The Coeur d’Alene-based franchiseof StretchLab, owned by Jaimee Cox, has expanded into the Spokane market and is eyeing an additional location here. 

The StretchLab at 2013 E. 29th, in the Grapetree Village commercial complex on Spokane’s South Hill, opened in January. A timetable isn’t in place for a second club here—third overall in the Inland Northwest—but the company hopes to open a location on Spokane’s North Side, Cox says.

StretchLab is an assisted stretching and flexibility-training franchise based in Irvine, California.

“I’ve always seen the importance of stretching and taking care of your body, not only for athletics, but also just so you feel good and can maintain a long healthy lifestyle,” Cox says.

The company opened its first StretchLab facility three years ago in a multitenant retail building at 2007 Tea Olive Lane, in Coeur d’Alene. 

Cox also owns the Pure Barre fitness franchise in Coeur d’Alene. She heard about StretchLab because its parent company, Xponential Fitness, is also the parent company of Pure Barre, she says.

She attended a StretchLab session in Southern California and thought the franchise would be received well in the Inland Northwest, she says.

“I am a long-distance runner,” Cox says. “I love running, and I wish I would have taken up stretching earlier in life. It’s gotten rid of a lot of aches and pains for me.”

Cassidy Dexter, area manager for the Inland Northwest StretchLab clubs, says the company has a diverse clientele. Those clients include golfers, runners, office workers, and older people who want to stay active and be able to play with their grandkids.

“Sometimes, people think that stretching is only meant for athletes … but it’s truthfully for everybody,” Dexter says. “People who sit at a desk all day need it just as much, if not more.”

Dexter says the clubs have had clients ranging from 8 to 100 years old.

StretchLab uses 3D body-scanning technology called MAPS to evaluate how well a client is moving and which areas of their body need the most work. MAPS stands for mobility, activation, posture, and symmetry.

Clients do three squats in front of the MAPS scanner, which then shows the areas that need more stretching and provides a score, so they can track their progress.

Clients then work with StretchLab’s trainers, or flexologists, as they’re called, to develop programs to meet their needs.

“When you come in for your first stretch, we always ask what specific goal you have, whether it’s a personal goal or a fitness-related goal,” Dexter says.

The assisted stretching helps prevent injuries, Dexter says.

All of StretchLab’s trainers go through a companywide training program, Dexter says. They learn about the body’s muscular system as well as a multitude of assisted stretches and how to work with a variety of clients.

Trainers also must have fitness-related backgrounds, says Dexter, who previously was a trainer before becoming area manager.

Cox says she decided to open a Spokane location after doing market research and determining that the Lilac City would be a good fit for the club. She also says a lot of Spokane residents had traveled to the Coeur d’Alene club.

StretchLab is mostly membership-based, but there are some smaller stretching packages available, Cox says. 

StretchLab offers 25-minute and 50-minute sessions. Dexter says most clients choose the 50-minute option.

“With the 50 minutes, you can get a good full-body stretch to really focus on the areas to help alleviate the pain, muscle soreness, stiffness,” Dexter says.

She says both the Coeur d’Alene and South Hill clubs are growing. The Coeur d’Alene clinic has about 280 members, and the South Hill clinic has about 240 members, she says.

Each club currently has nine employees—two sales associates and seven trainers, she says.

Cox says that the South Hill location currently is hiring trainers to keep up with the location’s fast rate of growth.

The clubs’ motto is “Live Long,” because, Dexter says, stretching helps people lead longer healthy, active lifestyles.

“We really welcome all walks of life, and it’s been fun to see people feel good again,” Cox says.