A Niche Master
 After selling his chain of physical therapy practices in 1993 for a reported $40 million, Pat Croce, PT, ATC, embarked on a
quest to purchase the Philadelphia 76ers National Basketball Association (NBA) franchise. Three years later, he achieved this
improbable dream - completing a journey that started in the sports world in 1980 as the conditioning coach for the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team.
If you have never heard of Croce, you may wonder how a 1977 physical therapy graduate from the University of Pittsburgh landed in the
pricey world of professional sports ownership. It is a long story but it started with the realization that quality, fun, and profit all go together. In fact, this
triangle of words became Croce's mission statement. After opening his first Sports Physical Therapists (SPT) practice (the first of 40
centers around the country) in 1984, Croce fanatically adhered to these three simple words.
 In his 2000 autobiography, I Feel Great and You Will Too, Corce says, "...I wanted to make money. We all do of course, but in the
physical therapy profession in the mid 1980s, you didn't dare say that out loud. If you did, you were ostracized. Healing is a noble profession.
The profit motive was regarded as some sort of perversion." Croce questioned this attitude and concluded that profit was not
incompatible with great service. In fact, he found that one could not live without the other.
Discovering the Fitness Niche
One of the key ingredients to Croce's success was a small (5% of total business) but profitable niche he called
the "executive fitness program." I asked Croce why the cash-only program was so successful. How was he able to convince clients to
gladly pay triple what they would have paid at a typical health club? The answer was better service, knowledge, technology, and a focus on
outcomes and medicine.
"Our program was totally medically based - and when you're talking about the early 1990s, not many fitness facilities were medically-based." says Croce. "I had clients on
a real (and expensive) telemetry unit and all of our procedures were sanctioned by the American College of Sports Medicine...It was a personal training before it was all in vogue."
The telemetry equipment, along with information gathered from a client's physician, helped Corce established a baseline of
current fitness levels. After his $1,500 12-week program (3 days a week), results could be compared and quantified. "For the other 4 days
they didn't come in, clients were on a home program that included a nutritional diary. I knew that if they put their money where their
mouth was, they were going to stay with it." says Croce. "It was more than a fitness program. It was like a fitness school."
However, Croce did not want his physical therapy center turned into a mere workout zone. "I went through all that schooling to be a PT and
athletic trainer, I didn't want the public to think I ran a gym," says Croce. "If I was going to do fitness, I would do it differently."
As he puts it in his book, "I didn't intend for SPT to become known as just another fitness center or a typical muscle-head gym. But I wasn't
opposed to expanding our financial opportunities either."
Croce used the same space, staff, and equipment to capitalize on this new opportunity. "I figured we had the five 'Es'," says Croce. "The education, expereicne, energy, environment, and
equipment - why not use it?"
Croce says one of the first steps in getting a fitness program off the ground is simply letting referral sources know you
have the program. "Physicians see patients that have hypertension or high blood cholesterol levels." Croce explains. "These
patients may not be prescribed for normal physical therapy, but if physicians know PT with a medically-based fitness program
that can help their patients, they just might make the referral."
 In additional to generating referrals, how did Croce get the word out? He never advertised in the traditional sense.
Instead, he relied on word of mouth and creative marketing. For example, he often asked celebrities, DJs, and talk show
hosts to participate in the program at no charge. When the DJs improve their looks and felt better, they would of course
talk about it on the radio.
Long after dropping the PT and ATC credentials from his name, this type of creative marketing continues for Croce in his new ventures.
Today, he maintains roles as part owner of the 76ers, member of the team's board of directors, a network of television basketball commentator, and a motivational speaker.
-- Greg Thompson (July/August 2002 Physical Therapy Products)
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