Movement LAB: Subscription, Retention, Success 

Andrius Česnauskas is the founder of Movement LAB, a boutique fitness studio that is looking to change the way that people think about exercise. Movement LAB was designed to be that much more than the average gym. “The most important thing for me is to create a space where people can feel good.”

Few subscription-based businesses are harder to maintain than owning a gym. Clients sign up, train sporadically before losing interest, and then cancel their membership. It’s the kind of joke you hear all around the world. Andrius Česnauskas believes that the reason most people give up is not that training is hard but that the regular gym environment is just not suited to modern client expectations.

“There are a lot of trainers who have fitness studios, and they work very hard themselves. But if you ask me, most trainers don’t realize how to make a business out of it.” For Andrius, that meant realizing that most clients don’t want to become bodybuilders. “Our clients are not just thinking about their immediate image, but also their future. They want to feel healthy, happy, and enjoy exercise.”

Creating a Concept

Ambiance proved to be the key to unlocking the potential of the business. “We are trying to incorporate sport into a person’s lifestyle because our clients already have lives of their own. They don’t want the gym to be the core of their weekly schedule, they want to exercise to reduce chronic pain, get a better night’s sleep, and have a better quality of life.

“The niche itself is quite narrow, but by making sure that we are really giving our clients personal attention, creating a space with lots of daylight and high-quality coffee for like-minded people to chat and relax pre-and post-workout, we have developed something special that works.” 

Client Retention

Movement LAB is aimed at a more professional audience than most fitness studios. “Our clientele is roughly 70% female, and the average age bracket is around 30 – 35 years old. They tend to have stable jobs, most have families, and they are definitely not looking for a place where people are always showing off – that’s important.”

Andrius believes that his concept is the first of its kind in Lithuania. While his niche is small, he recognizes the fact that the success of any subscription-based business model is built on retaining clients. “Luckily, I guess, our clients are forward-thinking; they want to live a long life,” he jokes. Still, the best jokes are always steeped in truth, and for Andrius, that truth is self-evident: “Our clients want to feel good, and that is the basis of everything we do at Movement LAB.”

While SaaS businesses might talk about reducing churn, Andrius prefers to think about building a community. “In a regular gym, you’re just focused on yourself – it’s quite a solitary experience. In our studio, there is no such thing as exercising on your own. Our clients work out with a trainer in small groups of up to 6 people.”

The business case for the success of Movement LAB is clear: take small groups of like-minded individuals, create a tasteful space, offer high-quality services, and people will want to return. 

It’s well known that people who go to the gym together tend to be more committed. “We chose the small group format because it is quite expensive to work out with a personal trainer one on one. This way, we can offer our clients a personalized fitness routine at a lower price point. Regardless of the fact that our clients are in the same workout session, they do different exercises according to their individual needs and desires for the program.” In essence, Movement LAB offers bespoke personal training while also cultivating the sense of camaraderie that keeps clients coming back.

Building for Success

According to Andrius, clients come to Movement LAB because they didn’t find what they wanted anywhere else. “My perspective on fitness is to approach everything through the prism of wellness.” For many, the key to wellness is balance, and a large part of that is reflected in the space itself, which Andrius created with a team of interior designers. “When you first come in, you feel at home. You see the sofa, the flowers, and the coffee machine – I asked the designers to make it look nice, to make it Instagrammable, and I made it functional, ergonomic, and practical.”

Once Andrius has a person through the door, he is sure that he will be able to turn them into a client. Yet, he understands that people come across his business online. “Every single Movement LAB client came to us through our website – it’s the core of our business growth.”

For Andrius, keeping Movementlab.lt online at all times is vital. Like most small business owners, his main communication channels are on social media. “That’s how my marketing funnel works. I buy paid advertising on Facebook and Instagram, and it leads directly to my website.” After that, he makes sure that the first section of his website represents the concept of the studio. Then it’s about the trainers who work there, the pricing list, and finally a registration form. “It’s really simple, and this way, I save time, I have a very high conversion rate, and I get high-quality contacts from social media advertising.”

With so much of his success dependent on his website, Andrius has had to shop around to find web hosting that could match his ambition and dedication. “I’ve been using Hostinger as my business web hosting for the past two years now, and I also use it to buy domain names. What I like about Hostinger is that everything is integrated – I like having everything in one place. Compared to the hosting services I’ve used before, I find that Hostinger offers me more information while also being easier to understand.

“I find it very user-friendly and very simple. At the moment, I have about 15 domains in total because I see their potential, and I might use them in the future. For example, personaltrainer.lt currently redirects to my main Movement LAB page. When Hostinger makes it so easy to manage your domains, I think it makes sense to take them if I think I’ve had a good idea for a name.

“Your web page is your first impression and a huge part of your business image as a whole. When my clients google Movement LAB, what do they see? They see the quality of the website, they see how fast it loads, and they see how well designed it is. I believe it’s the little things that make up the big picture. It’s how I manage my online presence, and it’s how I run my business too.”

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