FULL BODY WORKOUT A REVIEW OF THE CENTRAL LONDON GYM MARKET


WORKPLACE TO WORKOUT


With monthly membership and credits counting for the majority of revenues, attracting sufficient members is critical to a club’s success. Outside of Central London, a key metric for this is having a significant residential population within the gym’s specific drive time. However, in the capital, locating the areas with a high density workforce is key.


As a result, using a ratio of workers per gym can provide a powerful metric for assessing the current gym provision in an area and identifying any potential gaps for further clubs. Based on 12.2 per cent of the adult population (18-70) being members of a gym (Sources: Mintel, Experian) and there being, on average, 3,000 members per club, our figures estimate a catchment of around 25,000 workers would be needed to support a traditional gym. We estimate a studio concept, given the lower cost base, could be supported by a significantly smaller catchment.


52% of people exercise more intensely during weekdays


The analysis looked at how each of the London office sub-markets compared to this benchmark


based on current provision. The office development pipeline is used as a proxy to project the number of workers to 2019, which then gives a resultant view on the number of additional gyms each area could support over the next two years, based on both the existing gap and new workers.


Our research found Central London could support a net increase of 32 gyms to reach the benchmark workers per gym, with 11 of the 18 sub-markets showing an under-supply – most notably towards the east. In fact, this metric is likely to under- estimate potential, given many of these sub- markets will also have a significant residential element to demand – for example in Kensington & Chelsea. It is also possible that the proportion of adults with gym memberships is higher in Central London compared to the rest of UK, owing to the generally younger demographic.


While the City Core would seem like the obvious choice with office workers on tap, the reality is that this is a particularly competitive market and certain occupiers may be better off selecting a growth area with lower existing provision. However, this holistic view does not take into consideration demand for particular specialist class based clubs.


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