Today we’d like to introduce you to Steffen Brandt.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Bodystreet is a boutique fitness studio that works with Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS).
It’s a franchise based in Germany and super popular in Europe. There are more than 350 studios globally, and we are the first in the US. A 2o minute workout just once a week is all it takes. It gives you the same benefits compared to a 2-3 hour workout in a regular gym. Our workouts take place with max 2 clients at a time and are always guided by a professional Personal Trainer.
My husband, Reiner, and I have been happy Bodystreet clients in Munich for more than 5 years. One day, a friend of ours introduced us to the CEO and founder of Bodystreet, Matthias Lehner. We learned that Bodystreet is about to expand to the US as soon as the devices got clearance by the FDA. That’s where it all started. We had a lot to think and consider.
We already hat a vacation home in Florida (in Celebration) as we first fell in love with Disney, later on with the whole Central Florida region with all its countless possibilities and things to do. It was a step-by-step process where we finally decided to quit our long-term corporate careers and go all in. We applied for our business visa – and here we are. Bodystreet in Winter Park opened end of 2020.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
All went smoothly until the pandemic hit.
We had found a perfect location in Winter Park, have started the build-out, and were ready to open in March 2020. However, our visa process was still ongoing, the US consulates in Germany shut down and we had to leave the US after our tourist visa expired. After a nice but nerve-wracking summer we spent in Munich/Germany we came back in October 2020.
The consulates opened again some weeks after and we got our visa granted. Now we were finally settled to get our adventure started.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Before being self-employed with Bodystreet, I spent all of my professional 28 years long career with just two US-based employers, McDonald’s and Apple. I started as a 16-years old with a weekend job and worked my career ladder up to the Munich Headquarters of McDonald’s, being responsible for the company-owned restaurants in Southern Germany.
My career at Apple started as store leader of the sixth Apple store in Germany. In the last five years, I was responsible for the Apple stores in northern Germany. I think my success was always about being able to connect with people and building awesome teams. I enjoyed working for two companies with iconic brands and great corporate culture.
My husband, Reiner used to work for more than 20 years with Allianz, a global financial services provider. He started in Communications and switched later to several positions in HR. Latest, he was Global Head of HR at the Allianz internal reinsurance branch. He also sees his career always based on managing relationships – and this is what we both enjoy in our new career at Bodystreet, too.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk-taking?
Quitting long-lasting corporate careers, leaving the home country, and opening the first studio of its kind in the US is certainly quite a risk we both undertook.
Without taking risks it’s sometimes difficult to progress – professionally and also in private life. We both liked our lives in Germany a lot but we took an opportunity we had evaluated thoroughly. Taking the risks we were and are also prepared to downscale our way of life.
As an example, living in Central Florida now, we don’t feel the need for many or expensive vacations like we used to have in the past.
Pricing:
- Starting from $39.90 per session
Contact Info:
- Email: winterpark@bodystreet.com
- Website: www.bodystreet.us/winter-park
- Instagram: @bodystreet_winter_park
- Facebook: @bodystreet.winterpark
- Yelp: www.yelp.com/biz/bodystreet-winter-park
