Running an Independent Fitness Studio during a Pandemic: RUNN’s Keith Kimble

In this episode of Restarting America, Jeremy Greenberg from 97 Switch interviews Keith Kimble, the founder of Runn Chicago. Throughout the interview, they discuss the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on business and society. Kimble shares how the current health pandemic has affected his company and how he is adapting to new circumstances.

Kimble hails from Winston-Salem, N.C. and attended the University of Tennessee where he studied Political Science. After college he went into marketing and sales, working in the automotive industry and legal fields helping businesses build their customer bases and increase profitability.  

While not an athlete by any means, Kimble has always shown an interest in fitness. As a hobby, he taught indoor cycling, mostly as a way to snag free gym memberships. Over the years, in addition to indoor cycling, he branched into most fitness disciplines, from strength to aqua aerobics with elderly populations, all while maintaining his full-time sales gig. 

In 2010, Kimble gave up his sales job and moved into fitness full time. However, to maintain his income level, he taught upwards of 40 group classes per week to hundreds of gym members. In 2017, Kimble decided to open his own group fitness gym, Runn Chicago with a very simple concept, group fitness on treadmills set to banging music playlists.