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Faragher-Thomas is no Virgin to hard workRoss Faragher-Thomas has been involved with Virgin Active for over a decade, including the turnaround and rebranding of the company. He sits on the managing board of the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship and has been managing director of Virgin Active South Africa since 2009.
I met Faragher-Thomas at the Virgin Active head office in Claremont, Cape Town. I fondly remember meeting him many moons ago when he was still involved with Health and Racquet (H&R) – Virgin Active’s ‘predecessor’ – and I note he is one of the only men left standing from the turbulent demise of that chain.
Most people will remember the dark black swirl that swamped the silver lining of the H&R chain’s cloud back in 2001. Practically a national institution, the demise of the holding company of the chain, LeisureNet, will go down as one of South Africa’s more ignominious business failures.
It was the now-famous call from then President Nelson Mandela to Sir Richard Branson, asking him to save the crippled chain of gyms, which paved the way for a new tomorrow and the dawn of Virgin Active South Africa.
“It was a time of mixed emotions,” admits Faragher-Thomas. “On one hand, it was difficult watching a South African institution literally crumbling in such a short space of time; but at the same time, it was incredibly exciting having such a successful global brand as Virgin stepping into the fray.”
He acknowledges that the famous call from Madiba to Branson inevitably came from a sentimental place, but it has ended up being an extraordinarily sound financial investment.
The Midas touch of Branson is well-known, but there is much thought behind his actions.
“In a country that is conscious about health and fitness, we already knew we had a captive audience. What we had inherited from the H&R debacle was a flawed business and financial model, but a good operational business,” says Faragher-Thomas. “Richard wanted us to take the lead not just in South Africa, but as a global example of what one could accomplish in this business.”
Faragher-Thomas set sail for the United Kingdom in 2003, where he took up the position of MD. Virgin had 11 clubs there, and the team there was given the exciting modus operandi of growing that number and acquiring clubs that were worthy of falling under the Virgin brand.
“Following the Virgin takeover of the H&R chain in South Africa, I had already experienced what happens from integration to rebranding in acquiring and remoulding health clubs under the Virgin banner,” says Faragher-Thomas.
“The next step was seeking out clubs that fit our criteria and ticked all the boxes.”
He had his work cut out for him, though. He explains that the market is far tighter and more competitive overseas and he was very careful in his choice of clubs, as they needed to fit strategically within the Virgin portfolio.
“We only looked at large-format clubs. Ones with multipurpose pools that were family-orientated and the value proposition was compelling,” explains Faragher-Thomas.
The acquisitions started coming in fast and furiously, and by the end of a four-year period, the team had taken Virgin Active from a mere 11 health clubs to a staggering number of 71.
From there, Faragher-Thomas took up the challenge of group operations director, where he oversaw the growth of the brand in Italy and in Spain.
“It was a fantastic experience,” he says with a smile. “Six years living in the UK and across Europe, immersed in the Virgin brand, is something from which no one cannot learn a great deal. I worked alongside a lot of the other Virgin brands and was exposed to so many growth curves that it felt like they had gone off the charts.”
There were many South Africans who were sent over in Faragher-Thomas’s footsteps and he believes that this international exposure has made the South African arm of Virgin Active even stronger.
“South Africa has definitely been a feeder of people and a definite feeder of talent,” he notes.
“And in the same breath, we have taken many elements from overseas and incorporated them into our clubs back home.”
One such example is the impressive and stylishly designed local clubs: The South African Virgin Active property team visited Italy, took inspiration from Italian architecture and incorporated it into their designs here.
“The opportunity to exchange ideas and work on a global level is certainly an incredible part of working for the Virgin brand,” says Faragher-Thomas.
“We want to be a great South African company, in how we look after our customers, to our equipment, our club design, our offerings and our value for money; but we also want to be first on a global level.”
It seems he is well on his way to achieving that goal. He returned to Cape Town in 2009 and took up the reins of MD.
Faragher-Thomas’s enthusiasm is infectious as he walks me around the head office, greeting by name everyone from the tea lady to each individual in the call centre or administration team. One can clearly see he is well liked and respected.
The entire office is done up in the Virgin colours and there is a definitive creative vibe that one would expect to find at the head office of Google or Facebook.
Quirky, yet very productive.
“We have invested more in people, more in brand and more in training,” explains Faragher-Thomas. “To bring in people who are not afraid to speak their mind. We have something we call ‘people strategy’ to attract talent and retain talent. To create an environment where every staff member can have a voice.”
This certainly seems to have paid off, as Virgin Active South Africa was named third best company to work for in its first year of entry into the Deloitte’s “Best Company To Work For” accolade in 2010.
“We have done a great deal in the way of staff and employee engagement initiatives. We’ve turned the business upside down in giving our staff access and in hearing what they have to say and what they think we should be doing to make this a great company to work for,” says Faragher-Thomas with pride.
“We also did road shows and presentations to our staff around the country, along with Q&A sessions, in which we shared the company’s vision and strategy, and emphasised the important role of the customer to us. We’ve spent 18 months implementing those aspects that they felt were important to them. We really got close to our people.”
New initiatives introduced include a medical aid subsidy, improved staff rooms, an international exchange programme and more training – with a particular focus on induction – service delivery and leadership development.
Faragher-Thomas tells me he has an e-mail account that is purely set aside for any points of discussion and topics of debate. “I have an open line of communication, and it is imperative I keep those open,” he says honestly.
Furthermore, once a month Faragher-Thomas holds a luncheon with around 20 randomly chosen staff from around the country.
“There is no agenda. It is just an opportunity to get to know each other better and discuss how we can make this a better company,” he explains.
He gives credit to a great senior management team whom he heavily relies on, and makes specific reference to Symon Wooldridge, who came across from the UK to South Africa and has worked for the Virgin brand for as long as 13 years.
“Symon is our Head of People, as we call the position,” says Faragher-Thomas. “He has been the catalyst in creating our culture and making sure the work environment is one we can all embrace and feel part of.
“Working with people like Richard has a knock-on effect with myself and the Virgin Active staff.
“We want our brand to be like that of a good friend: not stuck-up, not difficult to access regardless of your position in society, whether you are in Houghton or the township,” he adds.
Virgin has been able to do just that in the last few years. It has managed to reach a host of different market segments across different incomes and geographical areas.
It no longer has an upfront payment prerequisite, but only accepts monthly subs. These subs are different for different clubs or packages, so everyone is catered for.
Virgin is currently sitting on 95 clubs, and by 2015, it aims to have 122 clubs active.
While Faragher-Thomas walks me through the very impressive Claremont club, I cannot help but notice, much to his enjoyment, that this is no longer a ‘muscle-pumping sweat shop’ environment, but a very classy lifestyle centre boasting top-of-the-range settees, loads of top-notch PCs with free Internet access, an incredible kids area with basketball hoops and trained child minders – the list goes on.
I felt as if I had dropped by the first-class business lounge on my way to gym, as opposed to actually being in one! It was certainly impressive.
“We want this to be a place where one can feel at home. We are not wanting to sell you a car where you are not sure of what’s happening below the hood,” says Faragher-Thomas. “This should be about enriching people’s lives and offering them all that they need in one place. Hence why we see ourselves more of a lifestyle centre than merely a health club now.”
The Group opened a Classic branch in February at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, while the first general-style club will open in Soweto’s Maponya Mall in August.
“Post-apartheid South Africa offers a new market, as people now have more money that they can use for their health,” says Faragher-Thomas. “We have done an enormous amount of research in Soweto and probably putting out one of our best clubs in the country there.
“When we talk to the emerging black market, we realise just how the demographic landscape is changing. It is going to become one of our flagship clubs, but we have listened to what the audience wants. We will therefore have a section of at least 15 Internet stations, and even a DJ booth and hair salon by popular demand!” he adds.
In his spare time, Faragher-Thomas loves nothing more than spending time with his family, which includes a young daughter, and watching movies and sport.
I ask him who his role models are. “Without a doubt, Steve Jobs [the co-founder of Apple] and, of course, Branson himself,” he says without hesitation. “They are the doyens of customer service.”
It seems Faragher-Thomas may not be too far behind. ▲
Robbie Stammers
