’m actually quite excited about it all. I am looking forward to welcoming new members from the locality as well as continuing to support my long standing and loyal ‘Gold Star’ members. If it were not for their loyalty over the years maybe I would not still be taking classes but we have a fun time and we are all slimmer, fitter and healthier as a result. They provided the model for the creation of Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness Clubs that now run all over the UK today – almost 2,000 classes a week attended by around 80,000 members. Our fabulous franchisees, all highly qualified, are doing exactly the same thing for their members and making a difference to their lives. Long may we all continue!
For details of your nearest class go to www.rosemaryconley.com or visit www.rosemaryconleyonline.com if there is no class near you.
This Holiday Inn was built in the 1960’s and right next door is an NCP car park. This is a perfect scenario. Lots of parking next to a large hotel in the centre of a city. However, the problem that has arisen is that NCP have decided to increase their tariff to a level that makes parking there just too costly. For one of my members to park for the 1 ½ hour class duration, it costs £3.10. That means that for someone paying the full class fee (i.e. not someone who has been coming to me for the last 20 years) has to pay £5.50 + £3.10! The Holiday Inn has no control over these charges and it must be really tough for them. If you stay as a resident at the hotel you obviously get your ticket stamped and the hotel pick up the tab. If you are attending a function or meeting, obviously they don’t. I dread to think what the increased cost must be doing to their business.
Anyway, back to my class. I have now taken the decision to relocate my class slightly out of town. I have found a beautiful suburban golf club who are happy for me to book their function room and offer free parking, and my members have been amazingly accommodating. Some have had a trial run in their cars, some have consulted the bus timetables and others have arranged car-sharing to get there. I am grateful to them. We start in our new venue on 2nd November.
The funny thing is that I’m actually quite excited about it all. I am looking forward to welcoming new members from the locality as well as continuing to support my long standing and loyal ‘Gold Star’ members. If it were not for their loyalty over the years maybe I would not still be taking classes but we have a fun time and we are all slimmer, fitter and healthier as a result. They provided the model for the creation of Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness Clubs that now run all over the UK today – almost 2,000 classes a week attended by around 80,000 members. Our fabulous franchisees, all highly qualified, are doing exactly the same thing for their members and making a difference to their lives. Long may we all continue!
For details of your nearest class go to www.rosemaryconley.com or visit www.rosemaryconleyonline.com if there is no class near you.
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