One is not enough: Will operators create new brands to go after different markets and attract more people to fi tness?
david minton the leisure database company (tldc) • director
“T
he industry has been too slow in understanding its customers.
Supermarkets know who’s coming through the door, track if they buy budget brands, deli brands or both, and position their offer accordingly. Tesco launched Tesco Local after identifying that many customers were spending less than £20 at out of town sites.
If health club operators really knew what their members
were doing in-club, we would discover many more interesting concepts. To split the market between just high- and low-end is too crude. If we’re going to take the market from 12 per cent to 20 per cent, we need more innovation to appeal to those who have never tried a gym, or who have already tried and dropped out. Outdoor facilities might be part of this equation. Ten years ago, TLDC said the industry should be doing more
to appeal to older people, but a decade later the industry is still, in the main, ignoring the largest demographic. Look at how well Saga appeals to this market. The industry needs to know its customers, to be more
innovative and prepared to take a risk, with groundbreaking concepts based on customer behaviour.
” may 2011 © cybertrek 2011
david beattie énergie group • brand and marketing director
budget brands resonate in this economic climate. Our budget concept, Fit4less, is currently our most popular franchise. It’s interesting that Equinox chose to go with a different brand name, because we also deliberately created a distinctly different identity with Fit4less by énergie.
“T So far there’s been a glass ceiling of 10 to 12 per cent
membership penetration in the UK, but I think the budget clubs will help lift that ceiling. Our experience shows that, if you drop the price, many people who wouldn’t otherwise have considered joining a gym will sign up. People feel more comfortable exercising around like-minded
people, which is why segmenting the market works. In our Redditch club, we have a full-service énergie club and an énergie for women club. Women are prepared to pay 20 per cent more to join the much smaller women-only club, because people feel comfortable when surrounded by like-minded people. An interesting market to unlock is the men-only gym. It’s not only women who suffer from weight issues, so the opportuntity is there, but it’s hard to reach men with this sort of concept.
” Read Health Club Management online
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital 27
he industry is starting to realise one size doesn’t fit all, and
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