The pandemic has raised questions about the future of the fitness industry but it hasn’t deterred father and son team Steve and Connor Thorne, whose latest franchise of Anytime Fitness opens in Jersey this year.
From sanitising studios to social distancing, the surge of at-home exercisers and the risk of further closures, there is a big question mark over how gyms can thrive in a post-pandemic world.
Lockdown changed how people exercise, digital fitness has increased in popularity, and tempting a cautious public back into bricks-and-mortar gyms has been a huge challenge for the fitness industry.
“We’ve never shied away from risk. As many people say, the greater the risk, the greater the reward”
But if you understand your community of members and you’re attuned to their experience, customers will return, believes Connor Thorne.
Along with dad Steve, Connor is the franchisee of two Anytime Fitness gyms in the UK, and he will soon be opening a third in Jersey after the entrepreneurial pair acquired Club Soulgenic in St Helier.
Anytime Fitness, which is the world’s largest and fastest-growing fitness club chain, will be Jersey’s first 24-hour fitness club. It’s a brave move, considering the current economic climate and unpredictability of the pandemic.
“We’ve never shied away from risk. As many people say, the greater the risk, the greater the reward”, said the 25-year-old.”
A different approach
Earlier in the year, when lockdown looked increasingly likely, Connor and his dad spent two weeks filming support videos for their members.
“We had to close my two clubs in England for four months, furloughing staff and freezing membership payments. We’re a direct debit business and we went from 99% of our income coming in monthly payments to zero.”
Post-lockdown, the Thornes made personal calls to all of their members, taking time to listen to any concerns, understand their clients’ needs, and reassure them of the robust new safety measures in place.
Sure enough, customers returned.
“Statistics show that a new gym loses 50% of its membership in the first year. In our first two clubs, we only hit 10%. A big part of that was down to the people we employ, the structures we have in place, and the friendly, community-driven environment we create”, said Connor, who studied business management at the University of the West of England.
“In the fitness industry, staff are usually hired purely for their fitness experience. For our first club, I hired people based on their service skills; one of my best members of staff came from a book shop. In my mind, a gym merges together hospitality and leisure, which is why my staff take a silver service approach”.
According to Connor, paying attention to members’ needs allows staff to offer clients the best possible support and encouragement. It’s this nurturing environment that keeps his retention rate so high, and it’s what, he believes, drew members back after lockdown.
For all the convenience of home workouts and online classes, there is, it seems, no substitute for human interaction in a bricks-and-mortar environment.
The world’s ‘fastest growing fitness franchise’
Launched in the USA in 2002, Anytime Fitness has exported its 24-hour/365 days-a-year model to more than 4,500 clubs across 30 countries – there are more than 160 in the UK alone. The club’s ethos is based on providing a warm, friendly workout environment at affordable prices and it’s these core values that first caught the attention of Connor and his father.
Steve, the CEO of Extreme Group, and Connor, who was working in management and due diligence at a pharmaceuticals company, had a shared love of sport and a shared vision of launching a fitness venture together. Unimpressed by other franchise opportunities, it wasn’t until Steve saw an advert for Anytime Fitness that the pair decided the time was right to get their idea off the ground.
A franchise in Ringwood opened in December 2018, followed by a Ferndown branch in late 2019.
“Anytime Fitness is more community based. It’s about supporting people through their goals, whether you’re a 70-year-old who comes once a week, to a busy mum training for a marathon”
“It’s not always a great thing to be positioned in the middle of the market, but in the fitness industry, it works pretty well. There are certain demographics who, traditionally, haven’t felt comfortable going to gyms. Anytime Fitness is more community based. It’s about supporting people through their goals, whether you’re a 70-year-old who comes once a week, to a busy mum training for a marathon”, said Connor.
“Lots of franchises have tried to target different demographics. Curves was aimed at women, and there are plenty aimed at bodybuilder types with the ‘Arnie’ body. The strength of Anytime is that it brings together people from all demographics and that creates a nice environment.”
Location, location, location
More than the brand’s unique 24-hour offering, it’s this supportive community element that Connor believes will make it a success in Jersey when it opens in December.
The island had been on Connor and Steve’s radar for a while and when they discovered Club Soulgenic in their dream location, they reached out to owner Glenda Rivoallan to discuss the possibility of acquiring it.
“My dad and step-mother came to Jersey on holiday and I remember them talking about it. We always thought it would be a great location to open a business”, said Connor.
“As it turns out, Jersey is a safer opportunity for us right now in respect to Covid-19. We didn’t know that was going to be the case when we started looking. We did put things on hold initially but when a good location comes up, you can’t sit on your hands, you’ve got to go for it, and Jersey is a fantastic location”.
