Les Mills International has appointed Jason Paris as its new Chief Executive Officer, with current leader Phillip Mills moving into a Founder / Director role.
One of New Zealand’s most respected business leaders, Jason arrives with a proven track record of leading large customer-centric companies through growth and transformation across telecommunications, digital services and media.
Alongside periods working in Europe, Jason has helped shape some of New Zealand’s most recognised brands, including leading One NZ’s transformation from Vodafone NZ to a proudly Kiwi brand, the Telecom to Spark transformation, and playing a key role in the development of digital content platforms such as TVNZ OnDemand.
The appointment forms part of a planned leadership succession following Phillip Mills’ three-year commitment to lead the business as Managing Director through an important period of strategic and organisational development. During that time, the company stabilised and strengthened its operations, established a clear strategy, delivered strong financial performance and built an effective leadership team.
With this three-year period now complete, Phillip will support Jason through the transition and continue to serve as Founder / Director, with operational leadership and decision-making passing to the incoming CEO.
Jason Paris, who will become Les Mills International CEO from October 6, says: “It’s an enormous privilege to be joining Les Mills International to help lead the next phase of growth. What Phillip, Jackie and the Mills family have built over many decades is one of New Zealand’s great business success stories.
“I’ve always admired New Zealand brands that have a real impact globally, and Les Mills International has done exactly that. It has an outstanding team, an iconic brand and an incredible opportunity ahead.
“Every great business I’ve worked in has one thing in common: obsession over the needs of the customer. Les Mills is a great example of this, with an incredible global network of Instructors, club partners and participants. I can’t wait to start learning from these amazing people and supporting their success as we accelerate our mission to create a fitter planet.”
Phillip Mills, Les Mills International Founder and outgoing Managing Director, adds: “Jason is an exceptional leader – truly as good as you get – and we’re delighted he’s decided to join us. He brings deep commercial expertise, a modern leadership style, and a clear passion for building high-performing teams and strong cultures.”
“I stepped back into the leadership of the business following the departure of our previous CEO, with a clear three-year commitment to complete a strategy reset and return the company to solid growth following the disruption COVID caused across the global gym industry.
“With the company on a strong footing and well-positioned for further expansion, now is the right time for me to hand over leadership to an energetic new CEO who can take us into our next exciting chapter.”
Away from work, Jason is a husband and father of three with a lifelong connection to sport and fitness. He is an avid sportsman and rugby league fan, who has been a member of Les Mills New Zealand gyms for many years, with a particular penchant for RPM classes.
Les Mills International is the global leader in group training and creator of more than 30 fitness programs available in leading fitness facilities around the world. Its workouts include BODYPUMP™, BODYPUMP HEAVY™, BODYCOMBAT™, BODYBALANCE™, LES MILLS GRIT™, CEREMONY HYROX, RPM™, LES MILLS SPRINT™, and THE TRIP™.
Founded in 1968 by four-time Olympian Les Mills, the company’s mission is to create a fitter planet by helping people fall in love with fitness. Today, Les Mills workouts are delivered by more than 100,000 certified Instructors in over 22,000 clubs across 100+ countries, as well as through the LES MILLS+ streaming platform and immersive extended reality (XR) fitness experiences.
jak.phillips@lesmills.com
Les Mills International
