28 Jul 2022
SATS announces record results – CEO says members are more active than before the pandemic
BY Frances Marcellin
Scandinavian fitness chain SATS has reported Q2 results showing a 53 per cent increase in revenue to NOK 1,022m (£85,591,015).
The group’s also demonstrates a strong EBITDA, getting to NOK 83,000,000 (£6,965,182), compared with NOK -113 million (-£9,498,447) in the corresponding quarter last year.
The number of clubs has risen by 13 since last year to 267, while SATS has also seen a 10 per cent growth in its member base, which now stands at 671,000.
“The market for exercise and health is in the process of recovering after the pandemic, and we strongly believe that SATS’ competitiveness has been strengthened,” said Sondre Gravir, CEO of SATS. "We're proud of our members, who are – on average – more active now than before the pandemic, which shows they're succeeding in their training.
"The number of visits per member is an important key figure for SATS," said Gravir. "It gives a good indication of our contribution to public health, as well as the loyalty of the membership.”
Gravier said that despite the economy slowing and increasing interest rates and inflation he does not see these challenges impacting memberships. “So far, we don’t see members trading down and we actually see lower churn rates than prior to the pandemic,” he said.
He confirmed that the focus going forward is to increase membership and open more clubs. As explained to HCM in an exclusive interview, SATS’ strategy is focused around creating “strong footprints” in each of the four Scandinavian countries where it trades, by creating club clusters that members can access close to home, at work and other key moments in their daily lives.
“This cluster strategy is important because our member value is based on our people using multiple clubs,” said Gravier. “A typical SATS member regularly works out in least at two or three different clubs. In our Stockholm city centre cluster, as an example, that number would be closer to four.
“We want there to be a club close to where you live, a club close to where you work and a club close to where your friends live. We want the barrier to enjoying a great training experience to be low.”
The group’s product offering is distributed across the cluster, so although not every club can provide every type of facility or class (which include group exercise and yoga studios, indoor running area and functional HIIT), a member can access all by using different cluster clubs as part of their monthly membership. However, it is also possible for users who wish to access just one club, or who require a different set-up, to build a more customised membership plan too.
“SATS' full-access membership costs just €60–65 a month, and for that you get access to every one of our premium clubs, including all our classes,” added Gravier. “It’s a pretty low price point compared to the purchasing power of Nordic society and the pricing of other consumer goods.”
SATS was founded 26 years ago and runs operations across Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland. In the latter the clubs trade under the Elixia branded (SATS and Elixia merged in 2014 creating the largest fitness chain in the Nordics). The group also operates 38 Fresh Fitness clubs in Norway, and a standalone HiYoga studio in Oslo (other HiYoga studios are ‘club-in-club’).
On 1 July 2022, SATS added a portfolio of seven fitness clubs in southern Norway by acquiring 100 per cent of the shares in Bare Trening Sør AS. As the seven clubs are relatively small compared to the average SATS club they fit into the Fresh Fitness footprint.
In addition to running 267 clubs, SATS offers a digital, at-home fitness service called Mentra, which can be accessed via the website but is also accompanied by the Mentra app (although it's only accessible in the aforementioned countries).
There is also an additional premium offering through the connected Rflex fitness mirror. Hundreds of Rflex mirror workouts are offered, for families as well as athletes, and the range of disciplines includes office stretching, HIIT, strength, yoga, dance and mobility. The mirror is priced at €1,199 (with a 30-day trial period) and users pay a monthly subscription fee (which is discounted for SATS members)to access its content.
Gravier intends to expand this digital service. “Our ambition is to also launch a bike and treadmill for connected home training,” he told HCM. “Across the whole of Europe, as well as in markets like the US, people are now showing they’re willing to invest more and more in living a healthy lifestyle.”
SATS’ full Q2 report can be accessed here.
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