1. Challenge
When Riser Fitness opened its second Club Pilates studio in 2016, the founding team needed the financial discipline of a mature enterprise—but on a start up budget. Rapid franchising created pain points:
- No consolidated view across newly formed LLCs
- Manual tracking of royalties, marketing fees, and shared payroll flowing between entities
- Heavy owner involvement in the monthly close, leaving little room to pursue growth opportunities
- A looming systems overhaul once studio count outgrew QuickBooks Online
2. RISE Consulting Solution
| Phase | Our Actions | Highlights |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation (2016–17) |
|
Reduced owner time spent on books by >80% in the first six months |
| Scale Up (2018–22) |
|
Enabled an opening cadence of ~2 studios/month without adding HQ headcount |
| Enterprise Upgrade (2022–24) |
|
First three consolidated closes in NetSuite delivered in 7 days, down from 21 |
| People Transition (2024) |
|
Internal staff now own 95% of routine close tasks |
| Strategic Advisory (2025–present) |
|
Smooth leadership hand-off while retaining strategic continuity |
3. Results That Matter
- Studio count multiplied 40× in under nine years (2 → ~80 by April 2025) while maintaining GAAP‑compliant financials each month.
- Month‑end close cycle cut from 20+ days to 5, enabling timely KPI dashboards for district managers.
- Clean NetSuite data & audited statements accelerated investor due‑diligence, securing a nine‑figure growth facility and expanded credit lines.
- Seamless leadership hand‑off—RISE moved from “doer” to “coach,” leaving a self‑sufficient accounting department yet remaining the trusted strategic advisor.
4. What the Client Says
“RISE built our finance backbone from the ground up. Their team proved we could open studios at lightning speed without sacrificing visibility or control. Bringing in a full time CFO was the next logical step—and RISE made that transition painless.”
— Eduardo Lombardi, Managing Member, Riser Fitness
Note: Quote reproduced with client permission, full testimonial available upon request.
5. Key Takeaways for Founders & Franchise Operators
- Invest early in scalable processes. Your ERP and chart of accounts must anticipate 50 entities, not just five.
- Outsource until the inflection point. Fractional experts bridge the gap between start‑up chaos and enterprise discipline.
- Data quality drives capital access. Institutional investors reward clean numbers with better terms.
- Plan your exit from day one. A phased engagement roadmap ensures a smooth hand‑over to internal staff and leadership when growth economics justify it.
How We Delivered This Project
Need a finance partner to fuel your own rollout? Let’s talk. RISE Consulting delivers the people, processes, and platforms that turn big visions into auditable results—at a fraction of the cost of building it all in house.