Overview
Pilates is either a nice add-on you never quite monetise, or it becomes the engine room of your clinic.
In this episode, Michael speaks with Lowry O’Mahony (Max Physio & Pilates, and Maxona) about how she integrated Pilates so tightly into a multi-site MSK business that it now generates roughly half of revenue, stabilises cashflow, and creates a workforce pipeline when physio hiring gets tight. They get into where Pilates fits in the patient pathway, how to make it recurring without it feeling “salesy”, and why the best lessons often come from entrepreneurs outside MSK, not the usual industry gurus.
Lowry also explains why she built Maxona: training, studio fit-outs, equipment, and smart reformers designed to measure progress and keep people engaged.
Show Notes
- Why so many clinics “offer Pilates” but fail to integrate it properly
- Australia vs UK/Ireland: why Pilates is more embedded in private practice there
- Pilates as recurring revenue: why it smooths out the peaks and troughs
- The patient pathway: where Pilates fits (day one, mid-rehab, end-stage, or standalone)
- “Physios hate selling”: how free intro classes remove friction and awkwardness
- The real Pilates customer base: why 50+ and 60+ is the market, not influencers
- Staffing reality: using Pilates to broaden your workforce beyond the physio bottleneck
- Culture and systems: KPIs for behaviour, values, and how to protect standards as you scale
- Expansion: opening multiple sites off the back of stable demand and better predictability
- Maxona: teacher training, Pilates Academy, maintenance/support, equipment finance
- Smart reformers and measurement: using objective feedback to drive adherence and outcomes
- Community strategy: macro events and micro cohorts to improve retention and seasonality
What You’ll Learn
- How to position Pilates as a core service line, not a side hustle
- How to move people from reactive physio to proactive memberships without hard selling
- What to prioritise first: space, training consistency, booking tech, and retention mechanics
- How to use blocks, memberships, and community to reduce seasonality
- How to think about staffing when physios are scarce: building a parallel workforce
- Why measurement and progress tracking matter for adherence (and revenue stability)
Who This Episode is For
- Clinic owners doing £300k to £2m who want a second engine of growth
- Owners stuck on physio capacity, utilisation, or staffing constraints
- Clinics offering Pilates but not making meaningful money from it
- Anyone considering reformer Pilates and worried about space, cost, or team buy-in
- Owners who want more predictable revenue before scaling, hiring, or exiting
Guest Details
Lowry O’Mahony
Founder of Max Physio & Pilates (Ireland) and Maxona.
- Trained as a physiotherapist (RCSI, Dublin) and Pilates instructor early in her career
- Worked in the UK and Australia, where Pilates is deeply integrated into private practice
- Built a multi-site physio and Pilates model with Pilates contributing ~50% of revenue
- Created Maxona to help clinics implement Pilates end-to-end: training, equipment, support, and studio success
Find Lowry and Maxona
Visit https://hmdg.co.uk for further information.
Follow Michael on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjschumacher100
