Expand, Franchise, or Sell (Independent Gyms Winter Conference 2023 Panel Debate)

The opening panel at the Independent Gyms Conference is designed to get delegates thinking, interacting, and sharing ideas. The session introduced three gym owners who spoke candidly about their businesses, their experiences, and the lessons they've learned along the way.?

We heard all about the details, drivers, and motives that lead gym owners to expand their operations, to franchise, and to sell the businesses they've built.? There was some great audience interaction and questions as always, and delegates were talking about the session all day.

NR Health Club, New Revolution Health & Fitness Club 24/7 [Norfolk]

• Owner: Nathan Gostling (formerly Riverside Leisure Centre)
• 6 sites; Attleborough, Dereham, Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft, Watton, Wymondham
• No contracts, free classes & 24hr access at all gyms.
• Membership from ￡23.99 pcm, average ￡25
• Average Membership numbers: 900-2,000 per site
• Website: NR Health Clubs ?

Anytime Fitness [Swadlincote, South Derbyshire]

• Owner: Sharon Bhullar (formerly NHS Prog/Proj Mgr, Dominoes Franchisee, food startup, etc!)?
• Single site, Convenience, Community, & Coaching, 24/7?
• Membership ￡36.99 pcm or ￡407 annual
• Grown from 70 to 1,000 members in 11 months
• Website: Anytime Fitness Swadlincote

life:lab [Chislehurst, Kent]

• Owner: Adam Daniel MBA (also coach & facilitator in leadership, human performance, natural health & movement, former master trainer @ Wattbike, MyZone, lead presenter at FitPro, & highly successful PT)
• Premium Training Experience, PT and small Group Training Studio & “Lab”
• Membership ￡99-199 pcm, or PT sessions from ￡60 ph
• Website: life:lab

Nathan talked about his why, having grown steadily with one club per year over the last six years. Even back when he was working at local leisure centres, he dreamed of running his own gym. The expansion to a second and subsequent clubs came as an opportunity, but also a challenge. He visited a franchise day and learned a lot but was also told that the location he had in mind wasn’t a good fit. That location is now one of his biggest clubs, so it just goes to show that the franchise formula or model isn’t always right.

One of his biggest lessons was around staff and hiring, and ensuring that his management team have the same principles and ethos as himself.?

Sharon has built and run other franchise operations outside fitness, so when considering a health club business, franchise was always the route for her. She bought an existing club that needed renovation and attention, particularly on membership pricing and processes, and has grown from 70 to almost 1,000 members in under a year. The support from Anytime Fitness has been invaluable, it helps that Sharon understands and follows the franchise processes. Staffing has also been a big lesson for Sharon, getting the right people in the right roles is absolutely key to her success.

Adam built a gym almost as a project alongside his MBA (like you do!) He had an idea of his exit strategy even as he was building it, but nevertheless, learned lots of lessons along the way. One of those lessons was that you don’t need to spend a lot of money and have all the best gear for your members, even if you think you need it for yourself. That said, there was a lot of great technology which continues to be used at LifeLab, and it justified the high membership fees. We talked about how Adam came to a figure with the buyers, including the value in having his name associated with the business. The flip side to that was that several members did only want to train with Adam, despite the higher cost, a problem that several gym owners in the room identified with.

There were many more questions, and lots more interactions throughout the day, that we’re not able to cover in this short article. If you want to learn more, or add to the discussion, look out for the next Independent Gyms conference in Solihull on 4th July 2024.?