IHRSA:
By Melissa Rodriguez
GLOBAL
MARKETS
BOOM
generate roughly $2 billion in revenue.
Saudi Arabia leads all markets in this
region in revenue with nearly $620 million
generated at 1,100 health clubs, which
attract more than 800,000 members. In
terms of club count and memberships,
Egypt leads all MENA markets with 1,680
facilities and 957,500 members.
Despite conflicts in several MENA
countries, there is a demand for fitness as
consumers seek to exercise and reap the
benefits of an active lifestyle. Successful
international fitness operators—including
Fitness First, Gold’s Gym, and World’s
Gym—have expanded into the Middle
East. In less than 10 years, Fitness Time,
based in Saudi Arabia, grew to 100 club
locations, highlighting the opportunity in
this region.
Asia-Pacific
The Asia-Pacific region serves 22 million
members at more than 25,000 clubs.
In total, this market generates annual
revenues of $16.8 billion (USD), excluding
the Middle East, according to The IHRSA
Asia-Pacific Health Club Report.
L
ast year, health club
membership topped
174 million consumers
around the globe. Industry
revenue totaled an
estimated AU$118.8 billion
in 2017 and the club count
exceeded 200,000 facilities.
As leading markets posted strong
performance, emerging markets—
particularly in the Asia-Pacific region—
showed potential for continued growth,
according to The 2018 IHRSA Global
Report, which was published in May.
The Americas
Revenue, membership, and the total
number of clubs all increased in the U.S.
from 2016 to 2017. Revenue grew from
$27.6 billion in 2016 to $30 billion in 2017,
while membership increased from 57.2
million to 60.9 million. The U.S. club count
rose from 36,540 locations to 38,477 sites.
The IHRSA Canadian Health Club Report
indicates that club operators serve
12
nearly 6 million members at roughly
6,000 facilities in Canada. IBISWorld,
an independent industry research firm,
projects that revenue from gyms and
health clubs in Canada will increase
through 2019. One of the key drivers for
growth is consumer demand for health
and fitness programs to help address
obesity, active aging, proper nutrition,
and sports performance.
The Latin American health club market
is robust with potential for growth. Based
on data gathered in The IHRSA Latin
American Report (Second Edition),
Brazil’s 34,000 health clubs rank the
country second only to the U.S. among
global fitness markets. More than nine
million Brazilians are members of a
health club. With more than 12,000
health club facilities, Mexico ranks
second in Latin America and third
worldwide in terms of number of clubs.
Opportunities for growth exist in Latin
America as member penetration rates
remain low at an average of 2.15%
across 18 countries.
Europe
Roughly 60 million Europeans belong to
a health club or studio, as the industry
generated an estimated $28.8 billion in
revenue at 59,000 facilities last year. The
UK and Germany continue to lead all
markets in Europe.
In the UK, based on research by the
Leisure Database Company, 9.7 million
members belong to one of the nation’s
6,728 health clubs and studios. Germany
attracts more than 10 million members
at nearly 9,000 locations and generates
$5.6 billion in annual revenue. According
to the European Health & Fitness Market
Report, Europe has strong prospects for
growth considering not only the mature,
solid markets in Western Europe, but
also the potential in Eastern European
markets such as Russia, Turkey and
Poland. While the average penetration
rate in Europe is 10.3%, Russia and Turkey
have the lowest penetration rates at 2.4%
and 2%, respectively
Fueled by growing economies, the
health club industry in the Asia-Pacific
is robust, with significant potential for
continued growth. Only two markets
in the region are considered mature:
Australia and New Zealand, which have
the highest penetration rates at 15.3%
and 13.6%, respectively. While the fitness
market shows signs of rapid growth
and professionalization in Hong Kong
(5.85%), Singapore (5.8%) and Japan
(3.3%), opportunities for growth remain in
the Philippines (0.53%), Thailand (0.5%),
Indonesia (0.18%) and India (0.15%).
Driven by the momentum of economic
growth, the fitness market in the Asia-
Pacific region has shown steady
growth with a positive outlook going
forward. Overall market penetration is
on an upward trajectory, reflecting an
increasing awareness of health club
memberships. However, the region’s
fitness market remains stratified due to
varying stages of development, which
can be categorized into three tiers:
Tier 1: Australia (15.3%) and New
Zealand (13.6%) are relatively established
markets, with higher penetration rates
than their neighbors. However, the
mature and professionalized markets in
these countries indicate limited growth
potential; labor and real estate costs
have also constrained growth here.
Tier 2: Hong Kong (5.85%), Singapore
(5.8%), Japan (3.3%) and Taiwan
(3.0%) belong to the fast-expanding
and maturing second-tier markets.
This segment features gradually
professionalizing services, expanding
consumer bases, and high concentration
of leading players. With room for growth,
already fierce competition is expected to
Asia-Pacific...
only two markets in
the region are
considered mature:
Australia and New
Zealand, which have
the highest
penetration rates at
15.3% and 13.6%
respectively..
Middle East & North Africa
continue in the future
Tier 3: The remaining Asia-Pacific
markets are still in a comparatively early
stage, as a result of slower economic
development and low awareness of
personal health. Malaysia (1.04%),
China’s top 10 cities (0.97%), Philippines
(0.53%), Thailand (0.5%), Vietnam (0.5%),
Indonesia (0.18%) and India (0.15%)
comprise the emerging markets. The
fitness industry in these countries is
typically concentrated in the capital
and first-tier cities, where markets are
mainly led by commercial fitness club
chains.
The markets in second-tier (and under)
cities, however, are dominated by
standalone players that are mostly
lower-end “mom-and-pop” shops, due
to infrastructure underdevelopment, low
purchasing power, and low awareness of
personalized training. Underdeveloped
regions in these countries demonstrate
high growth potential as rapid
infrastructure development improves
accessibility and connectivity.
Conclusion
The outlook of the health club indus try
is bright and promising. As leading
economies continue to improve, the
industry is expected to thrive in the
global marketplace, serving consumers
with a variety of health and fitness
needs. Offering access to fitness
amenities, instructors, trainers and
coaches, club operators are well-
positioned to lead a healthier world.
Visit ihrsa.org/research-reports to access
any of the IHRSA publications cited in this
article.
ABOUT IHRSA
Founded in 1981, IHRSA – International
Health, Racquet & Sportsclub
Association – is the industry’s global
trade association, representing more
than 10,000 health and fitness facilities
and suppliers worldwide. Locate
an IHRSA club at www.healthclubs.
com. To learn how IHRSA can help your
business thrive, visit www.ihrsa.org. John
Holsinger, IHRSA’s Director, Asia Pacific,
can be contacted at [email protected] or
on mobile 0437 393 369.
Based on findings gathered by The
FACTS Academy (industry experts based
in Egypt), approximately 3.4 million
members utilise 5,600 health clubs in 10
markets in the Middle East and North
Africa. These 10 markets collectively
WHAT’S NEW IN FITNESS - SPRING 2018
WHAT’S NEW IN FITNESS - SPRING 2018
13