Type: Public
On the web: http://www.weightwatchersinternational.com
Employees: 56,000
Employee growth: 12.0%

Forget diet fads: Weight Watchers is a stalwart in the weight loss industry. The company hosts nearly 45,000 weekly meetings worldwide facilitated by some 12,000 leaders. In the form of a support group, per se, meetings cover nutrition advice and exercise tips to help its some 1.2 million members lose weight. Weight Watchers also offers advice and recipes on its website and sells products, such as recipe books, a magazine, food, and vitamins. Its Weight Watchers Magazine has a US readership of 10.8 million. Jean Nidetch and Al and Felice Lippert started Weight Watchers in 1963; the firm now holds classes in about 30 countries. European investment firm Artal Luxembourg owns about 59% of Weight Watchers.

Key numbers for fiscal year ending December, 2010:
Sales: $1,452.0M
One year growth: 3.8%
Net income: $194.2M
Income growth: 9.5%

Officers:
Chairman: Raymond Debbane
President, CEO, and Director: David P. Kirchhoff
CFO: Ann M. Sardini

Competitors:
eDiets.com
Jenny Craig
Nutrisystem

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