MIAMI: Alberto Perez started out as a street performer and then an aerobics teacher in Colombia, making extra cash on the side teaching the wives of businessmen how to dance in nightclubs in his hometown, California.

Today, he stands at the centre of the Zumba exercise craze, having helped transform Zumba Fitness, a private company, into a rapidly growing fitness empire with heavyweight investor backing.

"I'm not a businessman, but I knew this had the potential to be something special," said Perez, who along with two Colombian associates founded the Miami-based company. Zumba, a Latin dance-inspired aerobics workout, has exploded from a Miami-gym phenomenon to infomercial and DVD smash hit into a global craze with some 12 million people taking classes every week in at least 125 countries. Zumba Fitness now boasts being the largest branded fitness programme in the world.

Started on a shoestring budget in a Miami garage nearly 11 years ago, Zumba Fitness now has more than 200 employees, and a pair of New York investment firms are betting the craze has staying power.

What began as a company focused on fitness has evolved into a lifestyle and entertainment brand combining e-commerce, apparel and music, and a sought-after outlet for stars like hip-hop artists Pitbull and Wyclef Jean and reggaeton singer Don Omar who have turned to Zumba to promote their music.

THE ACCIDENTAL INSTRUCTOR

Zumba got its start by chance in the 1980s. Perez, who is known as Beto, was eking out a living as a street performer and salsa and merengue nightclub dancer known for his boyish model looks and muscular physique. One day the owner of a nearby gym called and asked if Perez could stand in for an injured aerobics teacher. He agreed but did not mention he had never done aerobics and rushed out and bought a copy of Jane Fonda's Workout Book. His fitness career was born.

Then a technology entrepreneur, Perlman lost his job in the dot-com bust two years later and was struggling with what career move to make next. Perlman said growing instructor and student base is the firm's top priority, with a goal of reaching 100 million students. The company has also launched its own line of brightly colored clothing, Zumba footwear and a glossy magazine named "ZLife", all designed in its Miami office.

Read more from the original source:
Zumba no longer just an aerobics workout, it means big business