Alberto Perlman has been trying to get on this podcast for years — turns out all it took was bumping shoulders at an industry event. As co-founder of Zumba, he's built the world's largest branded fitness program: over 15 million weekly participants, 200,000+ locations, and a presence in 185+ countries, all while surviving 25 years of hype cycles, fads, a pandemic, and everything in between. In this episode, Eric Malzone sits down with Alberto to trace the entire Zumba story from the beginning — a packed gym class in Aventura, Florida with a literal padlocked door, a co-founder who couldn't speak a word of English pitching investors, VHS tapes selling in the millions, and a brand that's somehow ended up teaching classes in the jungles of Thailand and mandated in schools across India. They get into brand protection at global scale, why Zumba refuses to chase the algorithm on social media, and Alberto's honest, still-evolving read on where AI fits into the next chapter of the fitness industry.
Key Takeaways:
🔒 The wild true story of how Zumba started — including a padlocked gym door and a line out the building 30 minutes before class
🗣️ How Beto (Zumba's creator) pitched investors without speaking English — and the 60-day scramble to teach him one phrase
📼 How Zumba's business model evolved from VHS tapes and infomercials to an instructor-membership model that still drives the company today
⚖️ The realities of protecting a global brand — including having to legally challenge a dictionary in Denmark over trademark rights
📱 How Zumba grew one of the biggest social media followings in the fitness industry without chasing the algorithm
🌍 The surprising places Zumba has ended up — jungle classes in Chiang Mai, a sign in Bhutan, mandated school programs in India, drug rehab initiatives in the Philippines, and PTSD support for police officers in Colombia
🤖 Alberto's candid, unresolved take on AI's role in the future of fitness and where human connection still wins
💪 Why Alberto believes fitness deserves more recognition as the "number one intervention" for public health
🤝 A call for more collaboration and advocacy among leaders across the fitness industry
Whether you're building a fitness brand, running a gym, or just curious how a local dance class became a global phenomenon, this conversation is packed with lessons on scaling a brand the right way — through community, not shortcuts.
OUR SPONSORS:
🔗 Perfect Gym: https://www.perfectgym.com/en
🔗 EGYM: https://egym.com/int