Having watched our industry evolve for near-on 30 years, and more recently spending two years with a large private operator exploring the boutique sector, I feel we’ve entered one of our most exciting times to date.

Specifically, I believe the boutique fitness studio option provides numerous intriguing opportunities for operators:

• To capitalise on consumers’ increasing dislike of, and resistance to, buying a membership to the whole of a traditional club when perhaps they only want to use the treadmill, classes or weights.

• To flex their creative muscles by producing a compelling ‘paradise’ for just one or a handful of activities – thereby capturing the imagination, spend and loyalty of a specific fitness consumer.

• To experiment with creating sub-brands – or ‘powered by’ brands – to bring in a new type of fitness consumer who wouldn’t naturally associate with the bigger brand.

However, with the boutique fitness market now maturing and becoming more refined, it needs to be a carefully considered, strategic move. In-depth demographic and location research is needed, as a smaller, single-discipline offering is inevitably going to be a higher risk proposition.

In addition, insight into what consumers really want is vital – you can’t simply assume that, for example, indoor cycling and circuits are the way to go. In fact, the multi-site operator research I was involved in showed that running, dance and weights were the most desired formats.

Going forward I see the natural progression being geographical clustering of various boutiques, creating ‘fitness streets’ where consumers have many options in one location, allowing them to flit between formats to suit their mood and goal. Although this approach may seem at odds with traditional industry thinking, it offers operators a chance to both feed off and support each other.

You’ve got to feel for the general public, constantly bombarded with the message to get active, start exercising and improve their health.

A recent article in The Lancet reported that, to offset the eight hours a day some people spend sitting at work, you need to do JUST one hour’s physical activity (see p122).

One hour. Who has this spare hour in a day? Those of us who exercise regularly know how hard it can be to create a routine that includes as many sessions per week as we would ideally like to do, let alone be able to find an hour per day on top of what we already have going on.

So for those who find the idea of physical activity and exercise abhorrent, the idea of five hours each week has to be a step too far.

I believe that all of our physical activity and exercise messages should start with “build up to…”. Build up to 30 minutes, build up to three days, five days each week. Offset the eight hours sitting each day by building up to an hour of physical activity.

‘Build up to’ instantly removes the barrier of achievement level: “I need to do an hour every day, and if I don’t I’m a failure.” ‘Build up to’ allows for simple progression, multiple opportunities for success and an improvement in self-efficacy and confidence.

There are multiple ways of communicating public health messages, but if we really want people to believe they can do something, we need to help them succeed – not fail.

I was interested to read your recent article on how mainstream operators are branching into the boutique market (see HCM Aug 16, p46 – and also part two of this series on p46 of this month’s magazine).

Boutique fitness studios are one of the key forces driving growth in the global fitness club and studio market. Rather than see this as a threat, there’s an opportunity here for traditional health clubs to adapt their strategies to meet changing consumer needs – and increase their revenue in the process.

It doesn’t have to be a standalone studio: by creating a boutique experience inside a large health club, operators are able to upsell a higher premium membership while keeping members retained and engaged with a new proposition (see HCM Aug 16, p60). In this way, traditional fitness facilities have the ability to move quickly within the boutique sphere, as many have the space, customer base and infrastructure already in place. If done properly, such a move can help them keep ahead of the competition.

We’re seeing a number of operators successfully – and cost-effectively – launching smaller, boutique-style training spaces in their clubs, featuring multi-purpose equipment. For example, Westwood Clubs in Ireland and Virgin Active in South Africa both offer Total Gym Gravity classes in boutique settings, bringing new customers through the door as well as being able to upsell these sessions to their existing customers.

To succeed in this market, operators must ensure they’re offering a complete experience from the very start, with dedicated front-of-house teams and a seamless journey for the customer, making the process as easy as possible for them.