FOUNDER FOREWORD
GOAL GETTERS MAKE NO EXCUSES.
DEMOCRATISING DATA
In 2019, Elon Musk announced the release of all of Tesla’s patents, as part of an effort to fight climate change. In the same open-source spirit, Leisure DB is now making its flagship State of the UK Fitness Industry Report available free of charge, as part of our effort to improve the health of the nation. This annual report, established for almost 20 years as the industry bible, has been used by operators, suppliers, financiers, media and politicians to evidence the key metrics of the industry: market value, size of membership, number of sites, penetration rates, average prices, regional variations, types of facility, leading public and private operators, to name but a few of the hundreds of data points. The data comes from Leisure DB’s relational database, which uniquely audits fitness sites across the UK, whether available to the public via membership or pay and play. The database is updated daily by a team of researchers, with many thousands of phone calls made to sites each year. A growing number of brands also self-report. Our intelligent audit uses bots and other digital sources to monitor changes, while a growing number of ambassadors report on site visits. This detailed supply data is complemented by demand data at the most granular level allowed: the geo-demographic profiles of millions of monthly direct debit members. The devil is in the detail, and we have that level of detail to help you understand your current and potential customers, respond to location-specific trends and conduct due diligence at a level of data that’s truly unique. You can read more about our consultancy services on page 135. Now, against this backdrop of granular data, we need examples of best practice to bring to life the vital role of the UK’s 7,009 fitness sites; throughout this report, operators and thought leaders express the desire for a central directory of great programmes that can be replicated. We also, crucially, need to go much further in sharing our data. As David Stalker says in his interview on page 36: “How can we prove we deliver anything we say we do if we don’t bring our data together? It’s an absolute priority, whether you’re public or private sector. Now, more than ever, is the time to collaborate and show the impact our great industry has on the health of the nation.” This is the rationale behind the Workforce Observatory, as Tara Dillon explains in her interview on page 26, and the reason why Leisure DB is making this report free to all. It’s also why, over the next 12 months, Leisure DB will nurture data-sharing among its growing body of partners, collate developments that evidence the sector’s impact, and continue to publish thought-provoking articles on the health and growth of the entire industry. Let’s usher in a new era of data democratisation!
Leisure DB is making the State of the UK Fitness Industry Report available free of charge, as part of our effort to improve the health of the nation
DAVID MINTON Founder, Leisure DB
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STATE OF THE UK FITNESS INDUSTRY REPORT 2024
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