Bally Total Fitness Names Gayle J. Franger Vice President of Corporate and Brand Development

CHICAGO, June 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Bally Total Fitness Holding Corporation , North America's leader in health and fitness products and services, has announced the appointment of Gayle J. Franger, to vice president of corporate and brand development. Franger will be responsible for establishing and developing strategic corporate partnerships with key brands and placing an increased focus on marketing the company's customer service and wellness initiatives.

"Gayle is an innovative strategist with proven ability to build and grow global brands and identify untapped opportunities," said Paul Toback, chairman and chief executive officer of Bally Total Fitness. "She is a vital addition to our marketing team, as she will work to secure partnerships with key brands and focus on implementing several new initiatives through integrated marketing and promotions."

Franger joins Bally from the McDonald's Corporation where she served as marketing director for the company's Woman's and Wellness/Experience initiatives and was responsible for marketing, planning and delivering integrated marketing programs. In her role, Franger led the national launch of McDonald's Asian Salad and the popular "Arch Card" gift card in addition to developing the first multi-faceted Children's Wellness program, "Passport to Play" that concentrated on a balanced and active lifestyle, and is currently being adopted globally.

Previously, Franger served in a variety of consumer packaged goods roles, most recently at PepsiCo including marketing manager, senior marketing manager and most recently as director of convenience foods, new platforms. At PepsiCo, Franger successfully launched wholesome snacking category platforms and also led strategic planning and delivery of integrated marketing programs for the Golden Grain portfolio. In her early years at PepsiCo, Franger led new product development efforts for the Quaker Snacks Division, resulting in the launch of Quaker Fruit & Oatmeal Cereal Bar Bites, the first bite-size product in the category delivering over $30MM of growth in its first year.

Franger holds a MBA from DePaul University and a bachelor's degree in marketing from Indiana University.

About Bally Total Fitness

Bally Total Fitness is the largest and only nationwide commercial operator of fitness centers, with nearly 390 facilities located in 29 states, Mexico, Canada, Korea, China and the Caribbean under the Bally Total Fitness(R) Bally Sports Clubs(R) and Sports Clubs of Canada(R) brands. Bally offers a unique platform for distribution of a wide range of products and services targeted to active, fitness-conscious adult consumers.