EDITOR’S LETTER
Email: contact’s full name @
leisuremedia.com
SUBSCRIPTIONS Denise Adams
+44 (0)1462 471930
subs@leisuremedia.com
CIRCULATION MANAGER Michael Emmerson +44 (0)1462 471932 EDITOR Liz Terry
+44 (0)1462 431385 MANAGING EDITOR Magali Robathon +44 (0)1117 9723101 CONTRIBUTORS Kate Cracknell
+44 (0)1462 471906 Kathleen Whyman +44 (0)1462 471918 MANAGING EDITOR/ NEWS Tom Walker
+44 (0)1462 471934 ASSISTANT EDITOR/ NEWS
Aoife Dowling
+44 (0)1462 471938
LEISURE-KIT.NET Kate Corney
+44 (0)1462 471927 PUBLISHER John Challinor
+44 (0)1202 742968 DISPLAY ADVERTISING Julie Badrick
+44 (0)1462 471919 Astrid Ros
+44 (0)1462 471911 Jan Williams
+44 (0)1462 471909 ADVERTISING ARTWORK Ed Gallagher
+44 (0)1905 20198 DESIGN
Andy Bundy
+44 (0)1462 471924 INTERNET Dean Fox
+44 (0)1462 471900 Emma Harris
+44 (0)1462 431385 Tim Nash
+44 (0)1462 471917 Michael Paramore +44 (0)1462 471926 FINANCIAL ADMIN Denise Adams
+44 (0)1462 471930 CREDIT CONTROL Rebekah Scott
+44 (0)1462 431385 ISSUE 3 2013 © cybertrek 2013 MANAGING HEALTH CLUBS T
here’s never been a better time to be in the health and fi tness industry.
Every day new research emerges to prove that exer- cise can help practically every known health problem, from depression to cancer – as well as being the most effective anti-ageing treatment. People want to be healthy,
they’re learning they need to exercise to achieve this goal and want to do it in ways which are conveni- ent, enjoyable and affordable – great news for health clubs with the right business model. We could be at the dawn of a golden age, when operators grow their businesses more quickly than ever before and achieve record profi ts and market penetration – but only if we can crack one yawning weakness. That weakness is bad management: one of the only things that will stop the industry becoming pivotal to the lives of the majority. We’ve cracked pretty much all the other chal- lenges – industry suppliers compete to keep a fl ow of well designed equipment coming to mar- ket, we’re great at building clubs and staff are better trained and qualifi ed with every pass- ing year. But the management challenge is one mountain we haven’t yet climbed. Although people have the cash to afford memberships, the market penetration of health club stands stubbornly between 12 and 18 per cent (depending on how you work out the numbers), and industry growth has plateaued, but these numbers are deceptive and hide a huge level of churn – most health clubs leak members like a sieve. Any service business that loses custom-
ers to this degree has to look to its people for solutions. It’s time more business-owners in
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We’re great at building clubs and creating well- designed equipment, and staff are better trained and qualifi ed than ever, but the management challenge is one mountain we haven’t climbed yet
this sector recognised management is a dis- cipline worth investing in, and that it’s worth paying for upskill instead of simply promoting the most competent gym instructor. In the UK, it’s no coincidence that CIMSPA, the chartered institute that is meant to be leading the charge towards industry excellence, has failed to launch on three occasions and is now undergoing (another) ‘root and branch’ review.
My recommendation is that as part of this
review, CIMSPA broadens its remit to include the entire wellness, fi tness and sports sector and develops and launches a raft of training and qualifi cations designed to upskill manag- ers in all these markets – especially health and fi tness. There’s a real need.
If this process can be accelerated and man-
agers trained, exciting things can happen for the industry; if not, it will keep bumping along, losing members through bad management and seeing the public’s enthusiasm for exer- cise being harnessed by a raft of competitors. In fi ve years the people running the sector will look back and wonder what they missed.
Liz Terry, Editor Twitter @elizterry
Read leisure management online:
www.leisuremanagement.co.uk/digital
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