One year ago in this panel feature, we looked at how health and fitness brands could go global. At that point, however, the situation was not overly positive: Fitness First was the biggest global player but had sold off clubs in Benelux, France, Spain and Italy, as well as the UK. Few companies seemed to have ambitions to become big global players.
A year on, things have changed. The UK economy is growing again, house prices and consumer confidence are on the up and the health club industry appears to have toughed out the recession.
There’s certainly a buzz about, but will this translate into the next wave of international expansion for operators?
A number of chains have announced they are looking at opportunities overseas. After some tough times, Fitness First is growing again, especially in Asia. Virgin Active is also expanding across borders, and Holmes Place has announced it’s stepping up expansion in central Europe and the Iberian Peninsula; with 31 per cent of its membership now in continental Europe, the chain has designs on being the leading premium health club in the region.
Meanwhile, in the budget sector, easyGym says it’s setting its sights on countries where easyJet has a strong presence, leveraging brand recognition. It expects to have 200 gyms, and one million members, in multiple countries within the next six to seven years. And The Gym Group has also recently announced plans to expand into “Europe and beyond”, kicking off in 2015.
Is this a trend more operators will follow? Will more budget chains look for new markets for their concepts as the competition gets tougher in mature markets? Or will barriers such as local market knowledge and capital costs make players more conservative?
Where are the main areas of opportunity, and will all the operators be fighting over the same territories? How risky is an overseas development strategy, and what part might technology play in international expansion? We ask our panel of experts for their thoughts.
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