Tag Archives: weight watchers

This post is a comparative analysis of a slightly different ilk…

I can’t remember exactly why on Monday the 4th of May 2009 at 10.32am I browsed my way to the Weight Watchers International corporate website. I guess I was looking to find a bunch of corporate bullshit (excuse the profanity) – you know, the usual guff: quality service, sound branding, share price stability, dividend streams and general profitability.  I was rewarded duly- and given a little bonus, here is a quote from the Company Overview page (remember this is from May 2009):

Weight Watchers International, Inc. is the world’s leading provider of weight management services, operating globally through a network of Company-owned and francise operations. Throughout its 40-year history, the core of the business has been the weekly meeting that promotes weight loss through education and group support in conjunction with a flexible, healthy diet that does not require the purchase of specific foods. Each week approximately 1.5 million people attend approximately  50,000 Weight Watchers meetings that are led by more that 15,000 classroom leaders around the world who themselves have successfully completed the program and are inspiring role models. Meeting members typically enroll to attend consecutive weekly meetings and have historically demonstrated a consistent re-enrollment pattern across many years [sic].

Check out the final sentence… I think they call these peeps ‘yo-yo dieters’ guys, and the science is a little down on this – in fact it makes much more sense in terms of health to maintain a stable weight (regardless of what that is) rather than go up and down and up and down ad infinitum! I know, I know – what they argue is that they re-enrol to ‘manage’ themselves at their new lower weight. Come on Weight Watchers, we are not that stupid – we know why you have repeat business, your consumers are primarily yo-yo dieters – in your words they demonstrate a “consistent re-enrollment pattern across many years [sic]“. You don’t sell weight-loss you sell weight-anxiety.

Then we fast forward to today – the current website guff reads:

Weight Watchers International, Inc. is a leading, global-branded consumer company and the world’s leading provider of weight management services, operating globally through a network of Company-owned and franchise operations. In the almost 50 years since its founding, the Company has built its meetings business by helping millions of people around the world lose weight through sensible and sustainable food plans, exercise, behavior modification and group support. Each week, approximately 1.3 million members attend over 45,000 Weight Watchers meetings around the world, which are run by more than 12,000 leaders—each of whom has lost weight on the Weight Watchers program.

In 2011, consumers spent almost $5 billion on Weight Watchers branded products and services, including meetings conducted by the Company and its franchisees, products sold at meetings, Internet subscription products sold by WeightWatchers.com, licensed products sold in retail channels and magazine subscriptions and other publications. With almost five decades of weight management experience, expertise and know-how, Weight Watchers has been established as one of the most recognized and trusted brand names among weight-conscious consumers.

It seems that between May 2009 and July 2012 someone in the corporate office thought that maybe arguing that their ability to generate repeat business through weight anxiety wasn’t the best look – even if it is the message the shareholders want to see! I am a little excited to see that their business appears to have shrunk:

2009

1.5 million consumers

50,000 meetings

15,000 ‘classroom leaders’

2012

1.3 million consumers

45,000 meetings

12,000 ‘leaders’

But all business has shrunk since May 2009, it remains to be seen what will happen from here. Would you buy Weight Watchers shares?