Business for Unicorns logo

Helping great human beings become great gym owners

Learn the playbook behind a $34m gym.
bfu about

Meet Mark & Michael

bfu theater 2000s 2011

2000s - 2011

Theater kids to renegade fitness misfits

After bonding while doing community theater in high school, Mark & Michael pursue their post-college careers: Mark as an actor in NYC and Michael as a modern dancer in Philadelphia.
Mark pursues his fitness passion, gets certified, and starts making a name among Broadway performers. Michael works at the Four Seasons and becomes a hospitality expert.

2011 to 2012

Mark Fisher Fitness opens in NYC

Mark launches a six-week bootcamp that quickly becomes legendary in the Broadway community. Michael senses a business opportunity and persuades Mark into starting a “real business.”
They quickly hire some trainers, get a lease, and accidentally open a delightfully weird unicorn-branded gym.
bfu 2011 to 2012
bfu 2013 to 2015

2013 to 2015

MFF Becomes a Nationally Known Gym

After breaking $1m in their first year, MFF does $2m in Year 2, $3m in Year 3, and $4m in Year 4.
The press starts to pay attention to the strange unicorn gym in midtown Manhattan.
MFF would go on to gross nearly $34M between 2012 and 2024.

2016 to 2017

Business for Unicorns is born

After MFF was listed as #312 on Inc 500 and featured in The New York Times, The Wall St. Journal, Forbes, Men’s Health, and many other media, Mark and Michael start giving talks about what the hell they’re doing (including a TEDx talk on culture).
Businesses start to reach out asking for consulting and coaching. The duo start to offer a handful of workshops, courses, and coaching services. They name their new company “Business for Unicorns” after Mark’s nascent business blog.
bfu 2016 to 2017
bfu 2018 to 2023

2018 to 2023

Unicorn Society & the BFU ecosystem

Mark and Michael streamline BFU’s focus and go all-in on the business model they know best: gyms. They start a small coaching group called The Unicorn Society. Michael launches the Business for Unicorns podcasts. It grows to hundreds of episodes and creates a cult-like following for a certain kind of fitness business nerd.
Also in this period… something something pandemic. In spite of being closed for classes for 18 months, MFF survives and thrives by pivoting to an online class perform that exists to this day.

2024 to 2025

Doubling down on mentorship

Mark and Michael successfully exit Mark Fisher Fitness by selling to a former trainer and long time coaching client. Mark continues to run a franchise gym in NJ and Michael pursues his Doctorate in Leadership, adding to his MA in Organizational Psychology from Columbia.
They focus their newly freed up bandwidth on BFU and helping gym owners at a bigger and more comprehensive scale.
bfu 2024 to 2025
bfu present day

Present day

Helping hundreds of gym owners worldwide

Today Business for Unicorns helps hundreds of gym owners around the world get more leads, grow their revenue, and build a gym and a life they love without burning out.

Meet the Coaching Team

Mark Fisher

Mark Fisher

Built Mark Fisher Fitness into one of the country’s highest-grossing gyms, generating $34m in sales over 13 years before selling it in 2024.
Michael Keeler

Michael Keeler

Co-founded Mark Fisher Fitness, a two-time Inc. 5000 company featured in Forbes, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal.
Pete Dupuis

Pete Dupuis

Co-founded Cressey Sports Performance, which is widely considered one of the most successful athlete-training gyms in the world.
Ben Pickard

Ben Pickard

Founded Lean Strong Fitness & Wellness, where he averaged $150k+ in profit over the last 10 years, and is now the COO of BFU.

Apply to Unicorn Society

Hop on a quick call to get a demo for exactly how we help gym owners create more income, more impact, and more freedom.
APPLY

Gym Report Card

Fill out the form below to get instant access!