Welcome to the 2009 Club Solutions premier list of fitness industry innovators! These individuals have had a significant impact on their own companies, as well as on the industry at large throughout the years. Here, we've uncovered what drives their success and what they plan to do in the future. This list is not all-inclusive and is not meant to be - there are countless success stories that could have easily made the cut - but the individuals we chose represent the best of what the industry has to offer, and we hope you enjoy reading about them!

JEFF SKEEN
CEO, President & Partner of Titan Fitness, Owner & Operator of 16 Gold's Gyms

In 1992, Jeff Skeen became a partner and CFO for the G Group in Fairfax, VA, which owned and operated a Gold's Gym. Over the next six years, he and his partners grew the franchise to 11 locations in four states and became the largest and most profitable Gold's Gym chain in the world. In 1998, the G Group hired PricewaterhouseCoopers to help secure enough capital to purchase Gold's Gym Enterprises, now known as Gold's Gym International (GGI). As a principal and CIO, Skeen designed and implemented the Gold's Gym Information System, a nationwide management system designed to unite GGI's corporate-owned gyms and franchisees. In 2004, he founded Titan Management Solutions, a national consulting firm for Gold's Gyms. Skeen has also assisted in the successful upgrade of GGI's billing systems and has advised many GGI executive team members.

"Every day, I think about ways to touch the 84 percent of Americans not involved in fitness. If all we do as health club operators is pass the 16 percent of Americans who exercise around to each other, we have failed. Every day people are dying from diseases they could have prevented if they'd engaged in a regular form of exercise. Anything other than 100 percent of Americans participating in exercise is unacceptable."

Future Plans: "Titan plans on purchasing and opening 60 gyms in the next five years. We are also building new stores to support investments made in each market. Ultimately, we plan to create a chain that seamlessly integrates exercise, nutrition, personal training, health and medical assessments."