Disrupting a Mature Market: Insights from a Leading Global Gym Brand By following these tried-and-true business principles, Pure Fitness is setting itself up for success.

Entering a new territory or disrupting a mature market is challenging, but it can also be incredibly rewarding. Following the success of its expansion across the UK, Europe and the Middle East, the leading global value gym operator PureGym opened its first gyms in the U.S. in 2022. Entering the U.S. market as Pure Fitness, an entirely new brand, the group now has ambitious expansion plans and is targeting as many as 300 gyms across the U.S. over the next five years, as well as actively seeking franchisees with availability across all states.

So, how is Pure Fitness setting itself up for success when entering the largest, most mature fitness and franchise markets in the world? It's no easy feat, but the answer lies in the following principles.

Get to know the market inside out.

When a business considers entering a new territory, it's vital to do your research to get a thorough understanding of the existing players, dynamics, growth prospects and the potential size, composition, and location of your target customer base. You've got to invest in quality market intelligence and know that there is no substitute for spending time with boots on the ground. This is not a process that can be rushed and when done properly it becomes possible to identify gaps in the market and untapped opportunities to capitalise on.

"Although the provision of gyms is widespread, the U.S. is a very fragmented market and three out of four Americans still don't have a gym membership, which opens up an exciting opportunity," says James Hathaway, Group International Strategy & Franchising Director at Pure Fitness. "There are a handful of dominant players, however our research has shown there is still plenty of scope for a new player to enter the market and grow quickly, especially by targeting underserved populations and geographies."

Be clear on your USPs.

For a business to establish itself in a new territory and begin to steal market share, it's important to be crystal clear on what sets it apart from the competition. You've got to give customers and investors a reason to look beyond the existing players and consider your brand instead.

For Pure Fitness, recent growth in the value gym market provided confidence that consumers would be receptive to its "high value, low cost" concept. But what really sets Pure Fitness apart from the rest? According to Hathaway, it's a boutique fitness experience at a budget gym price, with ultimate flexibility.

"Our Pure Fitness gyms are open 24/7 and compete with the U.S. mid-market operators in terms of quality, as we provide members with 150+ pieces of top-of-the-line cardio and strength equipment, a Turf Training Freestyle area and an extensive range of instructor-led classes each week – both in person and online," he says. "However, memberships are much more affordable, starting from as little as $9.99 per month, and we don't lock people into lengthy contracts. Members can join, freeze and leave directly from the Pure Fitness app whenever it suits them."

Pure Fitness also presents a unique investment opportunity for multi-unit franchisees. Hathaway explains: "While Food & Beverage can be characterised by complex labor and supply chain requirements, our business model is very straightforward and easily adaptable to a broad range of property sizes and formats. We also have low staff costs, typically amounting to 9-12 per cent of revenue (around 50 per cent of industry average), a dynamic and competitive pricing model, and a digital-first approach to member interaction, which all help to keep operational costs low."

Together, these make Pure Fitness an obvious choice for an ambitious franchisee looking to scale a leisure business.

Partner with local experts.

Finally, when entering new territories partnering with local experts can be hugely beneficial, especially when expanding via franchise. This can save huge amounts of time and effort by avoiding all guesswork – you've got the brand and the business model; they've got the local know-how and relationships.

In early 2024 Pure Fitness partnered with RCS Real Estate Advisors to spearhead its U.S. rollout. RCS' wealth of knowledge, market expertise and proven track record in retail real estate strategy aligned perfectly with Pure Fitness' expansion plans, helping the business to capitalise on demand for high value, low cost gym provision.

Hathaway explains, "As a new entrant we have full-state availability and by working with RCS Real Estate Advisors, we believe we can capitalize on this opportunity by identifying the right gym locations and signing up multi-unit franchisees. The U.S. fitness market is one of the world's largest and there remain plenty of exciting untapped opportunities across North America. With the right franchisees on board, we can accelerate Pure Fitness' expansion and open hundreds of gyms in the coming years."

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