Business Profile: Fitness Factor in Arcadia

Maggie and Kevin Riddle, co-owners of Fitness Factor in Downtown Arcadia. – Courtesy photo / Fitness Factor Arcadia

By The Downtown Arcadia Improvement Association

For this week’s column, the Downtown Arcadia Improvement Association sat down with Maggie Riddle, co-owner of Fitness Factor for an interview to find out more about their wildly successful Downtown Arcadia business.

Tell us a little bit about your business Fitness Factor?

We are a personal training and small group fitness gym located at 24 N. 1^st Ave. in Downtown Arcadia. We offer everything from boot camp classes to kids’ group classes to one-on-one personal training. We’re open seven days a week and train people of all ages and fitness levels. At Fitness Factor, we pride ourselves on being very welcoming to new clients and creating a healthy and supportive community.

How did you guys get started?

My husband Kevin Riddle was working as a trainer in the area and about eight years ago decided to go into business for himself. At the time, I was working a corporate job and continued in that career until about five years ago when I joined him here full-time. We are both very passionate about fitness. Kevin and I have competed in fitness competitions, I’ve completed several marathons and Kevin has done a number of triathlons. We have both been very active and health conscious all of our lives and that’s something we really try to instill in our clients.

Why did you choose Downtown Arcadia to open your business?

Kevin was already working nearby and wanted to stay in the area as he had started building a local clientele.  We also really liked the Downtown Arcadia district and over the last eight years have continued to see a lot of positive growth. We’re really excited about the new mixed-use development under construction across the street and the community of residents this will bring to the area. We are definitely getting a lot more foot traffic now compared to when we first opened. Some of our clients even travel to us using the Metro Gold Line train which is great. Overall Downtown Arcadia has been a great location for our business.

How was your experience starting up a new business?

It was definitely a little nerve-racking at the beginning. You always wonder if you’re going to be successful and worry that maybe you won’t have enough clients. I guess in that first year there is a lot of fear as a new business owner. Kevin and I are definitely risk takers though. Every year we try to challenge ourselves by setting a goal to do something that is incredibly scary. We were very fortunate that within the first year the gym had become so busy that I started thinking about joining Kevin full-time.

Where can I find out more information about Fitness Factor?

You can check us out on Instagram @fitnessfactorarcadia or Facebook @FitFactArcadia. We post there pretty much daily. You can also contact us by phone at (626) 487-6010 or drop by in person to learn more about classes and pricing. Be sure to check us out on Yelp as well!

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