MAX COVER

One of the
frst stores in
business (Long
Beach, CA)

THEN

NOW

The new
storefront look
for Max Muscle
locations
nationwide

25 Years & Counting!

BY ROCHELLE MARAPAO

The passion
to start Max
Muscle came
from the desire
to develop the
highest quality
supplements.
As athletes, we
wanted to make
sure that what
we were putting
in our bodies
Sean and IFBB Pro
Jim Quinn at the
were products
1993 Mr. California
that we
believed in and
knew would
get us the best
results. We wanted to be the very best athletes, so
in a way it was a selfsh motivation.
As time went on and the business grew, that passion
for making the very best supplements never changed.
Now it is more about doing it to get our customers the
best results. Even today, although Joe and I are no
longer competitive athletes, we both continue to live
active lifestyles and use our supplements. Today, it is
just as important if not more important what all we
put into our bodies. That passion to continue to produce
only the highest quality supplements, not only for us
but for our loyal customers all over the world, continues
to be our driving force every day.

Sean Greene, President Max Muscle

20 WWW.MAXMUSCLE.COM

JANUARY 2016

In the cutthroat industry of health and ftness, companies

come and go without warning. With 140+ stores across the
United States, not only has Max Muscle remained a force to
be reckoned with, but its also proven to be a cutting-edge
brand that consumers know and trust. This year, as Max
Muscle celebrates its 25-year anniversary in business, CEO
and founder Joe Wells shares the story of how it all began
and his high hopes for the future.

The Beginning of an Empire

Max Muscle originated as a supplement company called Mega-Pro in 1987.

In 1985, Joe Wells had a successful private training business in Orange
County and was able to convince three of his clients to invest in Mega-Pro
where he was the CEO for fve years. In 1991, Joe split the company with
his then-partner, Dave Smith, and renamed the division, Max Muscle,
which produced high quality proteins and were revolutionary in favoring
and instatizing proteins. The same year, the frst Max Muscle store opened
on Tustin Avenue in Orange, CA and sold four products that are still on the
market today: MaxPro, Amino Max, Creatine, and Carbo Max.
One year later, in 1992, Max Muscle published its frst bodybuilding
magazine called, Max Muscle Bodybuilding News, a tabloid-style
publication covering worldwide bodybuilding news featuring top athletes,
up-and-comers, and ftness models in the sport. This magazine was
eventually succeeded by the publication we know today as, Max Sports &
Fitness agazine.

New Partnership

In 1993, Joe was at a bodybuilding show where he met his future business
partner, Sean Greene, who was competing that day. That day sealed the
fate of the direction that Max Muscle would be taking through a new

Looking Back Over the Years

JOLYNN REDDON

Mark Sarale (in back)

and crew in front of
his frst Max Muscle
store in Sacramento.

BRIAN FURER

AMANDA FREESEMAN

Joe Wells
1998

DAWN THOMAS

Sean & Jean

Claude Van
Damme in the
early 90s

TONI WARRICK

Sean and Joe

(with Joe Weider)
winning the 1998
Entrepreneur
of the Year Academy of
Bodybuilding, Fitness
and Sports

Advertisement
for Max Muscle
Apparel in
the 90s

Locations nationwide. Find yours @

www.maxmuscle.com

JANUARY 2016

WWW.MAXSPORTSANDFITNESS.COM

21

Word On the Street

What People Are Saying About Max
Muscle & Its Supplements
Mus
I love that I can walk into any Max Muscle and
have an educated conversation with the
Max Muscle staf about the nutrients and
science behind each of the supplements
and, more importantly, how they are going
to help me achieve my goals and stay on
a healthy path. Christina Williams, IFBB
Pro, Petaluma, CA

My absolute favorite thing about Max

Muscle is the customer service. All the
supplements are extremely high quality
and a great value. Bryan Benzel, ASC
Pro Strongman, Lincoln, NE

Max Muscle is one of the original supplement

companies that has been around since the
beginning and during the rise of ftness. It
is a solid company with reputable products.
Carmen Bourseau, LFL Pro Football
Player, Los Angeles, CA

partnership. I needed a store manager and Sean

had a great personality and was driven to succeed,
Joe recalls. We got along great and he bought into
the company shortly after we met. The partnership
proved to be a good decision as 25 years later, Joe
and Sean continue to advance the Max Muscle brand
together.

Secret to Survival

Twenty-fve years in business means that youre

doing something right, especially in an industry
where your competitors are struggling to stay alive.
Is there a secret to the longevity of the company?
Well, its more of a simple principle. When it comes
to Max Muscle products, both Joe and Sean think
of themselves as being consumers and often put
themselves in their customers shoes when making
decisions.
When it comes to taste, value, and quality, they ask
themselves if its something they would use, put on
the shelves, or recommend to others. This is how we
set ourselves apart from the rest, says Joe. Quality
and taste has always been our differentiator. We were
testing our products for purity well before the FDA
mandated it. We have an in-house PhD, Phil Harvey,
to make sure we develop cutting-edge products that
are safe and our success is directly correlated with
quality products that we stand behind.

"Te most gratifying experience from

this journey is seeing the results of
customers who have lost weight and
transformed their bodies. Its an
amazing feeling to know that you have
changed someones life for the better."
Looking to the Future

I'm super picky about the taste and texture of

my supplements. I love the quality of the Max
Muscle products and that they actually taste
good. Because of that I look forward to my
BCAAs preworkout and protein. (photo by
Hiram Lee) Rose Scarborough, NPC Bikini
Champion, Santa Cruz, CA

What I like best about Max Muscle is the

integrity of the staf and employees with
goals of educating them to their beneft
rather than just trying to sell them
a product. These are superb quality
products with scientifc research to
back them. Mark Sindayen, IFBB Pro,
Bothell, WA
22 WWW.MAXMUSCLE.COM

JANUARY 2016

The Max Muscle brand has grown signifcantly

over the last 10 years with the growing number of
franchises, products, and customers. The skys the
limit and for many more years to come, Max Muscle
will still be making waves in the industry.
I think we will always be a service-oriented retail
store, says Joe. The Internet will, of course, change
the course of retail, but we know that great customer
service for personal needs will always be in demand.
We will continue to run ahead of the pack and offer
services and products that will set us apart. We have
introduced more products in the last quarter of sales
than any of our competitors and we will continue
to keep our products in demand by offering a great
selection of high quality products to our customers.
But, products aside, its the people that make Max
Muscle the company it is today. The most gratifying
experience from this journey is seeing the results of
customers who have lost weight and transformed
their bodies, Joe says. Its an amazing feeling to
know that you have changed someones life for the
better. MS&F