Defining CSR

CSR stands for Corporate Social Responsibility. This is something a company does to have its own positive impact on social, economic, or environmental factors in the world. Why do companies do this? You guessed it — it’s extremely important for their reputation and image.

In this post, I’m going to analyze the CSR of a luxury fitness club called Equinox. When I say luxury, I mean it — this is a club for the high-class. “Affordable” is definitely not one of its values… ha, ha.

That’s actually why I chose this specific company, though. Its A-list presence will be an interesting one to explore in regards to how its CSR is conducted — and whether or not it’s successful at it.

…our philanthropic goal is to help everyone push the boundaries of what’s possible, for themselves and for each other.”

Equinox

Quoted above is part of Equinox’s statement about its goal as a company in regards to its CSR. It’s a little vague, but it does line up with their actions. Equinox has co-founded two philanthropic campaigns, the Cycle for Survival and the Heroes Project.

Cycle for survival

Cycle for Survival is a fundraiser for research that finds better treatments and potential cures for rare cancers. Participants raise money by riding stationary bikes found in Equinox clubs all over the U.S. The rides are also led by Equinox trainers.

This form of CSR makes sense for Equinox. While the company may not be related to cancer or the medical field, the cycling aspect of it is right up Equinox’s alley. Equinox was already well-known for its SoulCycle classes, which is just a stationary cycling class, so it already had many of the resources to take on this philanthropy. Plus, it cares about fitness, and this fundraiser gets people up and moving. All in all, Cycle for Survival is following along with Equinox’s core values.

Cycle for Survival has been extremely successful. Since its establishment in 2007, it has raised $241 million. In 2020 alone, there will be 37,500 participants across 17 cities in the U.S. Those are not small numbers!

The movement also receives a lot of news coverage, which is due to many different factors. Because of Equinox’s A-list customer base, celebrities have joined the movement. Additionally, big brands like smartwater, New Balance, and Tag Heuer have partnered with Cycle for Survival. It even holds one of its cycling events in the middle of Times Square in New York. All of this adds up to make for a very successful CSR choice by Equinox.

The Heroes Project

The Heroes Project (THP) is a nonprofit that raises money to “create training and expedition programs” for military veterans who have sustained serious physical injuries. Learn more about their cool mission here.

Like with Cycle for Survival, this philanthropic CSR works for Equinox, including its core values of fitness and health. THP is all about strengthening your body to climb mountains, backpack, and “push the boundaries of what’s possible” (from their quote earlier).

Equinox trainers work with the veterans to get them physically fit for their expedition in, of course, Equinox clubs. The fundraisers that are held by Equinox include both cycling (much like Cycle for Survival) and climbing mountains.

However, this movement doesn’t have nearly as much news coverage. They also don’t have any numbers on their website of how much has been fundraised, which is quite different from Cycle for Survival. It still looks just as professional, but it’s clear that THP is not as big in terms of media coverage and engagement.

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THP needs a bit more work in terms of getting the word out, but all in all, Equinox has been quite successful at their CSR. This work follows its company values. Equinox is known for its work with these philanthropies. It has received ample news coverage. And, most importantly to me, the work that it’s doing is affecting the world in a positive way.

Equinox, I wish you would lower your membership prices, but other than that… You seem pretty cool.