For independent owner-operators following the training gym model, Small Group Personal Training is our bread and butter.
Historically, it’s also been our Unique Selling Point (USP) – the thing that sets us apart from the big box down the road, or the large group exercise classes on the other side of town.
But just delivering a half-decent SGPT model isn’t enough to make us stand out from the crowd anymore.
Fitness will become more experiential. It will have a more coaching-led focus. Larger chains will look to make it more accessible and part of what they do. And with this will come what appears to be a similar service to what we offer, but at a much cheaper price point.
To put it bluntly: the SGPT shit-storm is coming.
As the likes of David Lloyd and PureGym start offering SGPT on a pay-as-you-go basis (and ClassPass allows fitness tourists to break down the barrier of membership to hundreds of different offerings), at The Foundry we’ve been asking ourselves some really important questions. If you want to future-proof your gym against the incoming tide of SGPT offering, you need to do the same.
How will you stand apart?
Why will people choose you over a cheaper alternative? Are you positioned to compete?
Is your business defendable?
Do you have a clearly articulated USP?
Does your brand and messaging stand up?
Are your team A-players?
Does your physical space(s) match up?
The next few months will be challenging for everyone economically. People will make very considered buying decisions and will look very closely at the value proposition. The best mid-range and premium products will still sell. But they’ll have to be just that – the best.
Sign up to my weekly newsletter to get exclusive JCV insights straight into your inbox every week.