27 Feb 2021
Planet Fitness CEO Chris Rondeau optimistic over sector's outlook
BY Tom Walker
People placing increased emphasis on their physical fitness, the advances made in digital fitness and the opportunities arising from a reshaped real estate landscape will help the fitness industry recover from the pandemic, according to Planet Fitness CEO Chris Rondeau.
Rondeau said that the company has already seen the green shoots of recovery during the first weeks of 2021.
"We've been able to successfully weather the ongoing challenges created by COVID-19 thus far," Rondeau said.
"We're encouraged with our start to 2021, as we have seen net member growth and improved usage, which we believe is a testament to our messaging and marketing efforts.
"While we anticipate the operating environment to remain volatile and unit growth to be modest in the near-term, we're increasingly optimistic about our growth opportunities as the vaccine continues to rollout and consumers increasingly return to daily activities, such as bricks and mortar fitness.
"This includes capitalising on industry consolidation and more favorable real estate trends which we believe will emerge over the next several years to expand our store footprint and evolve our technological capabilities to enhance our digital engagement."
Announcing its Q4 2020 results recently, Planet Fitness reported a 30 per cent decrease in revenue for the three months to 31 December 2020 (down to US$133.8m from 2019 figure of US$191.5m).
The pandemic's effects were clear, with the company revealing a 41 per cent fall in total revenue for 2020 (US$406.6m, down from US688.8m).
Planet Fitness opened 130 new clubs during the year, bringing the number of system-wide stores to 2,124 as of 31 December 2020.
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