Health and Fitness Club Industry News
Friday, January 23rd, 2026
North Castle Partners Closes Seventh Focused Fund at $400 Million Hard Cap
Posted: April 22, 2019 in Chains
GREENWICH, CT - North Castle Partners, a leading private equity firm focused on consumer businesses that promote Healthy, Active and Sustainable Living, announced the final close of North Castle Partners VII, L.P. ("NCP VII" or the "Fund") at its hard cap of $400 million. The Fund, which was oversubscribed, was raised in less than five months. North Castle Partners also recently completed its sale of Jenny Craig, Inc., a leader in the weight loss industry in North America, Australia and New Zealand, and established new partnerships with four entrepreneurs or management teams: Maya Kaimal Foods, Encore Vet Group, VitaCup, Inc. and Windham Mountain Resort. Read More...
MINDBODY Named to the Pacific Coast Business Times 2019 Central Coast Best Places to Work List
Posted: April 19, 2019 in Suppliers
SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA - MINDBODY, a leading technology platform for the fitness, beauty and wellness industries, announced its selection to the Pacific Coast Business Times 2019 Central Coast Best Places to Work List. Winners were selected as a result of a survey which took into consideration work-life balance, career growth opportunities, effectiveness of management and onsite amenities, among other criteria. Read More...
Active Wellness Announces New Chief Operations Officer
Posted: April 18, 2019 in Chains
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Active Wellness, LLC. announces that Michelle Wong has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer. Michele has been with Active since inception, and she’s excelled in all categories of performance and contribution. Michele has delivered exceptionally on operations and she’s been instrumental in client relationships, new site acquisition, and infrastructure improvement. Read More...
Synergy Capital Investments Makes Growth-Oriented Investment in Fitness Holdings Northeast, One of Crunch Fitness’s Largest Franchisee Groups
Posted: April 17, 2019 in Chains
NEW YORK, N.Y. - Fitness Holdings Northeast, LLC ("FHNE" or "the Company"), a leading franchisee group in the Crunch Fitness network in the Northeast region, announced that Synergy Capital Investments, LLC ("Synergy" or "the Firm"), a diversified private equity firm based in Atlanta, Georgia, has completed a growth-oriented investment in the Company. Headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, FHNE's mission is to launch a network of Crunch gyms across the northeastern United States. The Company currently operates 18 locations in the New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Massachusetts area, and is set to open four more locations in 2019. FHNE's partnership with Synergy will enable the Company to expand not only regionally, but also nationally through a mix of acquisitions and new development to achieve its 50-club growth plan. Read More...
2019 Hammer Strength Clinic Unites Strength and Conditioning Professionals in Atlanta
Posted: April 15, 2019 in Suppliers
ROSEMONT, IL - Hammer Strength, the world's foremost strength training equipment brand, will host a strength training clinic on April 26 - 27 at Georgia State University in Atlanta, offering fitness professionals the opportunity to learn from some of the best strength and conditioning coaches in the industry. The clinic, the most recent in a series of hundreds that have been hosted by Hammer Strength over the past 27 years, is designed to bring the athletic community together to share knowledge and help build elite programs across the country. Read More...
Wellbeats Partners With PreferredOne
Posted: April 13, 2019 in Suppliers
ST. LOUIS PARK, MN - PreferredOne is breaking the mold when it comes to health plan fitness benefits by partnering with Wellbeats to bring on-demand, virtual fitness to employer groups. PreferredOne will offer Wellbeats to fully-insured groups upon renewal beginning in July. Self-insured groups will also have the option to add Wellbeats to their plan design. Read More...
VASA Fitness Appoints Mindi Bridges Chief Marketing Officer
Posted: April 11, 2019 in Chains
OREM, UT - VASA Fitness announced the appointment of Mindi Bridges as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). Bridges, a seasoned marketing leader with a track record in leading successful marketing programs for respected brands including In-Shape Health Clubs, Abercrombie & Fitch, Treasury Wine Estates and the GAP, will oversee all aspects of marketing and club design to help usher in the next stage of VASA’s rapid growth. VASA currently operates 36 clubs in five states, with ambitious plans to complete 12 new clubs in 2019. Read More...
Sunshine Fitness Acquires 13 Additional Planet Fitness Clubs Across the Southeast U.S.
Posted: April 10, 2019 in Chains
ORLANDO, FL - Sunshine Fitness Growth Holdings, LLC (“Sunshine Fitness”), a leading owner and operator of Planet Fitness clubs in the Southeast United States backed by TSG Consumer Partners (“TSG”), announced its acquisition of 13 additional Planet Fitness clubs in South Carolina and Georgia from Anchor Fitness LLC. With this acquisition, Sunshine Fitness now operates 80 clubs across Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama and Georgia. Read More...
Health Club Experts d/b/a The Business Finance Depot Announces Promotions of Gary Raffensberger and Robert Hyndman
Posted: April 10, 2019 in Suppliers
MOUNT DORA, FL - Paul Bosley, owner of Health Club Experts d/b/a The Business Finance, has announced the promotion of Gary Raffensberger to Director of Operations and he will be joined by Robert (Bob) Hyndman, who is their company processor for new lease and loan applications. Bosley has announced that his company is gearing up to prepare for growth and they’re looking forward to welcoming their new franchise clients. Read More...
Precor and eGym Reach Installation Milestone
Posted: April 10, 2019 in Suppliers
WOODINVILLE, WA - Less than a year after the launch of their global partnership, a leading fitness equipment manufacturer, Precor, and fitness training system provider, eGym, celebrate the installation of eGym SmartStart on networked Precor cardio equipment in more than 100 clubs across Europe and the U.S. Read More...
Tony Robbins and Pitbull Partner On Fitness Chain GRIT BXNG
Posted: April 9, 2019 in Chains
NEW YORK, N.Y. - The World's #1 Life Strategist, Tony Robbins, and mega-entertainer Mr. Worldwide, Pitbull, have teamed up with Bill Zanker, the motivational impresario who founded The Learning Annex, to launch a new boxing fitness chain. GRIT BXNG will open its flagship location in New York City this June. GRIT BXNG promises to take fitness entertainment to a whole new level. Classes will feature curated playlists by Pitbull and motivational content from Robbins on giant video screens inside the studio. Together, they will serve as brand advisors and investors in GRIT BXNG. Read More...
Columbia Association Earns ENERGY STAR Award for Excellence from EPA and DOE
Posted: April 9, 2019 in Chains
COLUMBIA, MD - Columbia Association (CA) is proud to receive the 2019 ENERGY STAR Award for Excellence for important contributions to energy efficiency. CA will be honored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy at a ceremony on April 11 in Washington, D.C. CA became an ENERGY STAR Partner and created a formal energy management program in 2012. Since then, CA’s energy use has decreased by 20%, while its carbon footprint has been reduced by more than half. CA has also engaged with the community to be more energy-efficient. Read More...
Tips & Strategies For Increasing Member Retention
Posted: April 8, 2019 in Suppliers
It’s that time of year again. The time where you notice that your gym, which was once bustling with motivated new faces, has begun to revert back to its state of mostly "the regulars." The New Year likely brought with it a surge of new memberships, and while your regular members may be grateful they aren’t having to fight over machines anymore, you are getting nervous about all the new additions that have been jumping ship. Research shows that almost a third of all resolutions are related to health and fitness, which can lead to a big spike for the fitness industry. Unfortunately, data also shows that people are likely to give up on those resolutions as early as mid-January. So, what can you do to not only attract new members but also to keep them? The following are our key strategies to help you keep your members satisfied, successful and coming back for more... Read More...
Anytime Fitness is Poised to Make History As The First Franchise on All Seven Continents
Posted: April 8, 2019 in Chains
SOUTH SHETLAND ISLANDS, ANTARCTICA - Anytime Fitness, one of the world's largest and fastest-growing fitness club chains, is about to make history. No other franchise in the world has ever had locations on all seven continents. That will soon change when the first Anytime Fitness gym opens in Antarctica a few months from now. Read More...
Cycle For Survival Breaks Record With $42 Million Raised In 2019 For Rare Cancer Research
Posted: April 3, 2019 in Chains
NEW YORK, N.Y. - Cycle for Survival, the movement to beat rare cancers, raised $42 million in 2019 through its signature indoor team cycling events, making it the most successful year to date. A total of $222 million has been raised since inception, with more than half of that total raised in the past three years. 100% of every dollar raised directly funds groundbreaking rare cancer research and clinical trials led by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, which owns and operates Cycle for Survival. Read More...
Life Time Disrupts Shared Workspace Industry with Opening of Life Time Work West End; Edina to Follow Later in 2019
Posted: April 3, 2019 in Chains
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - As Life Time, the nation's premier healthy lifestyle brand, continues to add to its health and wellness portfolio and high-end athletic lifestyle resorts, the company announced the opening of Life Time Work West End, the first-of-its-kind in Minnesota, and second in the country (Life Time Work Ardmore opened in April 2018.) Life Time Work West End is located just blocks away from the Life Time St. Louis Park athletic club. Read More...
Record Numbers for Let’s Move for a Better World 2019
Posted: April 3, 2019 in Suppliers
NEW YORK, N.Y. - Technogym announced the amazing results of its 2019 Let’s Move for a Better World campaign, a worldwide social initiative to raise awareness in the fight against obesity and sedentariness, that ran its sixth edition from March 11 - 30, 2019. Let’s Move for a Better World is the biggest social campaign in the fitness and wellness industry that embodies Technogym’s mission to improve wellness on a global scale. Read More...
Brick Bodies Announces Padonia Re-Grand Opening Celebrating Over $1 Million in Renovations
Posted: April 3, 2019 in Chains
TIMONIUM, MD - Brick Bodies Fitness Services Inc. announces their re-grand opening at Brick Bodies Padonia on April 27, 2019 from 9AM to 12PM, celebrating an investment of over $1M in their 60,000 square-foot Padonia location. "We’re proud to open our doors to the community for our re-grand opening," shares Vicki Brick, CEO of Brick Bodies, "At Brick Bodies, our reputation as an industry leader is founded upon giving our members access to the latest fitness trends so they can maximize their results." Read More...
Gold’s Gym Appoints Craig Sherwood Chief Development Officer
Posted: April 2, 2019 in Chains
DALLAS, TX - Gold's Gym, a trusted fitness authority, has promoted Craig Sherwood to Chief Development Officer. Sherwood brings more than 20 years of franchise development experience across a variety of industries to this new and expanded role. As Chief Development Officer of Gold's Gym, Sherwood will maintain overarching responsibility for the brand's franchise community and licensing programs while spearheading the charge to expand the brand's international footprint through master franchising. Read More...
Anytime Fitness Announces Global Partnership With Special Olympics
Posted: April 2, 2019 in Chains
WOODBURY, MN - Avowing their shared commitment to helping all people lead healthy, happy lives, Anytime Fitness is pleased to announce a global partnership with Special Olympics. Anytime Fitness will encourage the owners and staff members at nearly 5,000 gyms to voluntarily coach, train and support Special Olympic athletes worldwide. Read More...
