UK news update
CIMSPA backs leisure accident benchmarker
The Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) has given its backing to a new benchmarking platform that enables operators to monitor the type and level of accidents occurring at health clubs and all types of leisure facilities across the UK. STITCH is a leisure management accident analysis tool developed by health and safety specialist Right Directions, the company behind Sport England’s Quest quality scheme, ukactive’s Code of Practice and FLAME Awards, and accreditation for the ASA’s Learn to Swim Pathway. The new online platform captures, collates and aggregates accident and ‘near miss’ data, providing a live snapshot of key performance indicators that allow management to monitor accident trends locally and nationally for feedback. Details:
http://lei.sr?a=Q9X8q
24/7 Fitness opens at Fort Dunlop building
Sports Direct to launch gyms
Sports Direct International – the company founded by Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley – is considering a high-profile arrival in the health club sector with the acquisition of up to 33 LA fitness sites, according to reports. Sports Direct confirmed it was in talks
over the move which, if successful, would see it follow retail rival JD Sports into the gym market. The latter launched its first club at a former Fitness First site in Hull early this year. Leases for the 33 sites were put up for
sale by LA fitness in March as part of a restructuring plan to reduce debt. It’s not yet known how the sites would be branded or
operated under any deal with Sports Direct. Sources quoted in the national press
claim Ashley has offered a parent company guarantee to LA fitness landlords to secure the sites, with a deal reportedly imminent. Health Club Management understands that
negotiations have been ongoing for some time and that a meeting took place among Sports Direct’s senior management the day before the news broke. The group recently recruited former DW Sports and Fitness CEO Winston Higham – a move widely viewed as a precursor to an assault on the health club market. Details:
http://lei.sr?a=D7M3k
It has reportedly been a long-held goal of Mike Ashley’s to launch health clubs The famous tyre factory is now a gym
24/7 Fitness has taken Birmingham’s iconic Fort Dunlop building as the site for its fifth fitness club, continuing the former rubber wheel factory’s traditions by offering locals a place to shed their spare tyres. The building that once housed Fort Dunlop tyres had stood empty for 20 years, but has now been redeveloped into an office and retail complex, with the 24/7 Fitness club occupying a sizeable space of approximately 594sq m (6,395sq ft). 24/7 Fort Dunlop is the second
Birmingham facility for the health club chain, following the site in nearby Bearwood, to which new members will also have access. As with the group’s other venues, the
new club features a full range of CV equipment including Matrix treadmills, ellipticals and cycles, plus resistance equipment from the Matrix Aura series, free weights, and a ladies-only gym. Details:
http://lei.sr?a=n2S3r
10 Microgyms: Lessons must be learned
Leading figures from the health and fitness industry have warned that companies must adapt to the changing market, exemplified by the surge of microgyms, to avoid being left trailing behind. Speaking during a Q&A session at the 2014 Active- net conference in Coventry, Les Mills customer experience director Martin Franklin said microgyms had proved a “disruptive influence” to the traditional gym model and were indicative of a market shift. “The success of microgyms tells us that both the market and consumer demand are changing – and we as a sector aren’t adapting well enough,” noted Franklin. “We need to analyse this success, pick trends and find innovative ways
Read Health Club Management online at
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital
Microgyms like The BEAT (see p38) indicate a market shift
to integrate them into existing operations.” During the same discussion, MYZONE’s Dave Wright said gym models had to expand beyond their four walls to thrive in future. Details:
http://lei.sr?a=f6j3C
June 2014 © Cybertrek 2014
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92