FOUNDER FOREWORD
RECORD-BREAKING YEAR SIGNALS A NEW ERA FOR THE FITNESS INDUSTRY
It gives me the greatest pleasure to read this report and see the key industry metrics reaching an all-time high. The growth in member numbers, market value, and penetration has exceeded that of any previous year. At the end of March 2025, the total number of gyms open stood at 7,202, just less than the previous peak recorded in 2019. In the last 12 months these gyms have gained over half a million more members (0.6m) while market value rose by over 500 million to reach £6.5 billion. Penetration has increased from 15.9% to 16.6%, another all-time high. Last year, thanks to the support of our partners who agreed with us that the democratisation of independent data would be one of the key pillars for sector growth, we took a bold step. Over 40,000 report interactions and the most heartwarming feedback confirmed our belief that agenda-setting, high-impact reporting should be freely accessible. For the second year in a row, I’m proud and pleased to make this report available to everyone interested in growing the sector. Once again, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading the interviews with operators, suppliers and influential voices. They offer unique insights that I believe you will also find fascinating. Behind the scenes, it has been a year of development. One of my pet-projects has been the Monthly Market Tracker (visit our website for details), which reports changes as they happen. By combining artificial intelligence, machine learning and human insight, we now monitor all openings, closures and brand changes across the sector, making this the only daily tracker of its kind. We are also expanding the scope of what we track. As the sector matures, we are building a national framework to provide evidence of the positive impact physical activity has on health. This future, more granular reporting will help deliver robust benchmarking to stakeholders. With over 40 committed partners, an expanding team and a new platform, we’re delivering more insights more often. After almost 40 years of data gathering and analysis, one truth remains: you can never have too much data. This was particularly evident during the pandemic, when hospitality venues could argue for reopening ahead of sports, leisure and fitness sites due to a lack of sector-specific data. This year marks a turning point in both data supply and demand. As our reports and insight services grow, so too does our annual conference and year-round initiative, EVOLVE. This event has doubled in size each year since its inception and is developing into a continuous movement, fueling deeper conversations at roundtables, stronger connections over breakfasts in the bakery, lunches on the terrace and dinners thanks to NatWest. All of it builds toward a shared momentum. I could not be more pleased, and the industry should be too. Enjoy the read.
The growth in member numbers, market value, and penetration has exceeded that of any previous year, with all three surpassing the high of 2019
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DAVID MINTON Founder, Leisure DB
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STATE OF THE UK FITNESS INDUSTRY REPORT 2025
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