Scaling Your Fitness Brand Like a Media Company: Lessons from Vice's Reboot

Hook: Your brand isn’t a studio — yet. Here’s why that’s costing you growth.

If you’re a fitness founder or head of programming, you know the pain: piecing together class shoots on weekends, inconsistent production quality, and wondering why your subscription churn won’t drop even as signups climb. You also feel the pressure: competitors are investing in studio-grade content, licensing classes to hotels, platforms, and corporate wellness partners, and treating their IP as a scalable asset. In 2026, the market rewards companies that think and operate like media studios — not like scattered creators.

The lesson from Vice’s reboot (and why it matters to fitness brands)

In late 2025 and early 2026, Vice Media reshaped itself by hiring senior executives with deep media production and strategy experience — a new CFO and an EVP of strategy tasked with turning Vice into a studio and licensing business (Hollywood Reporter, Jan 2026). That playbook is immediately transferable to ambitious fitness brands: hire for production and strategy, build a content-first studio organization, and create licensing-ready IP. The result is diversified revenue, higher margins on content, and better user retention through premium, repeatable experiences.

Bottom line: Treat your fitness content like intellectual property. Hire the right leaders to scale it.

2026 trends shaping fitness media — act on these now

• Studio-quality at-home demand: Consumers expect high production values: multi-camera shoots, studio lighting, immersive audio, and cinematic editing — even for 20-minute strength or endurance classes.
• Licensing and B2B distribution growth: Hotels, airlines, gyms, corporate wellness, and streaming platforms are increasingly licensing classes instead of building in-house programs.
• Creator-to-studio consolidation: Audiences prefer consistent brands. In 2026, investors and partners favor built-out production infrastructure over ad-hoc creators.
• AI-powered production: Generative tooling now accelerates editing, captioning, thumbnail generation, and personalized class versions — lowering per-asset cost in 2026.
• Cross-platform monetization: FAST/AVOD channels, premium SVOD, micro-licensing packages, and live-ticketed events create multiple income streams for class IP.

How to copy Vice’s C-suite blueprint for your fitness brand

You don’t need a billionaire buyout. You need an intentional hiring sequence and a production-first strategy. Below is a pragmatic, stage-based hiring and build plan that mirrors what media companies like Vice are doing — scaled for fitness brands with goal-based plans (muscle-building, endurance) in mind.

Stage 1 — Strategy & financial foundation (Months 0–3)

• Hire an EVP/Head of Strategy — Someone who has run content strategy or licensing deals at a media company or streaming platform. Their remit: define IP categories (e.g., 12-week hypertrophy series, endurance programming for marathon prep), go-to-market models, and partnership targets (hotels, corporate clients, FAST platforms).
• Bring on a media-savvy CFO or finance lead (fractional OK) — You need someone who understands revenue-share models, licensing advance structures, production budgets, and capital planning. This role turns creative ambition into scalable P&L plans.
• Outcomes to measure: a 12-month revenue model showing projected income by channel (SVOD, licensing, B2B), cost per asset, and break-even timelines.

Stage 2 — Build the content studio (Months 1–6)

Copy Vice’s pivot from service-for-hire to studio player: own the full production pipeline.

• Hire a Head of Studio / Executive Producer — Oversees physical production, post, and the creative pipeline. Should have experience with episodic programming and class formats.
• Hire a Creative Director / Showrunner — Crafts program templates for goal-based plans (e.g., 8-week muscle-building, progressive endurance). Standardizes class length, cueing, and branding.
• Staffing: two producers, a director of photography, an audio engineer, a production coordinator, and post-producers/editors. Use AI-assisted editing tools to reduce turnaround.
• Invest in a minimal viable studio: A single soundstage with a multi-camera rig, professional lighting, quality mics, green-screen capability, and a small control room. For many mid-size brands, a ballpark build is feasible rather than renting expensive third-party studios indefinitely.

Stage 3 — Product, Data & Distribution (Months 3–9)

• Hire a Head of Product / Data — Build metrics-driven programming: retention cohorts, activity-to-outcome funnels, and personalized recommendations to support goal-based plans (muscle vs endurance).
• Hire a Partnerships / Licensing Lead — Negotiate B2B deals for license packages, white-label classes, and content syncs to hospitality and enterprise wellness buyers.
• Outcomes to measure: CAC for direct-to-consumer vs. revenue per license, average contract length with B2B partners, and watch-time lift after studio upgrades.

Stage 4 — Scale & Monetize (Months 6–18)

• Head of Distribution / Platform Partnerships — Owns placement across app stores, FAST channels, third-party fitness platforms, and retail partners.
• Legal + IP Manager — Locks down music, model releases, trainer IP, and licensing contracts so you can syndicate without surprise liabilities.
• Sales & Account Management — Sell and manage B2B relationships with gyms, travel brands, corporate wellness buyers, and streaming platforms.

Production playbook: how to create studio-quality classes that scale

Great classes don’t come from better cameras alone — they come from repeatable templates and tight execution. Use this checklist to standardize production so each class is a licensable asset.

Pre-production (the part most brands skip)

• Program blueprints: For each goal (muscle, endurance, mobility) build a series blueprint: 8–12 weeks, weekly structure, progression logic, measurement points.
• Shot lists & storyboards: Map camera angles for demonstration, close-ups on form, and wide shots for pacing. Standardized shot lists reduce edit time and inconsistencies.
• Talent contracts & IP: Clear trainer agreements that assign class masters to the company and spell out residuals/credits for future licensing.

Shoot day (high ROI moves)

• Multi-camera capture: At minimum 3 cameras — full, close-up, and dynamic movement — to support engaging edits and alternative framing for different platforms.
• Audio first: Use lavaliers and room mics; never rely solely on camera audio. Poor sound instantly devalues a class for licensing partners.
• Standardized cueing & metadata: Use on-set metadata (exercise name, intensity, equipment) to speed cataloging and make classes searchable for partners and consumers.

Post-production & packaging

• Template-based editing: Create edit templates for warmup, main work, cool-down, and voiceover spots to speed delivery and keep brand consistency.
• Versioning: Produce short-form social cuts, 20-, 40-, and 60-minute versions, and audio-only mixes for in-car or kiosk use.
• AI tools in 2026: Leverage generative editing for rapid multi-format output — auto captions, auto-cropping for vertical formats, and variant thumbnails.

Licensing playbook: how to turn classes into revenue-producing IP

Licensing is diverse. You can sell a catalogue, offer a white-label program, or do revenue-sharing deals with platforms. Each requires clear packaging and pricing.

Types of licensing deals

• Catalogue license: Bulk sale or subscription for a library of classes (common with hotels and airlines).
• White-label partnerships: Your content is rebranded for a partner (corporate wellness, third-party apps).
• Platform syndication: Revenue share or flat license to stream classes on a third-party platform.
• Per-class micro-licensing: Sold a la carte to studios, gyms, or smaller enterprises that need specific class types.

Must-haves in your licensing kit

• Master content files with metadata: High-res video, stems (music-free versions), captions, and closed captions; organized by program, intensity, and equipment.
• Clear contracts: Rights, territories, window lengths, renewals, and music usage are non-negotiables. Don’t license until music and trainer rights are cleared.
• Performance guarantees: Consider minimum guarantees for large partners and performance-based tiers for smaller ones (e.g., revenue share after a threshold).

KPIs, metrics, and reporting for media-grade growth

Measure what media studios measure — and tie it to fitness outcomes. Here’s a hybrid KPI framework that aligns content success with member goals.

• Engagement metrics: Watch time per class, completion rate for series, repeat play rate for program weeks.
• Outcome metrics: For goal-based plans track user-reported progress (strength gains, time improvements) and correlate to content consumption.
• Monetization metrics: Licensing revenue per asset, average deal size, lifetime value (LTV) for DTC members exposed to studio content, and ARPU across channels.
• Production efficiency: Cost per finished minute, turnaround time from shoot to publish, and number of formats produced per shoot day.

Org design — what your team chart should look like

Keep it flat at first, but align roles to three pillars: Content Creation (studio), Business (strategy & finance), and Distribution (product & partnerships).

• Head of Studio / Executive Producer → production crew, editors, creative director.
• EVP of Strategy / Head of Content Strategy → program leads for muscle, endurance, mobility.
• CFO / Finance Lead → production budgets, licensing deals, partner finance.
• Head of Product & Data → analytics, personalization, platform delivery.
• Partnerships & Licensing → sales and account teams for B2B deals.

Budgeting & ROI — pragmatic cost expectations (2026 context)

Production costs fell in 2025–2026 as AI tooling reduced editing time and remote workflows matured. Still, building a studio is an investment. Use a phased approach.

• Minimal Viable Studio (MVS): Basic soundstage, 3-camera kit, audio, and lights. Ideal for boutique brands testing licensing — feasible for many in 2026 without breaking the bank.
• Fully equipped studio: Multi-set, control room, live hybrid-stream capability, and full post team for scalable output and B2B packaging.
• ROI expectations: Expect licensing or B2B deals to meaningfully offset production costs by month 12–24 if you secure anchor partners or platform deals. The CFO and VP Partnerships should model break-even scenarios for each deal type.

Legal & IP: protect the asset you’re building

• Trainer agreements: Assign masters and grant perpetual global rights for distribution; consider performance-based bonuses tied to licensing milestones.
• Music & synchronization: Either invest in original underscore or secure perpetual sync rights; pay attention to mechanical vs. sync rights when licensing outside of your app.
• Data & privacy: If classes integrate with biometrics or performance tracking, ensure compliance with current privacy rules in 2026 and partner markets.

Case study (hypothetical): How “StrengthLab” scaled into a licensing business

StrengthLab started as an instructor-led app in 2023. By 2025 they appointed a Head of Strategy and a production-first CFO. They built a single studio in 2026, standardized a 12-week hypertrophy program, and packaged it for corporate wellness. Within 9 months they signed three B2B deals — two white-label partnerships and one FAST channel syndication — turning a stable DTC revenue base into a diversified media business. Key moves: standardization (templates), legal clarity on trainer IP, and a partnerships-first sales motion.

Quick-start checklist: First 90 days

1. Hire or contract a strategy lead with media/licensing experience.
2. Bring on a CFO or financial advisor familiar with media P&Ls.
3. Build a one-set MVS and schedule 8–12 back-to-back shoots for program libraries.
4. Create standardized metadata schemas for all content (goal, intensity, equipment, duration).
5. Draft trainer agreements and confirm music rights before shooting.

Actionable takeaways

• Hire for media expertise, not just fitness: A strategy leader and a media-aware CFO unlock licensing and studio-scale decisions.
• Standardize everything: Templates for programming and production reduce costs and make content attractive to partners.
• Build for multiple formats: Produce additional versions (short, long, vertical, audio-only) at the time of edit to maximize monetization.
• Protect IP early: Clear rights and music up front — the simplest way to avoid deal-killing delays with partners.
• Measure outcomes: Tie content consumption to fitness outcomes and revenue to prove the value of licensing deals.

Why acting now matters (2026 urgency)

Late 2025 and early 2026 showed investors and partners prefer consolidated content houses to fragmented creators. AI makes production cheaper, but everyone will use those tools — the differential will be in who builds the systems, leadership, and partnerships first. If you wait, you risk being a content supplier; if you act, you’ll own IP, distribution, and monetization like a modern media company.

Final thoughts & next step

Vice’s recent executive hires are a blueprint: leadership with media finance and strategy chops transforms creative output into scalable business units. For fitness brands, that means hiring production and strategy experts, building a studio-first operation, and packaging classes as licensable IP. Start with a small studio, hire smart, and measure relentlessly. The brands that adopt this posture in 2026 will be the ones commanding higher valuations, diversified revenue, and long-term member loyalty.

Ready to scale like a studio? Download our 90-day hiring & studio build checklist or book a strategy session with exercises.top to map a tailored 12-month growth plan.

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