Emma Barry
Gyms are now in the pocket, on screens and in the ears and this trend will grow. Following the rise of Peloton, the slew of fitness apps and platforms are poised to serve the biggest TAM (total available market), with triple digit growth.
Budget clubs are providing the lion’s share of in-person, member growth and are preparing to clamber into each other’s territories. Meanwhile boutique studios are on the move: heading beyond the big cities and into the communities, congregating in malls, entering traditional club-in-a-club spaces and meeting up in the digital marketplace of aggregators, like ClassPass, and digital platforms, like NEOU. Where budget clubs are adding headcount, boutiques are adding spend-per-month, bringing intense focus and up-levelling service touch-points
Emotional connection and community are key. Despite the AI, machine learning and algorithm frenzy we find ourselves in, people still matter, a lot. Companies which are not purpose-led, fuelled by positive people practices and authentically grown will not resonate with Millennial-minded purchasers today.
Wearables reign! The power of personalised data now sits with the user and offers warning shots to those touting “this workout will burn 1,000 calories.” The true hyper-personalised journey for optimal health is underway, as we all become our own human experiments and bio-hack ourselves to vital longevity.
"Telomere lengthening, mitochondria optimisation and genome editing will become table talk. Lack of sleep is the new sitting"
Forget the club next door, operators need to look out for the ‘big trucks’ coming on the highway of health, such as Apple, Amazon, Google and major consumer wellness and medical brands. These will start utilising their deep pockets and data analytics to grab market share.
Recovery methods will start to reach beyond infrared saunas, cryotherapy and compression towards patches, pills, apps, injectables and other proven and not-yet-proven tricks to enhance personal performance. Telomere lengthening, mitochondria optimisation and genome editing will become table-talk. Lack of sleep is the new sitting.
Travel is the highest expression of luxury experience and resides at the sharp end of the experience economy. Operators such as Equinox, BLOK and a multitude of others indicate a tipping point as they combine fitness addictions with the immersion of a curated travel experience with like minded zealots (see our feature on retreats on page 54).
And, while the US and UK are focused on impeachments and Brexit, plenty of money and innovation is flowing into Asia.
Digital fitness will continue to grow, following the rise of Peloton, says Barry