Zumba Fitness Warrnambool
Gym - Warrnambool, VIC
Sometimes great ideas are born from accidents. In the mid-'90s, no one could have predicted the success of the Zumba® program, not even Alberto "Beto" Perez, who created the Zumba experience.
Sometimes great ideas are born from accidents. In the mid-'90s, no one could have predicted the success of the Zumba® program, not even Alberto "Beto" Perez, who created the Zumba experience, after what many have called a true "happy accident."
The Original "Fitness-Party"
As a fitness instructor in his native Cali, Colombia, Beto's life took an unexpected turn one fateful day in the mid-'90s when he darted off to teach an aerobics class and forgot his traditional aerobics music. He improvised using his own mix of music from tapes he had in his backpack (salsa and merengue music he grew up with). Spontaneously he created a new kind of dance-fitness, one that focused on letting the music move you (instead of counting reps over the music). Energy electrified the room; people couldn't stop smiling. His class loved it!
And on that day, a revolutionary new fitness concept was born – the Zumba® Fitness-Party.
Zumba® Fitness: The Company
In 1999, Beto brought his new dance-fitness style to Miami, Florida, and in 2001, through a student (Alberto Perlman's mom), met entrepreneurs Alberto Perlman and Alberto Aghion. All three hailed from Colombia and all three had a vision to bring this dynamic dance-fitness class to the masses. The three Albertos formed an alliance and created a business, calling it Zumba® Fitness, LLC. They trademarked the word Zumba® and set a goal to expand the brand all over the world. First came the DVDs, then the infomercial – which introduced the Zumba® Fitness-Party to the public on a wide-scale basis – then came the demand for Zumba classes and Zumba Instructors.
That's when the company took off and the Zumba® program expanded in a big way. By 2005, Zumba® Fitness spawned a full-fledged Zumba® Academy to license Zumba Instructors to teach Zumba classes. More expansion followed with the launch of Zumbawear™ apparel and accessories, music CDs, and in 2008, one of the best-selling at-home fitness DVD series ever – the Zumba® Fitness Total Body Transformation System – which starred Beto and introduced Zumba® Fitness' newest stars, Tanya Beardsley and Gina Grant. In 2010, Zumba® Fitness launched its first video game — the Zumba® Fitness Video Game — on all three major gaming platforms: Kinect™ for Xbox 360®, Wii™ and PlayStation® Move.
From "Happy Accident" to Worldwide Phenomenon
