
PureGym Limited is a British chain of
no frills health clubs based in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
with multiple gyms around the world. The chain is headquartered in
Leeds
Leeds () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the thi ...
, West Yorkshire, with additional offices in London and Southampton.
It is Britain's largest gym chain by membership, with over 1,500,000 members registered to their gyms.
In May 2015, PureGym acquired all gyms from rival UK fitness chain
LA Fitness, bringing the total number of gyms across the UK to 141. As of October 2022, PureGym had 327 gyms in the UK, with more than 1.5 million members, making it the largest operator of gyms across the United Kingdom.
PureGym operate gyms across 9 different countries and have over 500 locations worldwide, with the newest territory, UAE opened in 2022.
Facilities
Most locations are open 24 hours a day and offer
cardio equipment,
fixed and free weights, and
exercise classes, there are over 200 pieces of training equipment in most gyms. There are no swimming pools or saunas, which are found in more expensive gyms.
All PureGyms are monitored by real-time TV linked directly to security staff and emergency services. Most gyms also run weekly
fire drill
A fire drill is a method of practicing how a building would be evacuated in the event of a fire or other emergencies. In most cases, the building's existing fire alarm system is activated and the building is evacuated by means of the nearest ...
s during off-peak hours.
Ownership and management
PureGym was privately owned by
CCMP Capital
CCMP Capital is an American private equity investment firm that focuses on leveraged buyout and growth capital transactions. Formerly known as JP Morgan Partners, the investment professionals of JP Morgan Partners separated from JPMorgan Chase o ...
and other investors. In 2014, rival
The Gym Group attempted to take over Pure Gym, but abandoned the takeover after it was referred to the
Competition and Markets Authority
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is the competition regulator in United Kingdom. It is a non-ministerial government department in the United Kingdom, responsible for strengthening business competition and preventing and reducing anti-com ...
.
In May 2015, PureGym Ltd bought their UK rival LA Fitness for around £60 million to £80 million.
Humphrey Cobbold took over from Peter Roberts as the
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especiall ...
. Roberts has, in turn, become the
CFO, with Adam Bellamy continuing as the Non-Executive Director.
In November 2017 it was bought by Los Angeles-based
Leonard Green & Partners for £600 million.
In December 2019 PureGym agreed to buy Danish
Fitness World, which also operated in Switzerland and Poland, for £350 million.
In February 2021 Humphrey Cobbold told the BBC that "We are burning about £500,000 a day and that's the average over eight months of closure"
In 2019, PureGym acquired the Swiss basefit.ch. By the end of 2021, all of their facilities will have been renamed and redesigned
It has a 2-star accreditation from Best Companies and a BCI score of 696.6.
PureGym opened in Dubai in 2022. PureGym UAE is headed up by CEO Susan Turner, with operations being handled by John Foy.
References
External links
{{commons category, PureGym
PureGym
Health clubs in the United Kingdom
Companies based in Leeds
British companies established in 2009
2009 establishments in England