How to open your own gym and make it successful. How to open a gym, where to start? Advantages of opening a fitness club as a franchise

Opening a gym or fitness club is possible for people who love sports. A great way to start a business is to buy a stable gym franchise to save time on developing a business model and investing in advertising. First, you can notify residents about the opening of a new gym using leaflets, advertisements, the Internet, then the popularity of the purchased brand and word of mouth will work.

Important! Large gyms are developing a franchising program, taking into account the interests of businessmen. Incentive schemes and certification programs are offered - this stimulates franchisees to grow and increase profitability.

The parent company that controls the operation of the new gym will protect the newcomer from typical mistakes and will help to target and optimally spend the allocated funds. Reasons to visit gym:

• spend your free time usefully;
• remove excess weight;
• pump up muscles;
• form a figure;
• keep in shape.

Gym franchise offers in Russia

• X-FIT. A network of 60 clubs in Russia, 25 years in the sports market. It is offered to buy a franchise in one of two formats. Premium Club (2,000 sq. m) - high-quality exercise equipment, a swimming pool filled with sea water, group programs, SPA salons, martial arts halls, cardio zones, fitness cafes, bars. Fit-Studio (220 sq. m) – democratic format, effective training, convenient location, individual approach, low prices, there is a gym, sauna, SPA, massage. At the start of franchising, a businessman is advised on the commercialization of the club’s area, staff is trained, exclusive conditions are provided to equipment suppliers, and a page is created on the website. The cost of opening a Fit-Studio sports club is 5,300,000 rubles, a Premium fitness center is 25,000,000 rubles. Franchise price 400,000 rubles, payback 36 months.
• Tonus club. A network of health fitness centers for women, 130 points under a franchising scheme in Russia. Complete system training includes sports activities, cardio training, relaxation, health improvement, strengthening the immune system. The cost of investment, including the franchise price, is 200,000 rubles. Payback 24 months.
• Trainingroom. Franchising of a manufacturer of sports equipment, which is used in fitness centers, gyms, and rehabilitation centers, is purchased for individual use. The cost of initial expenses is 625,000 rubles, royalties are 5,000 rubles, the average payback is 9 months.

What is the best business to buy as a franchise?

Total costs of purchasing a franchise

Calculation of cost of expenses. According to statistics, the contribution to each square meter of a premium class club in Russia is $900. At the same time, to install one simulator you will need at least 5 square meters. m plus a minimum of 30 sq. m for a shower and changing room. The average cost of opening an affordable gym with an area of ​​150 square meters. m according to the franchising scheme - 500,000 rubles. It is unlikely that you will be able to reduce the amount of investment: buying cheap exercise equipment means risking the reputation of the new gym. An unattractive building with poor engineering systems will also turn off potential clients.

Important to remember! The high cost of expenses is justified by more than one hundred percent profitability of the business.

Minimum investment for the industry in rubles, area 150 sq. m:

• premises rental 50,000;
• repairs 200,000;
• purchase of simulators and equipment 250,000;
• salary 30,000.

Main factors when buying a franchise

Room. It is better to rent or buy space for a gym in a business center or a separate building down the street from high cross-country ability. It is not recommended to open a gym in a park area (no clientele), shopping center(high rental price). Mandatory space requirements: ceiling height 3.5 m, presence of a bathroom, ventilation, non-slip floor, convenient access, parking, high population density in the area.

Exercise equipment. Only reliable equipment is purchased; the convenience of clients who keep fit is a priority here. You can only save on wholesale purchases with discounts from an experienced manufacturer. The franchise seller has established supply channels and will help you buy exercise equipment at a profit. Official dealers in Russia sell high-quality exercise equipment and provide free service repairs. Required groups of simulators:

• for the back, abs, arms, legs;
• exercise bikes, treadmills;
• dumbbells, barbells, weights.

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Equipment. In addition to exercise equipment, you should buy equipment: horizontal bars, wall bars, mats, fitballs. Funds needed personal protection: belts, wristbands, knee pads, gloves. Install a cooler, boiler.

Staff. Small salaries do not work in the sports and training business. A decent salary level makes it possible to place high demands on coaches. Requirements for an instructor: athletic appearance, friendliness, knowledge of sports techniques, understanding of the issue, ability to convey information, set a task. To facilitate cooperation, it is used career growth: instructor - master - supervisor - manager. Clients understand the importance of an experienced trainer and often travel from afar to see a specific qualified instructor.

Interest in fitness services in Russia is showing steady growth. According to the Association of Fitness Professionals, the growth rate of the Russian market is about 20% per year! Thanks to the ever-increasing interest in this segment, the fitness club franchise is becoming more and more interesting to entrepreneurs.
As international experience shows, franchising can become an effective tool for developing the fitness services sector. In Russia, the choice of fitness franchises is still modest, since the market is relatively young, but Russian fitness has enormous potential for development.

A little history

The first fitness club in Russia - World Class - opened in 1993. At first, fitness was perceived as another opportunity to confirm one’s status, success and good financial situation. It is not surprising that the first clubs opened under the franchising scheme (Gold’s Gym, World Class, X-Fit) belonged specifically to the “premium” category. Gradually, attitudes towards fitness began to change. Interest in a healthy lifestyle has increased, and fitness has come to be perceived as effective tool to keep in good shape. The first democratic networks appeared (Planet Fitness, City fitness, Fizkult), some players began to work in parallel in both the premium and mid-price segments (X-Fit, Strata Partner, Russian Fitness Group). Such clubs already offered a wide range of fitness services according to affordable prices, and then less expensive franchises (although opening a franchise fitness club still requires considerable investment).

World Class was the first Russian player to offer its franchise (in 1999), and by 2006 there was a strong demand for franchises of mid-category clubs. It was then that the democratic franchise of a fitness club from the Fizkult chain went on sale.

Many Russian fitness operators came to franchising in the early 2000s—it was then that the Planet Fitness, X-Fit, and others franchises appeared. Today, the demand for economy-format fitness clubs is actively growing, but there are practically no such offers on the Russian market. The only exception is the fitness club franchise from the Sportland chain, Planet Fitness (the company operates in two price segments- average and democratic), as well as the new FitStudio franchise from X-FIT Group.

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Fitness club franchise: Franchise today

At the same time, in Russia there are only two types of fitness club franchises: a classic fitness club and a women’s fitness club. The leaders in the women's fitness club franchising market are Tonus Club, Slimclub, Curves and Brosko Fitness, while new players are constantly entering the market. Women's clubs, as a rule, operate in the economy segment and are represented for the most part in the regions where most of them began their development.

Large chains of classic fitness clubs opened and expanded their presence first in Moscow and only then entered the regional market. The franchise of a classic fitness club in Russia is offered by such networks as X-Fit and FitStudio (ICS-FIT Group), World Class and Fizkult (Russian Fitness Group), Planet Fitness, Orange Fitness and City Fitness (Strata Partner "), "Sportland", as well as international franchisors Gold's Gym and World Gym.

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Requirements from franchisors

The first requirement that franchisors make of those who are interested in a fitness club franchise is sufficient space. Only then is the partner’s willingness to invest the required amount of funds into opening a full-fledged fitness club discussed. This sequence of demands put forward by the franchisor is quite understandable: the larger the club area and the higher its status, the more investment will be required. On the other hand, the higher the class of the club, the larger the area it should occupy.

The pursuit of “status” has led to the fact that in the Russian market of classical fitness there are practically no franchises for clubs with an area of ​​less than 1000 square meters. m., although a franchise of a small full-fledged fitness club would certainly be in demand by Russian franchisees: with a small premises it is easier to start, it requires less investment and pays off faster.

The only Russian company that has assessed the prospects and attractiveness of selling small-format franchises is IKS-FIT Group. Having successfully brought to market 33 full-format X-Fit clubs (own and franchised), the company developed a new franchising concept - FitStudio economy fitness clubs with an area of ​​200 sq. m. m. FitStudio is distinguished by its “small format” - to enter this network you do not need to pay fees, there are no royalties, which is not typical for the Russian fitness franchising market. Why would one of the key market players offer a popular franchise on such preferential terms - after all, a small format would be in demand even if lump sum and royalties? As Georgy Letunov, president of IKS-FIT Group, explains, the FitStudio franchise will allow the company to achieve as soon as possible One of its main goals is to build, with the help of X-Fit resources, the largest network of affordable fitness centers based on already existing third-party clubs. At the same time, the main sources of income from the FitStudio franchise for ICS-FIT Group will be additional programs training for franchisees.

Promotion program

In the global market for fitness services, such rebranding for the sake of expanding the network is a common practice.
“In Russia, all of our franchise clubs were opened from scratch, although in international practice rebranding of existing clubs is carried out quite often,” confirms Nadezhda Efimova, administrator of the development department at Gold’s Gym.

The World Gym network of fitness clubs also places great emphasis on joining existing clubs to its brand, considering this area to be one of the most promising. The amount of investment required for rebranding is calculated individually and depends on the state of the club before the start of the transformation. The lump sum fee and royalties for rebranding are usually less than when purchasing a classic franchise.

An important characteristic of a franchise is also the package of services (training, support, etc.) offered to the partner. For most Russian fitness franchisors, it is approximately the same and is limited to developing the concept of a club and fitness programs, a brand book, and providing educational materials, staff training and marketing support.

Meanwhile, according to Dmitry Korobeykin, vice president for development of the Russian Fitness Group company, franchising in the field of fitness services is one of the most difficult types of franchising, since it is the franchising of business processes:

“A fitness club provides a range of diverse services to clients, so it is very important to implement a high-quality franchisee support program that could provide clients of a franchise club with a high level of service and a full range of fitness services inherent in own clubs franchisor."

In the Russian Fitness Group itself, when forming a franchisee support program, they relied on international experience, adapting it to Russian realities.

But the Gold’s Gym company believes that according to international standards You can work in any country, but the specifics of the country should also be taken into account.

“We use the same programs to promote our franchise in Russia as in the USA. We also receive all support programs for our franchisees from America. In Russia, we translate them and apply them in accordance with Russian reality. In all countries where Gold’s Gym develops through franchising, we follow our international standards,” says Nadezhda Efimova.

Franchising as a basis

However, Russian networks fitness clubs, unlike the same American fitness operators, do not yet consider franchising as the main way to develop the network. All domestic networks have fewer franchise points than their own: Russian Fitness Group develops 43% of clubs under franchise, X-Fit - 30%, and Planet Fitness - 28%. For comparison: the largest chains of American fitness clubs have a share of own enterprises in the total number of fitness clubs is extremely small: 3% for Snap Fitness, 0.5% for Anytime Fitness and 4% for Planet Fitness, 13% for Gold’s Gym, and World Gym generally develops only through franchising.

Obviously, this is why Russian fitness clubs don’t really try to attract attention to their franchises: the conditions and parameters of a particular package can only be found out by contacting a franchising manager, who is often not so easy to find, and any useful information about franchise get on the website in open access almost impossible. A pleasant exception can only be considered the ICS-FIT Group and the Russian Fitness Group, as well as the Gold’s Gym and World Gym chains.

The fitness club franchise and its prospects in Russia are assessed differently by the franchisors themselves. Dmitry Korobeykin sees huge potential for development in the business segment, and ICS-FIT Group is currently focusing on the development of both business class and democratic format clubs. According to forecasts for the development of the fitness market, following the growth of consumer demand from millet to inexpensive fitness - services will increase and the demand for fitness club franchises in the “economy” category will increase. This trend will set the course of development for all domestic fitness and franchising, so the prospect of democratic fitness franchises appearing in this market seems quite real.

Leader experience

If popular American chains of fitness clubs reach Russian market, then this will not happen soon, in 10-15 years. Today's Russian fitness market is very dense, there are well-known brands, so there are doubts that international fitness giants will be as successful here as in the USA. In addition, the conditions for development here are not as favorable as in Europe or Asia, where American networks are primarily aimed. It's much easier to open up there.
Nevertheless, it is American chains that are the world leaders in the fitness industry, and if they enter the Russian market en masse, they will conquer it precisely through the franchising scheme.

The concept of “fitness franchise” in the USA is very broad: it includes franchises of classic fitness clubs with gym, group classes and a swimming pool (Gold’s Gym, World Gym), and women’s fitness clubs (Curves, Contours Express), and children’s fitness centers (The little gym, My Gym). There are also very unusual offers that correspond to the latest trends in American fitness: for example, a franchise of a fitness club offering a comprehensive development of a training and nutrition program (Elements Diet and Fitness, Slim&Fit), a franchise of the world's first automated personal training studio - Coco Fit Club or, for example , a Jazzercise dance fitness studio franchise. Also in the USA, franchises of inexpensive fitness clubs are very popular, offering their consumers a limited range of services at an attractive price any day and at any time - they operate 24 hours 7 days a week (Anytime Fitness, Snap Fitness, Planet Fitness).

In America, franchises offer mainly projects for democratic clubs with an area of ​​up to 1000 square meters. m. There are, of course, franchises of much larger formats (for example, to open the popular Retro Fitness club you need a premises with an area of ​​3000 sq. m), but it is primarily small fitness clubs that are developing under franchises.

Fitness accessible to everyone

For this money you can, for example, join the most popular American fitness networks Anytime Fitness and Snap Fitness. And in order to open a franchise of a club of the world's most famous women's fitness network, Curves, or a children's fitness club, $30-100 thousand is enough. At the same time, American franchisors provide partners with much more significant support than Russian companies provide to their franchisees. For example, none of Russian companies, with the exception of the Russian Fitness Group and ICS-FIT Group, does not hold special fitness conventions for its franchisees. American fitness market experts believe that such conventions are one of the most effective ways exchange of experience and rapprochement between franchisors and franchisees, which is extremely important for a business developing through franchising.

The franchise payment system has also been built much more efficiently than in Russia. In American fitness franchises, royalties are presented either as small fixed payments ($395-500) or as a percentage of sales (usually 3% to 6% of turnover). Interest payments guarantee the franchisor more high amounts payments, and low fixed royalties help attract new franchisees - and therefore more active development of the network.

Fitness club franchise.

Franchise cost: 300,000 rub.
Investments: from 5,000,000 rub.
Royalty: 100 rub. for 1 sq. m.
Monthly income: from 250,000 rub.
Payback period: from 12 months.

About the company

• Year of foundation of the company: 1991
• Franchising launch year: 2008
• Franchise enterprises – more than 40
• Own enterprises – more than 20

The FitStudio network of fitness clubs is managed by the X-Fit Group. The country's leading fitness clubs operate under this brand. Their main advantages are:

• convenient location;
• not only the effectiveness, but also the safety of the training;
• use of the most modern equipment for classes;
• reasonable prices for services;
• individual approach to your clients.

More than 60 fitness clubs operating under the FitStudio brand have been opened throughout the country. Potential franchisees are offered a choice of 3 formats: MINI, MIDI, MAXI. For each of them there is a separate business plan with calculation necessary investments, financial and economic indicators and recommendations.

More details about cost, investment and royalties

• The cost of a franchise is from 300,000 to 500,000 rubles, depending on the format of the club.
• Investments: 5,000,000 – 25,000,000 rubles.
• Royalty: 100 rubles per 1 m 2 of club area

What is included in the franchise package:

Franchise benefits:

• ready-made, proven and successful business model;
• brand awareness;
• consulting services at all stages of business development are completely free;
• exclusive offers to work with equipment suppliers for normal functioning fitness club;
• minimal costs for marketing and development;
• professional zoning of the premises, allowing you to obtain maximum benefits;
• training of personnel at all levels;
• assistance in promoting the club;
• posting information about the franchisee’s fitness club on the franchisor’s official website.

Requirements for franchisees:

• availability of necessary investment funds to open your own club;
• adherence to the values ​​and objectives of the franchisor company;
• willingness to comply with all existing standards;
• active life position;
• the presence of an entrepreneurial “vein”;
• readiness to manage own business with the support of the franchisor company;
• the presence of prospects for the region in which it is planned to open a fitness club;
• desire to work with the franchisor on a long-term basis.

Requirements for the premises:

• the area of ​​the room must be at least 220 m2;
• It is necessary to have a bathroom or the possibility of installing it before the opening of the fitness club;
• the presence of showers or the possibility of installing them;
• free access to the fitness center;
• If located in a commercial premises of a residential building, the fitness club must have a separate entrance not connected to the entrance.

• location on the 1st floor;
• the building is located on the 1st line of houses;
• availability of premises owned or leased under a lease or sublease agreement for a period of at least 5 years;
• close location to public transport stops;
• high cross-country ability;
• presence of natural light (windows);
• minimum ceiling height – 3 m;
• availability of parking next to the fitness center building;
• high population in the city and high density in the area where the fitness center will be located.

Every person wants to become healthier, more attractive, slimmer and stronger. Prerequisite This requires regular training, but few people do this on their own at home. The services offered by fitness clubs are in constant constant demand. A good fitness franchise guarantees stable profits.

Features of fitness franchises in Russia

According to statistics, only 2% of Russians exercise in fitness clubs. In Germany, for example, this figure reaches 14%, and for the USA it is even higher. There is a highly competitive environment with a variety of ways to attract customers. In Russia, the fitness industry is growing for 2 reasons. Firstly, this is a relatively new industry that began to actively develop only about 5 years ago. And secondly, in Russia, during a crisis, people’s stress level increases, against the background of which 2 trends appear: the sphere of influence of alcohol markets and the sphere of healthy lifestyle is growing. That is, some people start drinking, while others start expelling energy.

Therefore, the main task of fitness clubs is not to lure people away from others with a lower price or promotions, but to form a new client base one of those who still don’t know how to spend the evening.

On average, the global healthy lifestyle market is considered saturated when 10% of the population is involved in it. Only with this figure do gym fitness clubs begin to compete with each other. Until then, running a fitness business can be profitable and stable.

The fitness industry is growing every year. There are 2 options for joining this business area: create good business plan and start your own business yourself or start a business by joining a franchise. After the last economic crisis, the cost of launching a new club has increased, so starting a fitness business from scratch has become quite risky: strategic miscalculations in the first steps can lead to failure. By purchasing a franchise of a network brand, an entrepreneur gains the necessary experience, reducing his risks to a minimum.

You can work in various formats:

• fitness clubs specifically for women;
• "at home" format;
• complex with a swimming pool, solarium and massage services;
• gym;
• in the premium club segment.

The peculiarity of the fitness business is that when choosing a franchise, you need to take into account the format, and not just the size of the lump-sum contribution and investments. To select it, you need to determine the audience that will be interested in the new club. For clients who do not have money problems, a club with a swimming pool, a sauna, a SPA center and spacious premises is suitable. To work with the middle layer, the range of services can be limited, and the gym space can be smaller. The format of “fitness for women” has become widespread in Russia, that is, fitness clubs where women can freely exercise without being embarrassed by the attention of men.

Your own business or franchise

Every entrepreneur at the beginning of his journey faces a choice of what is more profitable and easier: his own business or a fitness club franchise. A new, unpromoted brand is good for small towns where the choice of sports clubs is not particularly large. To open a fitness center in a large city, it is better to pay attention to network offers, the advantages of which are obvious.

In franchising, the most important problems will be renting premises and resolving issues with regulatory authorities. The promoted brand takes on the rest of the load. After purchasing a franchise, work sports club will get better in the shortest possible time. The franchisor will help you buy equipment and help you choose premises for the gym. A personal consultant will adjust technological processes, will provide professional training for instructors.

The promoted brand will become attractive in itself to the client, so it will be possible to reduce marketing expenses. Along with the franchise, the entrepreneur receives ready business plan, help with accounting, new marketing strategy. Some franchises can be purchased on credit.

Advantages

When choosing a brand under which you are going to open your business, correctly appreciate all the advantages and risks. The advantages of fitness club franchises include the following factors:

1. Operational business decisions for business development are transferred to the franchisee along with the company name. The franchisor will share the business plan, its policies and plans, and the rules of doing business. That is, a huge part of the work that you would have to do yourself will be done for you.
2. The franchisor will help you choose the location of the club, provide equipment or the opportunity to buy it at a discount, and take care of other details. Some of your customers will now choose your club based on your brand.
3. The franchisor, as a rule, has already developed training manuals and instructions for staff.

Flaws

Fitness industry franchises have almost the same disadvantages as any other segment:

How to choose a ready-made brand

The first step is to determine the range of fitness club franchises available to you based on the size of the entry fee into the business. The main problem when choosing a franchise is that large networks do not disclose their real economic indicators before concluding a contract with them. Therefore, you will have to choose a franchise based on known visible facts and intuition. A good step is to choose a couple of the most attractive ones, travel around their most successful franchisees, talk to their owners, and look at their business plans. Sometimes one day of communication and observing the work of a successful franchisee is worth all the financial calculations.

The second step is to determine the location of the future club. Premium segment franchises in their terms and conditions directly stipulate the location of the club: for example, in retail and office centers or in sports complexes. The location of the fitness center 100% influences attendance. If the club is located near a metro station or inside a residential area, then it will attract more people. Transport accessibility is very important: a location at the intersection of the main streets of the area with a parking space will be more popular among clients.

When choosing a location for a club, it is sometimes more profitable to go not only from the place of residence of the main clientele, but also from the place of work. A huge part of fitness club visitors prefer to exercise before or after work. Of course, it is preferable for them that the place of study is located next to the office. Therefore, areas adjacent to business areas may be considered for new projects.

Cost overview

An important step is to choose the company whose franchise you want to purchase. Minimum starting investment, from 560,000 rubles. up to 650,000 rubles, requires a franchise of FitCurves or Body Forming companies. The American chain FitCurves has extensive experience working with franchisees: since 2009, it has opened 320 gyms. The Body Forming brand, which appeared in 2014, has 45 points.

The Fit-n-Go franchise operates in the more expensive segment. To start working with it you will need 1,200,000 rubles. The program is popular due to wide support from partners. Since 2014, 71 franchises have opened in the network.

2,000,000 - 2,500,000 rub. will be required to open enterprises under the brands Antifitness, Jemmfit, Tonus Club. Since 2007, the Tonus Club network has expanded to 150 establishments. The remaining companies appeared later, around 2015-2016. Antifitness has 9 new franchise offices, Jammfit - 12.

There are even more expensive franchises in this segment: to start under the brand international company FitStudio will need 5 million rubles, and to open the AliceGood club you will need financial investments 7 and a half million rubles. Since 2008, 38 establishments have been successfully operating under the Fitstudio franchise. AliceGood, operating since 2012, supports 2 of its fitness center franchisees. On average, investments in the fitness industry pay off in three to seven years.

Opening a fitness club is a labor-intensive process, which can be simplified by purchasing a franchise. According to statistics, only 25% of independent clubs survive after launch, and the share of clubs operating effectively and profitably as franchises reaches even 80%.