Anytime Fitness opens 4,000th club and sets sights on Antarctica!
Published: 23 March 2018
Anytime Fitness has celebrated the opening of its 4,000th global club in Shanghai, China.
The celebration will take place at an Anytime Fitness club in Shanghai. The fitness franchise is the first and only US-based gym to have been granted a franchising license in China, and there are currently 11 Anytime Fitness clubs operating in the country.
Additionally, Anytime Fitness is in the process of formalising an agreement with master franchisees to open at least 75 clubs in Morocco over the next 10 years, meaning the brand should have clubs open in 32 countries on six continents by the end of 2018. Anytime Fitness is also pursuing plans to open at least one gym in Antarctica, making it the first franchise to have a presence on all seven continents.
Chuck Runyon, the CEO and co-founder of Anytime Fitness, says: “We’ve already begun exploring options for Antarctica. It’s going to happen, and sooner than you might think.
“Our mission is to ‘improve the self-esteem of the world’. It may sound like an audacious goal, but we’re very serious about it. We’ll soon have 4,000 clubs open in more than 30 countries on all seven continents. Each of those clubs supports a small community of like-minded individuals who are determined to enjoy healthier, happier and more active lifestyles. That’s what we mean by ‘improving the self-esteem of the world’.”
Founded in 2002, the first Anytime Fitness club in the UK opened in Bristol in 2010. Since then, over 140 clubs have opened throughout the country, with the aim to reach 400 clubs by the end of 2020. Additionally, according to FRANData, Anytime Fitness is one of 15 franchisors located in 30 or more countries.
UK CEO Stuart Broster says: “Anytime Fitness has always focused on convenience, affordability and a friendly, supportive atmosphere. That will never change and we continually work with our franchisees to expand our programming and benefits for members. Owning a fitness club is becoming an increasingly attractive proposition for entrepreneurs in the UK and we’re confident of meeting our objective of being the largest fitness club provider in the UK.”
