Les Mills: Supporting a Diverse Workforce with Clearhead
Les Mills: Supporting a Diverse Workforce with Clearhead
About
Les Mills New Zealand is one of the country’s best-known names in fitness, with clubs nationwide serving more than 50,000 members of all ages and stages. Its workforce includes around 350 employees across club management, reception, sales, facilities and a National Office, along with more than 750 contractors working as Personal Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors.
The business runs on a single purpose: “We make humans fit for life”, with physical wellbeing treated as the cornerstone of overall wellbeing. Despite this focus, Les Mills had never offered an EAP. Better holistic wellbeing support was something workers regularly asked for in engagement surveys, but finding a solution that worked for both employees and contractors wasn't straightforward.
In 2024, after scoping a range of providers, Les Mills partnered with Clearhead.
"We knew it was a gap for us, but it was complex as we wanted to find a solution that could support both employees and contractors at an affordable price."
Lara Paterson, Les Mills New Zealand
The wellbeing experts backing their own team
When wellbeing is your business, your own people expect the same level of care you deliver to customers. With a team that lives and breathes wellbeing, any solution had to be evidence-based, easy to access, and genuinely useful.
That is a big part of why Clearhead stood out. A fellow New Zealand-owned organisation, it offered the combination of evidence-based support and accessible technology Les Mills was looking for, at a time when budgets were tight.
"We make humans fit for life. That means more than helping people stay physically active. It means creating an environment where mental wellbeing is also valued and supported."
A digital-first solution for a young (and young at heart), nationwide workforce
Les Mills’ employee workforce is 58% Gen Z, spread across clubs nationwide rather than concentrated in one city. For a lean people team, finding a solution that their people could access themselves, online, was the right fit. Clearhead’s self-service booking lets team members browse therapists and book privately, without having to make a phone call, giving them quick access to support when they need it.
There was another benefit, too. With many younger team members turning to social media and AI for answers, a library of resources that is research-backed and safe gives the people team somewhere trustworthy to point them.
Timely critical incident response
One of the most distinctive things about wellbeing at Les Mills is how the business frames its own risk. A gym isn’t a construction site, but with tens of thousands of members of every age and fitness level, club teams handle more genuine emergencies than a lot of other workplaces, from cardiac events to serious injuries.
Frontline team members occasionally have to respond to distressing situations, and then may need support themselves. This is where Clearhead becomes part of the organisation's response, not just another wellbeing benefit. In 2026, the business drew on a Clearhead critical-incident package and debrief to support a club team through a serious incident. In that instance, a manager who had been reluctant to seek counselling found it genuinely valuable. Clearhead also gives the People Team a practical tool to reach for in difficult moments.
"Our teams occasionally face challenging and traumatic situations. Having immediate access to professional support means we can respond quickly and make sure our people feel looked after."
Something for the whole workforce, not just part of it
With both employees and a large contractor team to cover, Les Mills was clear that wellbeing couldn't be an employees-only benefit. At the same time, it had proved difficult to find an EAP provider that could offer the full range of support to both groups in a way that was reliable and verifiable.
Clearhead made it possible to offer something to everyone, affordably. Therapy access is lightly differentiated between employees and contractors, while the wider library of resources is available to everyone and feeds straight into the monthly Kaimahi Connect newsletter, which reaches everyone, including contractors. Building awareness across such a dispersed, often part-time team is a deliberate, ongoing focus.
Outcomes contributed by Clearhead
7.8 -> 8.3
~ 1,100
93%
The supported journey our wellbeing champions go on.
Implementation
When organisations take their first step with Clearhead, they embark on a purposeful journey towards fostering mental wellbeing. As a new member of the Clearhead family, you'll hear directly from our Customer Success team, who is by your side every step of the way, providing a thorough launchpad in the first month, and a clear roadmap for the year ahead.
We make the job easy for you by equipping you with essential resources and empowering you to seamlessly integrate Clearhead into the fabric of your workforce. Our approach is rooted in simplicity and effectiveness, making the journey towards mental wellbeing not only manageable but also impactful.
Maintaining Utilisation
Sustaining the momentum in supporting your workforce's mental health is at the core of our commitment. We go beyond initial implementation to offer a continuous stream of resources on a monthly basis, ensuring engagement remains high. Our proactive approach includes informative monthly webinars with world-leading experts covering a range of wellbeing topics, designed to empower individuals with knowledge and tools for their individual journeys.
We also foster interaction through quarterly engagement competitions, motivating your people to actively participate with the Clearhead platform. Our proactive and holistic approach to wellbeing sets us apart, resulting in an adoption rate that's up to 10 times higher than traditional EAP providers.
Other Case Studies
We love to partner with organisations that care.
Great portal/service and reactive customer service as well. I have also noticed an increase in the amount of our team who are getting therapy which is fantastic!
Clearhead is deeply embedded and highly adopted in our culture. It is a core part of our employee value proposition and a strategic lever for performance, risk management, and culture, ensuring our people can bring their best selves to work.
Thanks for making the onboarding process so easy and supportive. We've had some great feedback from employees around positive interactions with the Clearhead customer service team. Really glad we have partnered with Clearhead!