Planet Fitness — Local services in Smyrna

I have been a member of Plane fitness for several years and until now, have always loved and supported the Planet Fitness Moto "Judgement Free Zone" however, I recently moved from Hiram Georgia to Marietta and had to change gym locations to the S. Cobb Drive location. I am saddened to say, that I have been treated with utter disrespect by the staff, A young lady "customer service rep." by the name of Kelly, chastised me in front of many other members, claiming that I was training other pf members in the facility, when the reality is, we were simply working out together. My membership was threatened at that time and I was terribly embarrassed. I wrote a letter on the pf customer support service center, on their website and followed up with a call to their Manager Aaron, at which time nothing was resolved and again, my membership was threatened to be terminated. I requested a face to face meeting with Aaron, he obliged me, at which time we discussed the perception of the style of workout myself and other paying members of the gym were displaying to other patrons of the gym. I was told that I could no longer work out with more than two people at a time. I was shocked! I was told that if anyone else approached me in the gym and asked to workout with me, that I should direct them back to the Manager and he would address it. This hurt me as I enjoy working out with my friends and we have come to rely upon each other for moral support and technique in different routines, but I complied to the rules that Aaron had set forth. This morning, I went to the gym (sick) but not wanting to let my ONE friend down and attempted to work out with her and motivate her through her workout, at which time I was confronted by another member of the PF staff, who was wearing a name badge that said "Aaron, Manager" but his name is actually "Jacob Irishman" in front of about 8 other pf members, one of which was a group of three men, " working out together in a circuit type training" And told that I could not work out with my friend as it looked like I was "training' her. I apologized, explained that I was feeling sick and didn't want to leave her hanging, that I would finish the workout, working out with her. I was again threatened and told that he had the right to tell me to leave the facility. there were two other women working out, that over heard the very loud conversation and they chimed in saying, " hey, what about those guys?" To which he replied, " I am not concerned with them, it is her (being me) that is the problem" As he abruptly left the room, he again stated very loudly that he would just terminate my membership. Everyone in the room were apologizing to me and commenting on how unprofessional and rude that young man was towards me. When I was leaving the facility, I attempted to discuss the situation with him and he told me that it was to late, that he was terminating my membership, because I was disrespectful to him and that when I pointed out the "men" working out together, I had drawn the line. That incident among the many, I have not shared today, verge on discrimination. The one point that I want to make here is this: For years, I have been working out at various planet fitness locations and have always been treated with respect. When I joined this facility, I have never been spoken to, to even receive a hello or goodbye from their staff. I have a group of women that I work out with, six days a week. All of which are attractive, fit women. None ever said a word to us, then two young ladies asked to join us, who are not in "perfect" shape at the moment and are trying to achieve their goals. Only then was I approached. So I guess its ok to workout in the no judgment zone, if you are already fit and represent the club well, but if your not, you should do it privately and discreetly as to not draw unwanted attention to oneself. I am absolutely appalled at the treatment I have received and now, I am left to find another gym to workout in, as I have been...

LAF vs PF Joined PF recently after having been an LaFitness member for well over a decade. I frequent the PF Smyrna and Hiram locations. For those who think that it's less expensive than LAFitness you're right. LAF memberships average between $30-35/mo. So if you're paying $10 a month, factor in the ANNUAL FEE OF $40 and PF is about $14/mo or $168/yr which is not too bad if you want to be confined to just working out at ONE location. The black card will run you about $24 (including $40 annual fee)/mo, $288/yr. Where as LAF is minimum $30/mo $360/yr for the average member with access to just ONE location and they have no annual fees. Now some members have partner discounts but that's not the norm. However if you're paying less than $35/mo and you have the international membership then you're getting more bang for your buck than the Black Card membership at PF because you have access to a basketball court, racquetball court, sauna, more equipment options/weights, a olympic size pool and last but absolutely not least...CLASSES AND LEAGUES for those who like that kinda thing. PF does not have group fitness classes or leagues but they do serve up Pizza which is the most counter productive and irresponsible thing Ive ever seen at a FITNESS club. And I regret that because it's so convenient for me but after about a months worth of working out almost everyday at my new PF club, I don't feel that the value is there like LAF...I feel like I'm missing something...actually missing a lot. I will say the staff at Hiram is descent and better than the Austell LAF staff but the Smyrna PF staff should all be fired immediately. Its a shame that they can't hire people that will represent them in a positive light. I mean it's really unbelievable and I will NEVER go back to Smyrna PF; I cannot say that about any of the LAF that I've been to and I've been to an LAF club in every state they are in and they are in a lot of states!. So as of today, I'm pondering on reactivating my LAF membership. If it weren't for the location of the PF that's in walking distance, I would have already cancelled and gone back to LAF. Oh and one more CON about LAF---when equipment breaks, or the sauna is out of order or the AC IS OUT...depending on the location, it could be up to 6 months before a repair person comes out. And while I'm talking about LAF cons...I enjoy the classes but THEY OFTEN CANCEL CLASSES WITH NO NOTICE AND THERE ARE SO MANY INSTRUCTOR "NO SHOWS" I CAN'T EVEN COUNT! In hindsight, that's enough to stay where I am, but I really like the classes, and the pool, sauna and jacuzzi. Decisions, Decisions. I'm giving PF 2 stars primarily due to the PIZZA thing...that right there is just brainless and then theres the extremely unprofessional Smyrna location . I'll add one last thing...after reading the comments about workout buddies and reading the replies from PF staff, the comment "some people say the craziest things online"... again...gross unprofessionalism, really put a bad taste in my mouth. That member took the time to detail her experience and the reply from PF was so insulting that if I were her, I wouldn't pay for PF if they were the last place on the planet!!. I like bringing people with me to workout as well but if i ever get so much as a raised eyebrow or double take. I'm out!!! Otherwise I'd give them...

Would have signed up but they force you to give them a bank account number to join. Gyms, including this one if the reviews are any indication, are almost always a total pain in the a$$ to drop.

Not giving us any options, except to be locked in to their BS rules, prevented me from joining.

If they ever figure out that member well-being actually matters more than the dollars they can steel from your bank account, I would reconsider. As it stands, my family will take our business elsewhere, even if it turns out to be more expensive.

• Responding to the owner's post *

I am fully aware of the 'how' behind your method. It's the "why" that bothers me specifically. Your excuse is that people cancel and that causes you some form of harm. Unfortunately there are more than a few negative reviews demonstrating a considerable pattern of billing errors and on-going issues with unsubscribing. While your excuse may seem valid on the surface, all you have really done is hamstring your members' ability to manage their finances, resulting in a dubious, if not flat out unethical, practice that is far more punitive than fair minded. If your organization was at all member-centric, you would have implemented a better system to manage off-boarding while also providing members with the flexibility they require.. You, however, have chosen a method that only takes into consideration the needs of your billing office with a rather flagrant disregard for the member experience overall. Your current billing model creates the most convoluted and error-prone process which, coincidentally, favors your ability to over bill with little recourse for the consumer.

So, thank you for your response. Fell free to conduct your business however you see fit. However, bear in mind that your business ethic (or lack thereof) is very directly responsible for the loss of my family's potential membership. If you ever do decide to provide better member services in this regard, we would be more than happy to revisit the idea of joining.

• My recommendation *

I highly recommend any potential "members" read ALL the relevant reviews posted here regarding attempts to "walk in to the desk" and close a membership, prior to ever considering joining this gym. It seems the claim of the "ease" of this process is being highly misrepresented. Consider that before you hand your bank account over to these...