St Mary's Alumnus Wins National Business Prize

Alumnus of St Mary’s University, Twickenham Joe Wicks, founder of The Body Coach, won this year’s Lloyds Bank New Business of the Year Award at the National Business Awards. The Body Coach launched in 2011 to provide a bespoke alternative to fat loss that is tailored to each client through its 90-Day Shift, Shape, Sustain (SSS) plan. Joe’s success, which saw The Body Coach net a £1.14million profit in its first year, comes from the strength of his social media marketing and frequent communication with his over 400,000 followers. The National Business Awards Judges said, “Business is being done differently. It is being done digitally. Joe Wicks, The Body Coach, is both a fitness instructor and a nutritionalist, and whilst that’s the service that he offers, when I look at Joe’s business, I think of it as a ‘digital business’. Joe's business is growing rapidly; it’s generating revenue in the millions; it’s employing circa 40 people; and crucially, Joe is delivering his excellent fitness and weight-loss programme to over 50,000 people all over the world every day. Who said fitness instruction is not a digital business? Perhaps more importantly, who said being a fitness instructor means your business has to be ’small’?” Speaking on his time at St Mary’s earlier last year, Joe said, “My Sports Science degree gives me a seal of approval that I dedicated three years of my life to studying a subject I now love. This gives people a sense of trust and this is essential when trying to set up an online business. Without my degree people may not view me as voice to listen to when it comes to training and nutrition, so I’m really glad I took the time to study at university first.” Joe is launching his first cookbook #Leanin15 in January, and can be found on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at thebodycoach.