VICE PRESIDENT OF GLOBAL SALES
Pete Asistin, our Vice President of Global Sales, has over 46 years of experience in the fitness industry. Having established two fitness companies, and served in numerous roles at CalGym and TuffStuff Fitness International over a 33-year period, Pete has played an integral role in the company’s growth in both consumer and commercial markets.
In 1972 Pete started his career in the fitness industry as Financial Controller for Marcy Gym Equipment Company in Glendale, CA. It didn’t take long for Pete’s personable character to become recognized, and management persuaded him to switch from a “bean counter” to sales, and he’s never looked back. In 1979, Pete Asistin used his industry knowledge and relationships to set up one of the first specialty fitness stores, Califitness Products Network, in Los Angeles, CA. At the time there were only a handful of these specialty fitness retail stores in the Los Angeles/Orange County area. Using his store as a base of operations, Pete also conducted outside commercial, as well as retail sales, to widen his market reach.
In 1982, Sherman Grider, the President & CEO of California Gym Equipment Company (“CalGym”), hired Pete Asistin shortly after purchasing CalGym from his parents who founded the company. During this time CalGym was about to unleash its secret weapon, the MASTERLINE 500, the first free-standing home gym, and Pete’s responsibility was to help market and distribute the new product. By the mid-1980’s, the company established itself as a pioneer and the premier manufacturer of home gyms. Not too long afterwards, Sherman Grider then sold CalGym to a Texas company.
In 1990, Pete Asistin founded Califitness Product Corporation to design and manufacture custom home gyms for celebrities. In collaboration with Mark Harigian, a highly-regarded Hollywood celebrity trainer, some of their clients included Cindy Crawford, Nancy Sinatra, Bob Saget, Steven Seagal, Tom Hanks and Tom Selleck.
Then in 1993, in a consultant capacity, Pete reunited with Sherman Grider, who had since created a new line of non-selectorized strength equipment, benches and power racks, called Tuff Stuff, under the Task Industries Inc. banner. Around the same time, Sherman Grider was offered the opportunity to buy back CalGym, which he did, and Pete assisted in the transition. Sherman coaxed Pete to join the new entity, Task Industries, as the Western Regional Sales Manager, and thus started his second career with the company.
In 2004, Task Industries Inc. rebranded itself as TuffStuff Fitness Equipment, Inc. In 2005, Pete Asistin was promoted to Vice President of International Sales, and grew TuffStuff’s brand and dealer base globally through strong relationships. Because of the growing success internationally, the company rebranded again in 2014 to TuffStuff Fitness International Inc.
Today, TuffStuff has dealers and distributors located across Asia, North America, South America, The Middle East, and Europe, with international sales accounting for more than 30 percent of the company’s business, and still growing.
