Richard Bilton is the Founder and President of Companhia Athletica, one of Brazil's biggest names in the fitness industry. Graduated in Business Administration from FGV (1987), he served on the board of directors of IHRSA and was pivotal for bringing the IHRSA/ Fitness Brasil in 2000. He has completed a four-year term as the director of IHRSA in June 2014. He’s also the co-founder of the ACAD (Brazilian Association of Gyms), founded in 1999. Companhia Athletica serves more than 200 companies in Brazil, through contracts and partnerships. Thirty five thousand (35.000) gym members and corporate customers attend regularly to their 17 gyms spread across Brazil, in 13 different cities.    Running since 1985 the health clubs add up to more than 70 thousand square meters of built area altogether,nearly all in shopping malls. Their service is Premium and provides a benchmark for the Brazilian fitness market. The Gym Business also operates one of the largest water parks in the country, with 25 swimming pools, 13 of which are semi-Olympic.

Paulo Augusto Z. Rebello graduated from the American International University in London (1994), specialization course in marketing from ESPM (1997), has studied MBA in the  IE Business School in Spain (2006). His vast leadership experience in general management, from leading sales and marketing teams to improving service level and developing customer loyalty programs lead him to his current position as the COO of Just Fit .   Founded by Marco Lara in 2012, Just Fit is a fitness chain based in Brazil. The company reports that it had 35 clubs before covid-19 outbreak, currently 27 gyms across the São Paulo State. It markets itself as a “low-cost, high-value” modern gym with compelling group training and dedicated Fitness instructors.

We had a delightful conversation with the Fitness Brasil (1987) founder and chief executive Waldyr Soares. Seasoned leader in the fitness, health and wellness market in Brazil, Mr. Soares carried out pioneering events such as “Aeróbica Brasil” (1985), his very first project from his great trademark activity as well as responsible for the arrival of IHRSA in Brazil (2000). Founder of the “Fitness Brasil” brand (1987), the company has trained more than 200 thousand professionals of fitness, health and well-being in the last 40 years through educational content, events and fairs. During his time as president of fitness Brasil, he received the president’s Award 2011 from IHRSA, in San Francisco, California, acknowledged for achieving his amazing professional milestone of dedicating forty years of leadership in the Brazilian and worldwide fitness market. In addition, he's a much sought-after lecturer on entrepreneurship. As a "8.0 entrepreneur" (as he jokingly called himself regarding his current age), Waldyr says that projects related to what he called "the wellness revolution" are in the making, so stick around for great news!