JOB DESCRIPTIONAVP / VP – Wellness & Fitness
Location: Chennai, Tamil Nadu Function: Wellness, Fitness & Healthcare Designation: Assistant Vice President / Vice President Level: HOD – Wellness & Fitness Division Reporting To: CEO / Managing Director / Business Head
1. Role Purpose
The AVP / VP – Wellness & Fitness will be responsible for building, leading and scaling the Wellness & Fitness division across Chennai and Tamil Nadu.
The role requires a senior business leader with strong exposure to gyms, fitness centres, wellness businesses, health clubs, preventive wellness, sports & fitness operations, or allied lifestyle businesses.
The incumbent will own the division as an HOD, with responsibility for business strategy, P&L, operations, customer experience, sales, memberships, partnerships, people, brand development and expansion.
The ideal candidate should have a strong understanding of the Tamil Nadu fitness and wellness ecosystem, particularly Chennai, and should be capable of converting the division into a professionally managed and scalable business.
2. Key ResponsibilitiesA. Business & Division Leadership
- Lead the entire Wellness & Fitness division as the functional HOD.
- Develop the annual business strategy, operating plan and growth roadmap.
- Define business objectives, revenue targets, profitability targets and KPIs.
- Drive the division towards sustainable revenue and EBITDA growth.
- Identify new business opportunities, market segments and revenue streams.
- Develop scalable business models for fitness and wellness centres.
B. Gym & Fitness Operations
- Provide strategic oversight of gym, fitness centre, wellness and allied operations.
- Establish operating standards across all centres.
- Improve membership acquisition, activation, retention and renewal.
- Monitor centre-level performance and productivity.
- Drive utilisation of facilities, trainers and wellness services.
- Establish SOPs for customer service, fitness delivery, safety and centre operations.
- Ensure consistent customer experience across locations.
C. P&L & Commercial Management
- Own the P&L of the Wellness & Fitness division.
- Drive revenue through memberships, personal training, wellness programs, corporate memberships, events, packages and partnerships.
- Monitor centre-wise revenue, costs, margins and profitability.
- Establish pricing, packages, promotions and revenue optimisation strategies.
- Prepare annual budgets and business forecasts.
- Identify cost optimisation and operational efficiency opportunities.
D. Sales & Membership Growth
- Develop the overall membership acquisition strategy.
- Build effective lead-generation, conversion and membership-retention systems.
- Set targets for sales and membership teams.
- Develop corporate, institutional and B2B wellness partnerships.
- Drive referral, loyalty and membership upgrade programs.
- Improve conversion ratios and customer lifetime value.
E. Wellness Business Development
- Build and expand wellness offerings beyond conventional gym operations.
- Explore opportunities in:
- Preventive wellness
- Corporate wellness
- Weight management
- Nutrition
- Lifestyle management
- Recovery and rehabilitation
- Sports performance
- Mind & body wellness
- Senior wellness
- Women-focused wellness
- Integrated fitness programs
- Identify emerging wellness trends and convert them into commercially viable offerings.
F. Expansion & New Centre Development
- Evaluate potential locations across Chennai and Tamil Nadu.
- Conduct market and competitor analysis for new centres.
- Support feasibility studies and business cases for new locations.
- Develop centre launch plans and operational readiness frameworks.
- Build a scalable expansion model for the division.
G. People & Leadership
- Build and lead a high-performance leadership team.
- Develop the organisation structure for the Wellness & Fitness division.
- Recruit, coach and retain senior fitness, operations, sales and wellness professionals.
- Establish performance management systems and KPIs.
- Develop career paths and succession plans for key positions.
- Create a strong service-oriented and performance-driven culture.
H. Customer Experience
- Establish customer experience standards across all fitness and wellness facilities.
- Monitor customer feedback, complaints, NPS and retention.
- Develop customer engagement and loyalty initiatives.
- Ensure premium service delivery and strong member relationships.
- Create differentiated experiences that improve customer retention.
I. Brand & Market Development
- Work closely with Marketing to build the fitness and wellness brand.
- Develop local market positioning for Chennai and Tamil Nadu.
- Build strategic alliances with corporates, hospitals, sports organisations, residential communities, educational institutions and other relevant partners.
- Represent the organisation at industry forums and business events.
J. Governance & Compliance
- Ensure compliance with applicable statutory, safety, health and operational requirements.
- Establish governance mechanisms for all centres.
- Monitor operational risks, safety standards and service quality.
- Implement regular business reviews and performance dashboards.
3. Key Performance Indicators
The role will be evaluated on:
- Overall division revenue
- EBITDA / operating profitability
- Membership acquisition
- Membership renewal and retention
- Customer acquisition cost
- Lead-to-membership conversion
- Average revenue per member
- Personal training revenue
- Centre utilisation
- Customer satisfaction / NPS
- New centre launches
- Centre-level profitability
- Employee productivity and retention
- B2B / corporate wellness partnerships
- Overall market growth across Chennai and Tamil Nadu
4. Candidate ProfileEducational Qualification
- Bachelor's degree in Business Management, Hospitality, Sports Management, Healthcare, Fitness, Wellness or related discipline.
- MBA / PGDM will be an advantage.
- Relevant certifications in fitness, wellness, sports management or healthcare will be an added advantage.
Experience
- 15+ years of overall experience, with substantial senior leadership exposure.
- Proven experience in Gym / Fitness / Wellness / Health Club / Sports / Preventive Healthcare / Lifestyle business.
- Should have handled a multi-location or sizeable fitness/wellness operation.
- Experience in P&L ownership and business leadership is strongly preferred.
- Strong exposure to the Chennai and Tamil Nadu market is highly desirable.
Industry Background – Preferred
Candidates from the following sectors may be considered:
- Premium / large gym chains
- Fitness centres
- Health clubs
- Wellness centres
- Integrated wellness businesses
- Sports & fitness organisations
- Preventive healthcare
- Corporate wellness
- Hospitality wellness / spa businesses
- Healthcare and lifestyle businesses
- Fitness technology / wellness platforms
5. Core Competencies
- Strategic Business Leadership
- P&L Management
- Fitness & Wellness Operations
- Membership Growth
- Sales & Revenue Management
- Business Development
- Multi-location Operations
- Customer Experience
- Team Leadership
- Market Expansion
- Partnership Development
- Financial Acumen
- Data-driven Decision Making
- Change Management
- Stakeholder Management
6. Leadership Expectations
The candidate should be capable of functioning independently as the HOD of the Wellness & Fitness vertical, rather than operating only as a functional gym/fitness manager.
The individual should be able to:
- Build the division from strategy to execution.
- Develop the organisation structure and leadership team.
- Own the complete business P&L.
- Establish systems, processes and governance.
- Drive revenue and profitability.
- Build a strong fitness and wellness brand.
- Identify and execute expansion opportunities.
- Create strategic partnerships across Tamil Nadu.
- Present business performance and strategic recommendations to the CEO / MD.
- Build the division into a scalable, profitable and professionally managed business vertical.
7. Ideal Candidate Profile
An established fitness and wellness business leader with strong Chennai/Tamil Nadu market knowledge, proven gym or wellness industry experience, P&L ownership, multi-location exposure and the ability to build and lead an entire business vertical as an HOD.
The candidate should combine commercial leadership + fitness/wellness domain expertise + operational excellence + people leadership, with the maturity to operate at AVP / VP level.
Preferred Location
Chennai / Tamil Nadu
Travel
Willingness to travel across Chennai and Tamil Nadu as required for business operations, expansion and centre reviews.
Reporting Level
CEO / Managing Director / Business Head
Role Classification
Senior Leadership – HOD / Business Vertical Head
Pay: ₹1,200,000.00 - ₹2,000,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Flexible schedule
Work Location: In person