Is Going to the Gym a Luxury | Alexandru Lascar | The Samir Kapoor Show

Romania's Health Minister went on national television and called gym memberships a luxury. Not a health necessity, not essential. A luxury. Alexandru Lascar had already built 30 locations by the time he said it. He built 55 anyway. In this full episode of the Alexandru Lascar Podcast on The Samir Kapoor Show, the CEO of StayFit tells the story of building Romania's fastest growing fitness chain from forty thousand euros and no plan in 2012. A VAT rate that jumped from 5% to 21% because a minister decided fitness access was a luxury item rather than a public health tool. Private equity that changed everything. Banks that had never lent to a fitness business before. And a country that did not even recognise fitness as an industry until Romania Active forced that conversation. Alexandru covers how StayFit targets Gen Z with data-driven music, why community kills churn better than any retention tool, the premium Black sub-brand launched in a Bucharest five-star hotel, and why he tells every entrepreneur to find their niche rather than compete with a gym chain on a fraction of the budget. Access to a gym is not a luxury. Alexandru Lascar spent 13 years proving it. 🎧 Full episode out now - link in bio. 00:00 Cold open 00:56 Intro and why Samir loves Romania 02:15 How an engineer built one of the fastest-growing gym chains 03:42 Keeping quality consistent while scaling to 55 gyms 07:53 Aligning the customer profile, staffing and layout 09:19 Building an urban gym that doesn't feel like the office 12:14 Hiring for reception and matching music to the crowd 14:40 Why an independent can't operate like a chain 20:36 The boxing ring mistake that cost 600 members 22:01 Travelling the world to learn each market 22:32 Why equipment is useless without after-sales support 25:46 Romania's gym penetration and visit frequency 28:37 Why low-cost gyms don't work in Romania 29:51 Building the gym around community 35:07 Financial discipline and managing rapid growth 37:31 The 8-month fight to get the first bank loan 41:00 Structuring the business under one entity 43:03 Advice on taking a bank loan without sinking your company 46:50 Pre-sales strategy and the FIA approval problem 50:36 Gym size, capacity and contracts 54:03 Member retention and the European average 56:19 The role of Romania Active and the association 01:00:36 The VAT story and how 5% doubled the industry overnight 01:03:01 The next level of leadership and his right hand man 01:05:30 His calm leadership style 01:07:02 Why his first receptionist still works with him 01:09:25 The Sheraton "Black" premium gym concept 01:14:05 Balancing two kids, a wife and a business 01:17:07 Final advice: find your niche and be the best Subscribe for more conversations on fitness, leadership, and building from nothing. -------------------------------------------------- Follow Samir Kapoor: LinkedIn:   / samirkapoor   Instagram:   / samir.kapoor   X: https://x.com/samir_kapoor_ Threads: https://www.threads.net/@samir.kapoor... Keywords: Alexandru Lascar Podcast, Luxury, Gym, StayFit Romania, Fitness Industry, Eastern Europe, Private Equity, Samir Kapoor Show #alexandrulascar #luxury #gym #stayfitromania #fitnessindustry #easterneurope #privateequity #podcast #samirkapoorshow