The fitness industry has been heavily affected by the global pandemic of Coronavirus (COVID-19), which caused the gym closure across the whole country and even around the world. Gyms have lost customers overnight, with many of them being forced to shut down. As a result, fitness operators are in a state of anxiety.
How to handle it properly？In this post, we will show you what measures the top 10 gyms have taken at this time so as to provide you with some insights.
Table of Contents
1. Fitness Industry Analysis By Google Trends
We analyzed of google trends related to fitness words from March 2019 to March 2020. Our results show a significant increase in fitness related searches from December 2019.
This data suggests that the public’s concern for their health has spiked due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Historically, virus outbreaks have struck as short-term shocks to the economy. This has especially been the case as medical technology has developed. In the long run, epidemics increase the demand for exercise services. This is because people see he need to improve their immunity and overall health. Getting through to that point, however, is a major challenge for all fitness operators.
At Yanre Fitness, we have just undertaken an analysis of the responses and current situation of the top 10 global gym chains. We have also come up with some very practical advice for gym owners to get through this crisis. Let’s dive in!
2. The Grim Situation for Gym Owners
There are currently three main models in the global fitness industry.:
- The traditional gym model
- The small self-service gym model
- The online fitness application model
The large commercial gym forms the foundation of the fitness industry. It also the largest scale operation and affects the largest number of people among the 3 models.
When the virus was declared a pandemic, many large-scale public places, including gyms, announced that they would be closing their doors in order to prevent it spreading. This has impacted upon the gym model in 3 ways:
- Fixed Cost: Most gyms are located in the downtown area of a city. This means high rental fees. Gym closures for extended periods will place a huge financial on gyms as thy struggle to meet fixed costs.
- Major Revenue Reduction: gyms also lose their key revenue sources of personal training and membership. This will lead to more imbalance between revenue and expenditure.
- Member Retention Reduction: Long-term closure of the gym will impact on member loyalty. This makes it harder to retain members, further deepening the gym’s operating pressure.
3. Case-study: Top 10 Gym’s Reaction
News about the pandemic and the responses of various governments to it is changing by the hour. Gyms must react swiftly to the ever-evolving situation. Gyms have taken steps that range from shortening opening hours to closing down completely. The actions of the industry leaders are an important bell-weather for all gym owners. It can help them consider their own response to the crisis.
3.1 Gold’s Gym
Gold’s Gym announced the temporary closure of all American gyms from March 16, to March 31, 2020. They have promoted a variety of free online fitness videos that are available for members to work out at home.
3.2 Snap Fitness
Snap Fitness has announced on its Facebook page that it will continue to increase cleaning services to its daily routine and postpone all group courses. Then, in line with governmental guidance, it has announced the gym closure in the USA from March 17th until March 31st.
3.3 Anytime Fitness
Anytime Fitness announced the closure of some gyms, but many are still in operation. They are reportedly taking extra measures to maintain high standards of cleanliness and ensure the safety of their members. In addition, the Anytime Fitness online APP provides workouts for members to help them continue their fitness plan at home.
3.4 LA Fitness
LA Fitness have recently received an open letter from one of its members, accusing the gym of failing to take measures to protect its members from the Coronavirus. LA Fitness did not confront the issue through social media or on their official website. In the letter, the member also mentioned that there were no signs in the gym, no communication with members, and no evidence that any measures were being taken to keep the facility clean and safe. This letter has attracted a great deal of attention.
However, on March 17th, LA Fitness officially announced the gym closure at all locations across America from Monday, March 17th until April 1st. In addition, all membership will be extended at the time during the gym closure. During the shutdown, members are encouraged to download the club’s free app to access its online fitness videos.
3.5 Planet Fitness
At the present time, most Planet Fitness gyms are operating normal hours. However, they are dedicated to increasing the frequency and effectiveness of cleaning. In addition, since Monday, March 16, there has been a live workout video for 20 minutes every day through its Facebook page. This can be done at home without any equipment.
3.6 24 Hour Fitness
24 Hour Fitness has received a number of member complaints about its lack of action to confront the virus. It has not addressed the potential panic among members. There has also been no noticeable increase in cleaning. Angry comments have appeared on their Facebook page. Members accuse them of being more concerned with their own marketing activity than members’ safety.
However, on Monday March 17th, 24 Hour Fitness announced a temporary closure for all its gyms.
3.7 Life Time Fitness
Life Time Fitness reacted to the outbreak of the epidemic by limiting the size of its group classes to 25. They also reduced the number of classes offered each day to allow thorough cleaning services between classes. Members are encouraged to bring their own yoga mats and other gear and are asked to avoid any skin-to-skin contact. In addition, members can request cancellation of courses at any time and receive a refund for the unused courses.
In accordance with the latest governmental guidance, Life Time Fitness closed all gyms on March 17th. The duration of the shutdown will depend upon guidance by the authorities. Members’ accounts are frozen based on the closing time.
3.8 Orangetheory Fitness
On March 14th, Orangetheory Fitness announced that all gyms would be closed until March 31st, with a guarantee of a free membership freeze. But the announcement was later changed. Now only infected people will be allowed to freeze for free. Others will have to pay $15 a month for an account freeze. This has caused strong dissatisfaction among members.
Orangtheory has launched home workout videos on social media that allows members to work out at home without any equipment.
3.9 Fitness First
Fitness First has already closed gyms in countries such as the Middle East, Germany and the Philippines, with an undetermined length of closure. Membership will be suspended during the closure period. The membership fee will be waived until the club reopens. In addition, there will be a 30-day extension for PT packages.
For other gyms that remain open in areas less affected by the pandemic outbreak, careful cleaning and precautions will be undertaken. Fitness First said it would continue to stay connected to the changes and make adjustments if necessary.
3.10 PureGym
PureGym has announced that it will remain open. It has improved the cleanliness and hygiene of all its gyms, in accordance with governmental guidance. They will increase the cleaning frequency and area, including providing adequate sanitizer and cancelling all group classes.
4. Practical Tips For Gym Owners
Yanre Fitness have identified four key areas where gym owners can take action to confront the Coronavirus pandemic:
4.1 Fix Cost Reduction
- Check with the landlord to see if there is any rent relief
- Reduce other costs to protect your cash flow
If you need to purchase or replace your fitness equipment, be sure to consider selecting a cost-effective gym equipment manufacturer.
4.2 Daily Operations
- Increase the gym’s cleaning schedule. Pay extra attention to disinfecting door handles, equipment padding and handles.
- Display a whiteboard showing what time the area was last cleaned.
- Improve the ventilation of the room.
- Have plenty of disinfectant wet wipes and hand sanitizers for members to use. Put up signs to remind members to wash their hands.
- Remind members by text, email and signage to clean the equipment before and after use.
- Encourage members to bring their own equipment, such as a yoga mat.
- Shorten the hours of operation.
- Spread out the equipment to ensure that the distance between members is more than 6 feet.
- Limit the maximum number of people at the gym.
- Cancel all the group classes.
- Prohibit physical contact between trainers and members.
- Offer special discounts for fitness classes.
It is critical that you put up a sign in the club so that members can see the efforts you are making to keep the gym clean. That will give them the assurance that you are doing everything you can to make things safer. You want your members to be able to say that their gym is cleaner than the average environment.
Increasing your out of gym contact with members is also of great value. Be sure to use email to cater for those who are unfamiliar with social media.
4.3 Customer Retention
The pandemic has forced people to stay at home. This will lead to a growth in the online fitness sector. However, you can and should be at the forefront of the home workout experience. This will help to maintain membership loyalty. When the pandemic subsides, loyal members will return to you.
You can take pro-active steps to build customer loyalty by:
- Providing regular assurance to your customers that you care about them and value their health and safety.
- Promoting online channels, live coaching, and workout apps so people can continue their training from home.
- Offering online one-to-one training services that include workouts, nutrition and motivational guidance.
4.4 Avoid Risk
- Commercial Insurance
The cleaner your gym environment is, the less likelihood there is of infection. It is very unlikely that a member would be able to prove that they contracted the virus at your premises. As a result, you are unlikely to be sued on this account.
According to standard commercial property insurance policies, pandemics are excluded from claims. That means that you will not be able to get insurance relief for losses sustained as a result of the virus. However, governments around the world are currently rolling out financial aid packages to support businesses affected by the pandemic. Be sure to check what is available in your country.
- Exemption Agreement
It is often better to manage risk than to transfer it. One way to manage your risk is to have members sign an exemption agreement. Anyone who enters a health club must sign some sort of exemption agreement acknowledging the inherent risks of using the equipment. This agreement should remind your members that you cannot guarantee their absolute safety. We recommend that you seek legal counsel to update the club’s exemption agreement. The Coronavirus pandemic has brought a whole new set of circumstances that may not be covered by the existing agreement.
The company’s management leaders should meet with club owners to discuss a path forward. The decision may be made to allocate more resources or even to implement incentives to motivate staff during this trying time.
5. Conclusion
In the short term, the Coronavirus pandemic will have a huge impact on gyms. It will even threaten the survival of some cash-strapped gyms. In the long-term, however, it will have a positive flow on effect. The pandemic will encourage many people to take steps to improve their health and immunity by improving their fitness level. So, for gyms, there is light at the end of the tunnel, so long as they can survive the bumpy ride.
For Updated Info about Coronavirus, pls visit:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
Related articles:
