Rising revenues at major gym chains in Ireland show the popularity of fitness is more than a fad. In fact, it’s going from strength to strength with membership numbers hitting levels unseen since before Covid-19.
The pandemic hit the fitness space harder than most as racks were replaced by cleaning stations, and high-margin personal training sessions scrapped due to distancing requirements.
Gyms struggled − take Ben Dunne gyms for instance, which shuttered the doors of six gyms after the public health crisis weakened its business, and filled in some of its swimming pools.
Since then, the sector has enjoyed a rebound, with everyone from the high-end chains to the value options bulking up their revenue streams.
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The Westwood chain of high-end health and fitness clubs in Dublin revealed that membership revenues rose 15 per cent from €24.2 million to €27.8 million.
FlyeFit − in accounts filed this week − fared similarly. Its membership revenue leapt from €26.3 million in 2023 to a record €30 million. Even a surge in staff costs couldn’t stop the chain from boosting its bottom line to a comfortable €4.5 million.
Aiming to fill a mid-tier space open in the market, Gym Plus, has seen its membership pumped up by 10 per cent in the past year. It now has more than 20,000 members across its seven clubs nationally.
Gym Plus chairman Dirk van der Flier, father of Irish rugby star Josh van der Flier, told Cantillon that the new members don’t come from a traditional demographic.
Instead of surging numbers of young people flocking to the temple of iron, increasingly its membership growth is among older demographics with the pandemic the catalyst in getting them into into the gym.
It might have hurt the sector in the short term, but now the pandemic is fueling growth in the sector. Turns out Jane Fonda was correct when it comes to the gym: ‘No pain, no gain’.
