Building Multi-Unit Platforms
From The Ground Up.
A "Results First, People Always" CEO focused on rapidly scaling multi-unit private equity-backed consumer and health platforms. Jeff has led growth across wellness, aesthetic medicine, and experiential entertainment concepts with an emphasis on disciplined operations, unit economics, and leadership at scale.
Today he leads Boardroom and advises founders, CEOs, and investment teams on how to turn a compelling investment thesis into a durable platform that can grow for years.
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Time to build.
Built for the PE clock
Private equity success is measured by time, operating discipline, and exit outcomes. My focus is helping management teams translate a strong thesis into a repeatable platform that compounds quickly.
That means tightening unit economics early, installing an operating cadence that scales, and building leaders who can execute across dozens of locations without drift.
I step in where the work matters most: pre-close diligence, the 100-day plan, integration, de novo rollout, and exit readiness.
Companies Built, Advised, or Backed
A sample of platforms Jeff has operated and businesses where he is an active investor. Logos can link through to public company or portfolio pages.
Platform Growth By The Numbers
Across roles as CEO, COO, and advisor, Jeff has helped investors and teams create real, lasting value. These figures reflect cumulative experience in fitness, aesthetics, and membership-driven services.
Platform and tuck-in deals from thesis and sourcing through diligence, integration, and post-close operating rhythm.
Sponsor-backed platforms scaled to meaningful outcomes, aligning investors, management teams, and frontline leaders.
New locations across multiple concepts, from underwriting and site selection to launch playbooks and ramp.
Building Platforms From The Ground Up
Jeff’s work centers on building and scaling platforms where local teams, consistent guest experience, and recurring revenue all reinforce one another. Whether in fitness, aesthetic medicine, or men’s grooming, the starting point is a clear thesis for who the customer is and why they stay.
From there, he helps teams design playbooks that can be replicated across dozens of units: how sites are selected, how new locations open, how leaders are selected and developed, and how field reporting flows into a focused, actionable set of KPIs for the board and investors.
The intent is to match the discipline of highly engineered products with the energy and nuance of hospitality. Done well, the platform becomes a training ground for future leaders and a durable asset for sponsors.
How I support sponsors and CEOs
Engagements are practical, high-impact, and designed for multi-unit realities.
Advisory
Board and CEO Advisory
Governance, value creation plans, KPI cadence, leadership bench building, and proactive risk management.
Operating
Targeted Operating Support
100-day plans, M&A integration, de novo rollout playbooks, and unit-economics tuning that holds at scale.
Speaking
Speaking Events
Keynotes and panels on franchising, loyalty, multi-unit execution, culture, and the operator view inside PE portfolios.
Articles and Podcasts
Selected writing and conversations on multi-unit scale, M&A integration, franchising, loyalty, and leadership.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Why Most Mergers Fail And How to Avoid It
Practical playbook for de-risking acquisitions by getting culture, communication, and integration right from day one.
Franchising & Community
Franchise Success Starts at the Local Level Here’s Why
Four reasons locally engaged franchisees outperform, drawn from Boardroom and Planet Fitness experience.
Customer & Employee Loyalty
Mistakes Don’t Kill Loyalty Broken Promises Do
Lessons from USAA and service businesses on earning long-term trust with customers and teams.
Podcast • ROI’s Into the Corner Office
Jeff Helfgott, CEO, Boardroom
Discussion of scaling people-centric businesses, franchising, and the leadership path into the corner office.
Podcast • Work Cultured (Video)
Building Relationships and Following Great People
A conversation on relationship-driven leadership, culture, and learning to follow great people before leading them.
Podcast • Episode 55
Excel Fitness Holdings / Planet Fitness
Dive into scaling Planet Fitness clubs, member retention, and building systems that support rapid multi-unit growth.
Podcast • Fitness Business Podcast
How to Develop World Class Leaders in Your Business
Frameworks for spotting future leaders, mentoring them, and using data and process to scale leadership across teams.
Jeff’s Story
Jeff’s leadership journey started in the U.S. Army, where he served as a Captain and combat veteran. The experience of leading soldiers in complex environments shaped his views on accountability, clarity, and care for people under pressure.
After the military, he joined McKinsey & Company, advising Fortune 500 and sponsor-backed clients on strategy and performance. The work provided a toolkit for structured problem solving and a close look at how large organizations make decisions.
He then moved into operating roles, first as Chief Operating Officer at Excel Fitness, a Planet Fitness franchisee that grew from a regional chain into a multi-state platform, and later as CEO of Empower Aesthetics, a Shore Capital-backed aesthetics platform. These experiences confirmed how much value is created or destroyed by leadership, culture, and the quality of systems supporting frontline teams.
Today, as CEO of Boardroom and an investor in early-stage companies, Jeff focuses on building environments where people can do the best work of their careers and where investors can confidently deploy more capital over time.
Interested in Board, Advisory, or Operating Partner Roles?
Jeff is open to independent director roles, advisory work with PE-backed platforms, and selective consulting where multi-unit execution is central to the thesis. In addition, Jeff has also been invited to speak at a number of company events, franchise meetings and industry conferences.
Explore Boardroom Franchise Opportunities
Boardroom is a premium, membership-led men’s grooming concept built for repeat visits, strong unit economics, and long-term multi-unit growth. If you are looking for a hospitality-driven platform with a proven playbook, we should talk.