Thinking of Selling Peptides at Your Gym? Here’s What to Consider

The pros, cons and pitfalls of playing in the GLP-1 arena.

There may not be a more polarizing topic in the fitness industry right now than peptides. That becomes pretty obvious when you spend any time in a gym owner forum, where debates frequently occur.

There are those who say peptides have “completely revolutionized” their own training, and are a serious business opportunity for the small gym owner. 

Andrew Boimila, the owner of Tradewinds Fitness in Winthrop, MA is one of these gym owners.

He used to be opposed to GLP-1s, believing, like many that, “there is no easy button, just put in the work.” But then he became “the fat gym owner,” he explained, and nothing was seeming to help him lose weight.

Boimila turned to a GLP-1 and dropped 20 pounds of fat and gained eight pounds of muscle in 12 weeks. 

One year ago, Boimila started offering peptides to his members through Asher Med, and today he estimates that at least one in three of his clients are taking some kind of peptide. 

Not only has it become a “helpful revenue stream,” it has also benefited his business and his members in other ways. 

“Overall my experience has been great offering medically supervised programs for my clients. It creates a more inclusive program, they see better results, retention is better, they’re happier, things are just easier,” Boimila said. 

Others, though, insist that selling peptides at a gym is a terrible idea. They take a hard line stance with the basics. We’re gyms, not pharmacies. Get your clients eating lean meat, nuts and seeds, fruits and vegetables, not taking peptides, goes the thinking.

There are also those who follow the conversations, express curiosity, and seek education before deciding whether or not going down the peptide road is a good idea for them and their gym. 

Beneath all the chatter is a more practical question: What should a gym owner actually consider before offering peptides?

We reached out to Matthew Becker, a former gym owner and attorney with gymlawyers.com, and Vaughn Vernon of AGuard, an insurance services company, to unpack the business and legal considerations gym owners should understand before entering the peptide space.

What They’re Saying

When it comes to offering peptides at your gym, there are essentially two ways to go about doing it. And one of them creates  “substantial risk and insurance concerns,” Vernon said.

The first option is to partner with a third-party company. In this arrangement, the gym owner does not prescribe the peptide directly. The owner puts his client in touch with the third-party, who handles the medical process, which involves evaluating the client, and then prescribing the appropriate peptide.

Because the gym owner isn’t directly involved in the medical process, they feel like they’re “staying within their scope of service,” Vernon explained.

The gym owner makes money by charging their clients more for the peptide that the third-party charged them, and the profits from the sale “can be quite good,” Vernon said. 

And while neither Vernon or Becker are all that concerned about people having a reaction to the peptide itself, there are still concerns. 

Becker gave the example of someone taking a peptide which causes their heart rate to spike during a workout, and then they pass out and injure themselves.

“That’s where the problem will come,” Becker explained. “Because if there is an issue, the gym owner is liable, and they won’t be able to get liability coverage for this. It’s a bad relationship.”

Vernon added: “It creates huge exposure for the gym owner.” Worst-case scenario, if there is any litigation, the gym owner “can lose everything.”

At the very least, if you’re going to go down this road, Vernon suggests that one “minimum safeguard” is for the gym owner to get themselves added to the third party’s insurance policy. However, he hasn’t seen this happen.

A Better Way

For gym owners looking to capitalize on peptide demand, a better way to enter the market is by building a referral partnership with a medical provider or a med spa.

This works as a more traditional referral relationship, where the gym owner simply refers their client to the med spa as the gym’s “preferred peptide provider,” Vernon explained. After that, it’s up to the med spa to prescribe and sell the peptide to the member, before paying the gym a small commission to thank them for the referral.

Usually, a gym owner won’t make as much money this way as the first route, however, Becker insists: “If you’re going to go down that road and don’t want to overly expose yourself, that’s the way to do it.”

The Bottom Line

There may be real money to be made in peptides, but for gym owners, the opportunity shouldn’t be taken lightly, Becker and Vernon say. Ultimately, they caution, if you’re going to get into the peptide business, it’s worth doing it in a way that keeps the medical side, and the money exchanged, with the medical professionals, and the liability off your gym.

“Stay in your lane by helping people get fit. Let the medical professional handle peptides,” Vernon added.