Story by
Van Mitchell. Staff Writer
Between long hours at a desk or being stuck indoors for long periods of time, stretching offers proven benefits like increased mobility, improved health, and overall wellness.
Stretch Zone, the nation’s leading practitioner-assisted stretching provider, offers in-person assessments at any of its 380+ locations to showcase how stretching helps individuals stay active, reduce stress, and kickstart a healthier year.
Utilizing patented and proprietary equipment, Stretch Zone practitioners follow specific protocols to properly position, stabilize, and manipulate muscles using powerful principles of neuromuscular behavior.
Joe Uvino, esq, co-owner of five Oklahoma City and Edmond Stretch Zone franchise locations, said he became a believer in Stretch Zone while he was a client living in Florida.
“We have a condo in Boca Raton,” he said. “I was a client for probably two years at the East Boca location. “One day I was laying on one of the tables and there was somebody on the next table saying that they had bought a franchise up in Michigan. So, I said, “Well, this could be a good business opportunity for Oklahoma. My daughter lives out here. I thought maybe Oklahoma City would be right for something like this. We opened our first one in June of 2023 and we now have five of them.”
Uvino, who co-owns the metro franchises with his wife, Wendy, and daughter, Christine, said Stretch Zone’s a franchise that began about 12 years ago in south Florida with a couple of locations and now has close to 400 locations in the US.
“The goal is to probably double that in the next three years throughout the U.S.,” he said.
Tony Zaccario, President of Stretch Zone said in a press release that Stretch Zone represents a transformative health and wellness company for people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities.
“Our model and proprietary system delivers success for our franchise partners, which are supported by a network of reliable, adaptable and results-driven professionals,” he said. “At Stretch Zone, creating a welcoming environment for everyone, whether it be a franchisee, practitioner or client, is our top priority and the reason we have sustained such strong brand recognition.”
Jorden Gold, Founder and Chief Stretching Officer of Stretch Zone, added in a press release he is thrilled with Stretch Zone’s mission.
“We started the practitioner-assisted stretching vertical, and it’s thrilling to see consumers embrace its health and wellness benefits and watch our patented Stretch Zone Method® catch fire,” he said. “Likewise, countless franchise owners are realizing the value in investing in Stretch Zone and its potential to help clients improve their wellness and overall mobility regardless of their age, lifestyle or physical needs.”
Uvino said the Stretch Zone training/hiring program is quite rigorous. “The training program is very rigorous. The hiring program is rigorous,” he said. “UCO, OSU, OU all have kinesiology programs and exercise science programs, so we hire out of those. So, coming in here, a practitioner understands the body, understands the muscles and that practitioner goes through a five-day extensive training program. We’re the only stretching operation that has accredited stretch people. Here, if you don’t pass the five-day class, you can’t work for us.”
Uvino also said hiring the right people is challenging.
“Our hardest thing is acquiring and training high caliber talent. It’s hard to find people willing to do this. It’s not easy work,” he said. “If you have back-to-back stretches, it’s pretty physical.”
He said firefighters have proven to be quality hires.
“What we’re finding is some of the best employees are firemen because they work four days a week and they’re off four days and they’re always looking for a side job to make some extra money,” he said. “And they’re strong and most of them have the background either as an EMT or somebody that knows the body and is easily trained. They’re very disciplined in what they do. We’ve had good luck hiring firefighters.”
Uvino added “We have one OSU professor, with his PhD in kinesiology. He was here all last summer stretching people because he wanted something to do for the summer. He comes down to our Edmond location on Saturdays and stretches people because he likes to do it. I think the clients appreciate that we hire only people who know the body and we’re not bringing in some personal trainer who really doesn’t know the stretches or has their own method of stretching.”
Uvino said Stretch Zone has stretching protocols to ensure client safety. “What makes Stretch Zone different from other stretching places is that the belts you see on our stretching tables are patented. The founder, Jorden Gold, got a patent on these. The belts are used to stabilize people, so that no matter which stretch practitioner stretches you, you’re going to get a consistent stretch,” he said.
Uvino said the first visit to the Stretch Zone is complimentary.
“The first time you come in here it’s complimentary. A potential client will sit for 15 minutes or so with an intake person who will go through your whole history and determine areas that are troublesome. The intake person will then hand you over to one of the practitioners for 30 minutes of stretching,” he said. “The practitioner, along with the intake person then develop a protocol for the client.”
Uvino said Stretch Zone accepts HSA and FSA health insurance plans, as well as private pay.
“We recommend, if people can afford it, to get stretched twice a week, for at least two to three months, and they will see appreciable benefit and then, maybe, just go on a once-a-week program,” he said.
Uvino, a New York City native, attended undergraduate and law school at the University of Oklahoma, and spent time afterward living in Oklahoma before returning home in 1990.
His daughter, Christine Ballinger, now manages the five metro locations. “We’re a family-owned business,” Uvino said. “Our daughter lives here full-time, so she runs it.” Uvino said over the course of the next few years, he sees further expansion.
“I think seven would be a good number,” he said. “We’ve got five now and we blanket the city nicely. But I think if we were a little further west and a little further south and east we would be capturing the Tinker Air Force Base area, Midwest City, Norman and Yukon.”
For more information visit www.stretchzone.com
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