Our latest edition of RIDE HIGH includes a must-read supplement – A Global Crisis? – in which we speak to operators across Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Americas to understand the region-by-region challenges facing the fitness sector at the moment, and the strategies that might be deployed to navigate them.
Check out all our expert comments here or download a PDF of the full magazine, including the supplement, above.
Here, we share the perspective of Jeb Balise, founder and CEO of Drop Fitness in the US. Interview conducted 10 October 2022.
Energy costs have risen in the US, but from own experience and conversations with other operators, not yet in a way that’s prohibitive to doing business. We can still manage for now, which also means there’s no government support at this stage.
Beyond this, I can only speak for Drop Fitness: our single-site operation that’s been open for four months and that operates a very distinct model. The way we respond to any challenges will inevitably be shaped by this.
Might people turn off their energy at home and visit the club more often? asks Balise
We only have a small fitness floor alongside three boutique studios, so plugged-in CV equipment accounts for less than 20 per cent of our product. It means we aren’t severely impacted by this power requirement.
“If our team starts to struggle financially, we’ll need to look at how we take care of them so we retain our talent”
In fact, I’m just as mindful of our employees and the potential indirect costs of any future cost of living crisis. If our team starts to struggle financially – finding it harder to travel to work, among other things – we’ll need to look at how we take care of them so we retain our talent.
But this is all hypothetical for now, because as I say, we aren’t yet seeing prohibitively high costs. At Drop Fitness, our energy bills currently account for around 5 per cent of our total costs. That might get closer to 10 per cent depending on club utilisation levels.
We still have to be prepared for rising heating costs this winter, though, including looking carefully at how we distribute heat and energy around our club. We’ll also address obvious things like turning heat off when we’re closed overnight and carefully scheduling switch-on times so the club is welcoming as soon as we open the doors, but without wasting energy.
But there will only be so much we can do, because as fitness operators, there’s no practical way to simply switch everything off. This is what we do. The value we bring to our customers starts with the provision of equipment in an adequately heated, adequately lit environment 365 days a year. And who says people might not start coming more often, so they can turn off the power at home for a while? We’ll certainly keep an eye on club usage and energy prices to see what happens to our bills.
Drop Fitness has three boutique studios and a gym floor in one location
But still, for now this isn’t one of my top five considerations; as a new business in a market where we aren’t yet unduly worried about energy costs, I’m much more focused on margin improvement, managing future capacity constraints and so on. It means I haven’t really given much thought to what our recession play might be.
If it comes to it, I think the big question for our business will be: do we pass on rising costs to the customer or not? Will they understand, or will their own reduced disposable income in such a climate make a price hike something they can’t swallow?
And our answer, within the model we operate, will be to eat in to our own margin for as long as we can. I believe competitive advantage will come from continuing to provide customers with the right service at the right price.
Our latest edition of RIDE HIGH includes a must-read supplement – A Global Crisis? – in which we speak to operators across Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Americas to understand the region-by-region challenges facing the fitness sector at the moment, and the strategies that might be deployed to navigate them.
Check out all our expert comments here or download a PDF of the full magazine, including the supplement, above.
Here, we share the perspective of Jordy Kool, chair of Urban Gym Group in the Netherlands. Interview conducted 2 November 2022.
Urban Gym Group is performing well. Profitability isn’t yet back to pre-COVID levels – not least because we’ve made a number of acquisitions and opened new clubs – but average club attendance is exceeding 2019 levels, driven in particular by our Trainmore brand.
There are a number of headwinds, but decisions we’ve made over the last couple of years are helping us navigate these.
Prices of equipment are up; one supplier has raised its prices by 16 per cent. Fortunately we saw COVID as a time to invest, including new equipment across our estate. In combination with a diversification of our supplier portfolio, we’ve avoided the worst of the price increases.
There’s huge pressure on salaries, too. Our staff make a difference in our business, so we’d already planned to pay them more to help with their own rising costs. However, this is a major consideration for all operators right now.
The group’s strong performance is being driven by its Trainmore brand in particular
Rent is also up: in the Netherlands, landlords are allowed to increase rent in line with the consumer price index, which is currently 14 per cent. I’m expecting the government to get involved, so that may change, but meanwhile we’re in a good position: our strong footprint in Amsterdam and our continued growth makes it wise for landlords to support us.
Rising electricity and gas prices are having a huge impact on the sector, but we hedged our costs for the long term and aren’t feeling it yet: at the majority of our clubs, we’re still on the old prices until the end of 2023.
“We’re doing what we can to lower our energy consumption, including speakingto landlords aboutco-funding solar panels”
It will come, though, so we’re doing what we can to lower our consumption now: building smarter, including LED lighting, and speaking to landlords about co-funding solar panels, as well as a range of other things. We’re also getting better at simply turning things off when not in use.
We already removed sunbeds as not core to our healthy offering, and in some clubs removed saunas that weren’t used much to expand the gym. Both decisions, while not driven by energy costs, have positively impacted our energy use.
But some things are harder to control: air conditioning, for example, which members can sometimes even turn on themselves, and the length of people’s post-workout showers. And in the end, however much you try to cut consumption, you still have a service and a product to offer. I can only sympathise with those who have swimming pools to run.
I’ve been speaking to operators whose electricity bills are five, six, seven times higher than they used to be. You’re never going to be able to compensate for that. Even two or three times will send some businesses into a loss.
Buying equipment during COVID means UGG has avoided the worst of the price rises
And all of this at a time when interest rates are rising and impacting the ability to raise debt; when customer acquisition costs are going up and lifetime value down as members pay less and don’t stay as long; when over-supply in the boutique segment means aggregators won’t be able to subsidise everyone; and when even high-end wellness operators, unless they have particularly strong margins and non-price sensitive members, will find it tough.
We aren’t exempt from the pressures. We’ve closed two of four standalone High Studios, for example, as they weren’t making a profit, and put the programming into GX studios at our other clubs instead. But we’re in a good position having raised new debt at good rates during COVID. We may not have the deepest pockets, but wedo at least have pockets. We can survive another crisis and make further acquisitions. And we do expect to make acquisitions. How can smaller operators survive in this climate? There’s only so far you can raise prices for the consumer, if at all.
Our latest edition of RIDE HIGH includes a must-read supplement – A Global Crisis? – in which we speak to operators across Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Americas to understand the region-by-region challenges facing the fitness sector at the moment, and the strategies that might be deployed to navigate them.
Check out all our expert comments here or download a PDF of the full magazine, including the supplement, above.
Here, we share the perspective of Andreas Paulsen, CEO of EuropeActive. Interview conducted 18 October 2022.
Across Europe, we’re seeing governments collaborating and taking extraordinary steps to bring energy prices – particularly electricity and gas – under control. Political efforts are being coordinated through the EU to ensure gas reserves are full, for example, and significant political measures are being taken to bring more energy supply into the market and to temporarily cap energy company profits to quickly bring down consumer prices.
Clubs must communicate strategically with members as tough decisions are taken
As a result, we’re seeing gas prices begin to flatten and even fall. This is likely to continue in the coming months as the EU’s domestic production of gas and other types of energy is dramatically increased, reducing reliance on import from places like Russia.
“If we bring energy under control, it is likely that the cost of living crisis can be brought under control generally”
In the current cost of energy crisis, inflation seems largely centred around energy and food supply, which in turn is directly linked to the situation in Ukraine; it is not general inflation. If we bring energy under control, it is likely that the cost of living crisis can be brought under control generally.
With this in mind, we cross our fingers that EU and national measures take effect and start to improve the situation quickly. And, of course, we appeal to everyone to take societal responsibility as citizens, reducing daily energy consumption as much as possible.
For our sector, there are significant challenges; for many businesses, they are existential. Yet even amid these challenging circumstances, we must keep fighting and stay focused on our bright future; over the next couple of years, leadership will be defined by effectively addressing current circumstances, turning challenge into opportunity.
I believe one way for our sector to get value from the current situation is to use it to inform our long-term energy and environmental sustainability. We must look at ways to cut superfluous or unnecessary energy consumption, and crucially, we must do it in dialogue with club members, communicating strategically with them both now and moving forward.
Open, honest conversations with members will be key, making changes in dialogue with them, says Paulsen
Short term, as a reaction to the current situation, I’m sure most members will understand that tough decisions have to be made. Clubs with facilities like saunas, for example, will likely have to temporarily close them. Open, honest conversations with members will be necessary.
Longer term, it’s about building sustainability into our strategies, looking at things like insulation, smart electricity, heating and water systems. Put together, they can significantly reduce energy consumption and costs. They can also be part of our collective image-building as a sector for the future.
In Denmark, for example, people are being offered government-backed loans to gradually pay back any energy costs that exceed their Q4 2021 baseline. Similar measures are being offered elsewhere in Europe. This represents a valuable opportunity to build cost-reduction measures into our longer-term strategy – starting now – and factor repayments into our recovery plans.
I see a crucial role for industry associations, too. We must actively encourage sharing of best practice among our members and partner associations across Europe, and ensure politicians understand the negative impact on population health that will result from our sector not being able to deliver its services.
I see a very positive future for our sector as we position ourselves as need-to-have health rather than nice-to-have leisure and consumer demand for personalised health and wellbeing continues to grow. But there will be challenges on the way. Overcoming the present need to balance rising energy costs against squeezed disposable income among consumers is unquestionably one of them.
Around the world, news headlines spotlight a spiralling cost of living crisis, with inflation rampant, the cost of energy and food rocketing, businesses closing in the face of unmanageable bills and consumer disposable income heavily squeezed.
With the war in Ukraine on its doorstep and a traditionally heavy reliance on Russian gas, Europe feels especially embattled; in the fitness sector, trade associations are firing warning signals about existential threats to business.
The challenges aren’t limited to Europe, however, although not every country is feeling the same pinch: we spoke to a health club operator in Saudi Arabia who told us the cost of living crisis was “not something they were experiencing”.
So, how is our sector faring in different parts of the globe? We speak to operators across Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Americas to understand the region-by-region challenges facing our sector at the moment, and the strategies that might be deployed to navigate them.
Our latest edition of RIDE HIGH includes a must-read supplement – A Global Crisis? – in which we speak to operators across Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Americas to understand the region-by-region challenges facing the fitness sector at the moment, and the strategies that might be deployed to navigate them.
Check out all our expert comments here or download a PDF of the full magazine, including the supplement, above.
Here, we share the perspective of Michal Homola, founder of Terra Hale in the UK. Interview conducted 13 October 2022.
It’s true that the current energy crisis is impacting everyone. However, our lower energy usage means we are less affected than others.
Ours is a group of three – soon to be four – personal training and body transformation studios in London, UK, where everything revolves around being eco-friendly. And I mean everything, from plants in our studios for oxygen to exploring ways to minimise our carbon footprint. For example, as we look to expand overseas, we want to minimise how much equipment we need to import, so we’re experimenting with gathering plastic waste and using it to 3D print the equipment we need. In the process, we’ll also help clean up the locations where we want to build. It’s a win-win.
We teach our customers to be more eco-friendly in their lives, too, from giving them bamboo toothbrushes to educating them on eliminating the big users of electricity from their lives.
By keeping things simple, Homola estimates that Terra Hale uses about 80 per cent less energy than the typical gym
We’ve certainly done that in our clubs. Our lighting is the most energy-efficient LED lighting you can get, and we’ve kept the set-up pretty simple. There’s nothing flashing, nothing fancy, and at any point in time, we only have the lights on in rooms that need to be lit. The same applies outside: the lighting in our external signage is only switched on at night.
“We define ‘warm enough’ differently from most. Even when it’s cold outside, we focus on getting our clients warm through exercise”
It’s similar with heating. We have no boiler at all – just electric panels in the ceiling that heat up really quickly. As soon as the room is warm enough, we turn them off. And we define ‘warm enough’ differently from most. Even when it’s cold outside, we focus on getting our clients warm through exercise rather than having the room really warm when they come in. That’s not to say we make it uncomfortable for people, not at all, but our rooms are always a bit below your typical room temperature. We soon get them – and the people in them – warm through working out!
Plants are positioned around Terra Hale’s studios for oxygen
Other than that, all we have plugged in are a music speaker and a coffee machine. We don’t provide towels for our customers so we don’t have to wash them – that’s a very power-intensive process. Neither do we have steamrooms or saunas. And while we do offer showers, only around 10 per cent of our members use them. They’re also electric showers, so we’re only heating the exact amount of water we need.
We use clean energy – wind, solar and hydro power – via our renewable energy providers, and none of our equipment is powered. Our rowers use water resistance, our treadmills are self-powered and our bikes actually generate electricity that we sell back to the grid. It isn’t enough to live on or run the business on, but compare that to having to power plugged-in bikes and treadmills and it isn’t hard to see which is the most sustainable.
I know this might all sound like small details, but it really does add up. I would estimate that we use around 80 per cent less energy than the typical gym, in spite of being open from 5.00am to 10.00pm.
Our latest edition of RIDE HIGH includes a must-read supplement – A Global Crisis? – in which we speak to operators across Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Americas to understand the region-by-region challenges facing the fitness sector at the moment, and the strategies that might be deployed to navigate them.
Check out all our expert comments here or download a PDF of the full magazine, including the supplement, above.
Here, we share the perspective of Steven Ward, strategy & innovation director for GO fit in Spain and Portugal. Interview conducted 28 October 2022.
People are saying we live in uncertain times. I disagree. It’s certain that the volatility and complexity we’re experiencing will continue for the short to medium term.
At GO fit, we’re seeing continued demand for our product, with net growth every month for the past 20 months other than in the Omicron wave of December 2021. Key to this is our continued focus on delivering an overwhelming value proposition; we will always offer value that far exceeds our actual membership fees. Our focus on measurably impacting people’s lives is valued by customers to the point that we aren’t a luxury they can dispose of, nor a commodity they can replace with a cheaper option.
Yet for our sector as a whole, we’re now operating in a very different climate even from 12 months ago, and there is no easy solution to any of it.
If you look back through history, inflationary environments such as the one we’re in now typically end in recession, either of a technical nature or one that truly bites. We’ll see interest rates continue to rise until there’s a decline in economic activity, and this will hit many businesses in our sector hard – especially those that have scaled on what was once cheap debt, or grown through leveraged positions of their owners. We have yet to see what the impact of this will be, but it will undoubtedly also hit public sector construction and private sector borrowing.
GO fit members highly value the operator’s focus on measurably impacting people’s lives, says Ward
I do see strong recovery for our sector in the long term, but things will remain tough in the short to medium term as central banks work to bring the situation under control.
Much of the conversation right now is around energy, which has always been a top agenda item for the GO fit executive team: our brand values and commitment to sustainability mean that as an organisation, we want to be 100 per cent powered by green resources. We already have solar installations and other energy-generation investments in our facilities, but these will never provide all the energy we need year-round. So in 2019, GO fit entered into a 10-year fixed rate agreement with a leading green energy provider in Europe that covered the vast majority of our energy requirements.
It was a bold decision to make, because we were committing to above-market rates at the time. However, the company felt it was the right thing to do for the planet and the board backed the decision.
And now, although we never went into it for cost reasons, we’re facing this crisis in a very strong position; I strongly suspect that, had my colleagues not had this foresight and sustainability agenda, our energy costs could have doubled by now.
We are feeling some impact of the current crisis, as a small proportion of our energy requirements aren’t covered by our fixed arrangement. However, it’s a fraction of what it could have been. We also have a comprehensive energy strategy for this remaining element, looking at a whole range of initiatives to build resilience ahead of certain future energy shocks over the next couple of years.
“Our specialist team is in the market every day, looking at futures and fluctuations to ensure we procure energy at the best possible time”
We have a relentless focus on identifying the best moments to procure energy: our specialist team is in the market every day, looking at futures and fluctuations and making sure we’re negotiating at the best possible time. As we speak today, for example, the recent warm weather means ships are sitting outside ports unable to deliver their gas, because reserves are full. It’s pushed gas prices temporarily down, making now a great time to buy. That won’t still be the case next week. Sorry if you’re reading this some time after!
GO fit can adjust energy use in real time, based on things like footfall and the climate outdoors
We have an equally relentless focus on efficiency of energy usage across our business, with highly intelligent facilities run by highly experienced facility professionals. We have visibility and control over our whole estate in real time, so we can adjust energy usage in real time based on customer need and demand, footfall, the climate outdoors, the temperature in the club and so on. This has a significant impact on our overall consumption.
“Government subsidy interventions are removing the imperative to think responsibly about energy consumption”
This is what modern, world-class facility management looks like, but not everyone is doing it yet. It’s a cold thing to say, but government subsidy interventions in the face of this crisis – the figure currently stands at €500bn globally – are weakening the price signal to businesses and removing the imperative to think responsibly about energy consumption. Poorly managed organisations are being bailed out at the cost of well-managed organisations, rather than being forced to operate as sustainably as possible. It might be essential in the short term, but economically, this moral hazard is wrong. Every organisation must take responsibility for its sustainable use and future procurement of energy, and this crisis has brought that home.
Looking further ahead, all indications are that we will see a natural energy revolution across Europe in the medium term, with significant policy reforms that decouple the cost of electricity – and with it, the cost of green energy – from the cost of gas. We will also see major infrastructure investments in renewables. This will be instrumental in the move towards a self-sufficient, sustainable future that gives us more energy security and that’s simultaneously positive for businesses and the planet.
We launched Holy Ride in April of this year, inside our first Saints & Stars club in Amsterdam Oud-West – a club that originally opened in 2018.
The ‘why’ is interesting, because when we went back to our original drawings for the club, it included a Ride studio; even before we launched Saints & Stars, we had always planned to offer indoor cycling.
At the time, though, I thought it might be tough to execute three distinct group exercise formats really well, all at the same time. So instead of group cycling, we created our Personal Training offering – something I felt really comfortable with having worked in clubs for years – alongside boxing concept Holy Box and cardio HIIT bootcamp Holy Shred.
Now I realise we should have done Holy Ride from the beginning! Because it’s what our members want, and that’s how we make all our decisions.
We did an in-depth survey of our members and our former members to understand what more they wanted from us and why they had left. The findings were very clear: people loved our brand but we didn’t have all the concepts they wanted. Specifically, we lacked indoor cycling and reformer pilates – with cycling far and away the number one request – and people were going elsewhere for these two disciplines. The decision to create Holy Ride was therefore a very easy one.
How would you describe Holy Ride?
Indoor cycling is the #1 group exercise format in the Netherlands, and in Amsterdam, boutique cycling is incredibly competitive. We knew we needed to do something very different to stand out in a mature market.
At the same time, though, we felt there was an opportunity to raise standards. Looking across the market, we saw too little focus on performance. Yes, a ride has to be fun and a great experience, but we believe the output is important too. We saw strength tracks that we didn’t think were particularly good. We saw immersive environments poorly executed. We saw inconsistencies in quality within brands.
We therefore talk about Holy Ride as ‘Redefining the Standards’, because we’ve taken all of this and turned it on its head in our concept.
We use bikes where you can track all your data and we deliberately make our workouts a little tougher. It’s OK not to be for everyone. We format all our classes, minute by minute, because we believe a strong brand comes from providing the same experience and quality across every class. And we’ve spent €100,000 on the Holy Ride audiovisual system alone, for an immersive experience like no other.
That makes it the most expensive AV system we’ve ever installed, but we had the luxury of the new studio being the conversion of a pre-existing space. The club also already had members, so Ride classes were full the moment the studio opened. We expect to achieve ROI in three months.
Over and above all that, you only have one chance to make a good first impression, especially in a mature market. We were never going to cut corners or skimp on the investment.
“Holy Ride classes were full the moment the studio opened. We expect to achieve ROI in three months.”
Tell us more about the AV.
We knew we wanted to create something really special, so we went outside the fitness sector and spoke to Awakenings Festival – the best festival producer in the Netherlands. It had previously used our studios for smaller events, so we’d seen the incredible lighting and sound effects they could create just from their laptops – far better than anything we’d ever done! We were therefore really keen to work with them, and they were excited by the chance to think outside the box and work on a brand new, small-space concept.
The result is exceptional. We have lasers and LEDs. We have ‘moving heads’ – the tool we use most, which allows us to create all sorts of shapes and effects with our lighting, flooding the space with light and movement.
We have water-based smoke, which is really cool. In a cycle studio, you’re part of a pack, but you also want your own space to focus on yourself. The smoke helps create that sense of personal space, which is impressive given we have 60 bikes in 130sq m of floorspace. I’ve never put so many people in a room
And because our classes are formatted, we know exactly what’s coming, so the sound and light all comes together perfectly with the class content. In a climb, for example, we use music and beams of light to build the ‘scenery’ of a climb. In a sprint, the lighting is suddenly very quick, with lots of colour and lots of white, culminating in a blinding flash of light at the end – done! – and then a sudden plunge into total darkness and silence before slowly building back up again.
The instructor also has the best seat in the house when it comes to the sound. This isn’t the standard approach, but it ensures they’re absolutely on-point in their delivery
Are your stars OK with formatting?
A lot of people say formatting kills creativity, but I disagree. All our classes are formatted, not just Holy Ride, and I believe it’s a real strength for us.
It certainly doesn’t mean the experience is repetitive. Our members typically do around three classes a week, and we change formats regularly enough that you’d be unlucky to do the same class twice. This isn’t hard to do, either, because there are moves in indoor cycling that you always do in every class. If you move sections around to be in a different order, change the music and the lighting, it’s instantly a very different experience. Even just changing 15–20 per cent of a cycling class makes it feel totally different.
Then consider that even good instructors elsewhere might use the same playlist multiple times… I don’t think it’s formatting that makes the experience boring!
The challenge was persuading star instructors of this –because as with all our concepts, I wanted the absolute top indoor cycling instructors in Amsterdam to come onboard and deliver Holy Ride.
We’d done our research and we knew who we wanted, but getting them onboard was the toughest part of the whole project. The secret – other than paying them well and continually training them, which is something we’ve always prided ourselves on – was to get them involved early. We invited them to help develop the concept and the formatting, creating the product they would deliver, and we got the instructors we wanted.
Holy ride class instructor
“Our member base grows each time we add a new concept, so it makes sense to make our products as ‘whole’ as possible”
So, you have seven concepts now?
Yes, we have Holy Ride, Holy Shred, Holy Box, Holy Booty, Holy Build – a small group technique-based workout for members only, not those on class packs – Personal Training and our Open Gym.
Holy Shred is the only concept that’s currently on offer at both our locations, because our clubs only about 10 minutes’ cycle ride apart. It’s easy for people to use both of them, depending on which workout they want to do that day.
Our members typically each do three or four of our seven concepts. There’s one cluster who veer towards Personal Training, Open Gym and Holy Build – typically members who like gym workouts but who want a more experiential environment. The other cluster is more group exercise-focused, whereby people mix and match between Holy Ride, Holy Shred, Holy Box and Holy Booty.
When we first set out, I feared that if we offered too much – too many concepts – we might dilute the brand. I no longer worry about that, though, and in large part that’s because our marketing is higher level, focusing on our overarching purpose at Saints & Stars. Particularly for an audience of Millennials and Gen Zs, that’s really important. They want to know why you do what you do.
It’s also the case that our member base grows each time we add a new concept, so it makes sense to make our product as ‘whole’ as possible.
Will you launch more Holy Rides?
We won’t retrofit Ride into our other existing club in Amsterdam Oud-Zuid. The club is large enough to house another studio, but our members spend lots of time in our communal areas and we don’t want to detract from the experience by cramping the space, especially since the 30 per cent growth in membership.
We are, however, opening a new club in Amsterdam in early 2023. If Ride is still in our top three concepts when we design it, it will probably have a Ride studio!
As I say, we respond to what our members want, so in any new club we’ll put in the most popular concepts. We might even introduce an eighth concept in the next one, which at this stage would most likely be reformer pilates. But we’ll always have flexibility in space and mindset to change things in the future if needed. The Gen Z mindset changes all the time. You have to be ready to change with them.
The Holy Ride studio has 60 bikes in 130sq m of floorspace
“We respond to what our members want. The Gen Z mindset changes all the time. You have to be ready to change with them.”
Any other plans you can share?
The boutique sector remains challenging, with studios sadly still going out of business since the pandemic; I imagine there may be opportunities to grow further by acquiring and converting existing studios. I’d also love to take Saints & Stars beyond Amsterdam.
The pandemic changed my outlook in other ways, too. For example, I always said we would never do digital content, but in lockdown it was one of the many things we did to keep our community and our instructors engaged with our brand. The content was free to use at that point, and accessible to everyone, and it was great for brand awareness.
Moving forward, although I’m still not 100 per cent sold on digital, I have to recognise that hybrid lifestyles have embedded themselves. It won’t be this year, but at some point in the future I can see us doing some sort of paid-for digital offering.
What’s the future of indoor cycling?
In Amsterdam, which is the market I know, I believe indoor cycling will become increasingly immersive and experiential. There are still a lot of dark boxes at the moment!
We’ll see the technology that customers experience at festivals, for example, becoming affordable for smaller-scale delivery in fitness studios. Operators will need to keep their fingers on the pulse to find the next exciting thing that will engage people in their studio experiences.
We looked at holograms for Holy Ride, for example. In the end, the technology was still too expensive for our business model – for now anyway – but things like this will continue to come through and we need to be ready to embrace it.
“I believe indoor cycling will become increasingly experiential. There are still a lot of dark boxes at the moment!”
What drives you in all of this?
A business like ours isn’t based on spreadsheets or business models or trying make the most money possible. The only way to build a business like this is to do what you love, focus on what you can be really good at, add your own flavour – because a copy job will never, ever work – and then put your whole soul into it.
I love fitness – I train every day – and I love looking for new trends and creating new things. This is my passion and I love the fact that it’s also my job.
Her Royal Highness Princess Azemah Ni’matul Bolkiah & Yang Amat Mulia Pengiran Muda Bahar – Shine founders
Empowering a community
Why did you create Shine?
Boutique fitness is a global phenomenon, offering specialised, intimate spaces for working out and socialising. We used to live in London and took classes that were fun, inspiring and kept us fit.
We believe people are now more motivated than ever to improve their wellness and become physically active, and we felt Brunei was ready for this boutique experience.
We commissioned Barbara Chancey to guide us through the journey. Her team took our ideas and created two beautiful, functional spaces unlike anything in Brunei.
Shine X launched in June 2019, inspired by the boutique bootcamps
What was your vision?
Shine is about empowering people to live life to their full potential. Our vision was to create high-end boutique fitness studios with top-quality instructors and facilities. We wanted to build a brand that not only centres on a great workout but that also offers spaces that inspire people to adopt a positive, fun and energetic lifestyle.
How would you describe the studios?
From the moment you walk through our doors, you’ll forget about the outside world and feel the positive energy and passion that fuel both Shine Cycle and Shine X. Every aspect of our studios is designed with meticulous detail to brighten your life. From our friendly front desk staff to our internationally trained instructors, we offer a high level of fitness so you can experience a higher level of success.
We offer fun and inspiring classes – something you can enjoy daily and look forward to the next workout – as we want to encourage and motivate people to make fitness a lifestyle. Led by our amazing instructors, our classes aim to make you feel as though you performed at your peak, with a little bit of euphoria that you can carry with you for the rest of your day.
The founders remain involved and hands-on in the day-to-day operations at Shine
We drew our inspiration from our own experiences of joining classes at other boutique fitness studios during our travels – from how uplifted and energised it made us feel. In those classes, we were pushed to our limits in a unique blend of fun, intensity and camaraderie.
We felt Shine would be the best way to translate our love for fitness, delivering happiness through exercise and empowering people to be their best selves.
What are you most proud of?
What is particularly special is the community we have created. Incredible friendships have been forged that go beyond our studio walls. People bond through an unspoken support. We are proud and grateful to be part of an incredible community where people of all fitness levels can come together to radiate positive vibes and become stronger together.
“Incredible friendships have been forged that go beyond our studio walls. People bond through an unspoken support.”
How important is exercise to you?
Very important! We both play polo competitively and we also play other sports such as tennis and golf. For us to stay on top of our game, we need to stay fit, flexible and work on specific movements to develop our strength and prevent injury. Exercise is an integral part of our lives, benefiting us in our sports and in our health.
Shine has an incredibly strong community, with regular member events
What are your future plans for Shine?
We believe in doing one thing extremely well and we specialise in coaching creativity, class programming and special events to keep momentum strong. We also host guest instructors from the US, UK and Asia.
We are exploring new ideas which are top secret for now, but many surprises are on the way. Stay tuned!
Aiman Abdullah – Studio manager
Spreading happiness
When and why was Shine created?
When Shine Cycle opened its doors in February 2018, there was nothing else like it in Brunei. Even now, it’s the only true cycling boutique in the country.
Shine was founded by Her Royal Highness Princess Azemah Ni’matul Bolkiah and Yang Amat Mulia Pengiran Muda Bahar – Azemah and Bahar. The concept was theirs and they remain 100 per cent involved in the business every day, so only they can really elaborate on their vision for Shine. I do, however, know they enjoy this style of boutique training when they travel overseas and they wanted the Brunei population to be able to enjoy it too, raising the bar in our local fitness industry and supporting the health and wellbeing of the nation.
Shine Cycle is about the power of positive energy, and its world-class instructors lead the way
From the outset, Shine Cycle had two studios: Ride, which has 33 bikes; and Studio B, where we run small group strength classes of up to eight people, based around TRX but also incorporating assault bikes, rowers, boxing, kettlebells and other weights.
A few months after launch, we also added yoga to the Studio B timetable, catering for a maximum of 11 people across three different styles of yoga. It means we can offer cardio, strength and flexibility all in one destination, with most members doing a bit of everything.
“Shine cycle is about positive energy. We believe that as your light shines brighter, you ignite that same power in others.”
Tell us about your community.
Shine Cycle is dedicated to helping its members achieve a healthy lifestyle through exercise and inspiration. It’s about training your body, focusing your mind and finding a new radiance inside and out. It’s about the power of positive energy: we believe that as your light shines brighter, you ignite that same power in others.
Immerse yourself in the Shine Cycle vibe in this video
And we see this in our community of around 300 members. Our reception team provides a warm welcome, our instructors motivate everyone in class, our space allows people to escape the stresses of everyday life, our customer service is consistently excellent… but it’s also our members who spur each other on to train regularly, making pacts to work out together the next day.
And members do attend very regularly: we run classes at 6:15am, 5:30pm and 6:45pm every day, plus some lunchtime classes, and many people come two or even three times a day, perhaps doing TRX in the morning and a cycle class in the afternoon.
Click here for a flavour of the workouts at Shine X
The absolute minimum we see is one or two visits a week, but that’s very rare. Generally it’s at least four or five visits a week, and most people come at least once or twice a day – so much so that when a member is heading out, we don’t say “goodbye”. We say “see you later” or “see you tomorrow”.
Then you launched Shine X…
Shine X launched in June 2019, once again inspired by the workouts our founders were enjoying overseas – in this case, boutique bootcamps. Combining treadmill running and strength, each day’s workout focuses on a different body part: Monday is legs and abs, Tuesday is chest and back, Wednesday is full body and abs, and so on.
The lighting at Shine X was designed by rock concert specialists
We have capacity for 19 people in our Shine X studio, although the 19th is ‘double tread’ – you don’t do weights. Some members want this, though, so we give them the option to specifically book that space.
“Most people come at least once or twice a day, so we don’t say ‘Goodbye’ – we say ‘see you later’ or ‘see you tomorrow’”
Shine X is located just a few units away from Shine Cycle, and while some members just do Shine X, many combine Shine X and Shine Cycle, mixing and matching for a well-rounded workout routine.
The Shine community regularly takes part in charity team events
Our Unlimited package covers Ride and Strength (TRX) only. You can also buy monthly Shine X-only packages. But if you want to do a bit of everything – Ride, Strength, Yoga and Shine X – you need to go for a Universal class package.
What cycling classes do you offer?
Set to a soundtrack of great music, ours are rhythm cycling classes, with most following our signature 45-minute Shine programme: joyful, high-intensity, low-impact cardio parties that strengthen mind, body and soul.
At Shine Cycle, Studio B offers yoga classes as well as small group strength workouts
We do have 30-minute class formats, but these are only used occasionally, such as during fasting months. At other times, our members tend to prefer 45-minute classes.
We have a Tag Team class every Saturday night, too, with two instructors up on stage and a great party atmosphere. There’s fancy dress, special themes and the rider of that week’s ‘lucky bike’ – chosen at random via a lottery draw – wins a prize. Tag Team is incredibly popular and always waitlisted.
“The studio timetable changes slightly each week to incorporate what members have told our instructors they want”
Then at least twice a month, we host a Custom Ride: a private class where the studio is rented out for a celebration such as a birthday ride. It’s basically a healthy disco!
All our programmes are designed by us, with templates outlining the overall shape of the class as well as suggested movements for a safe workout; we don’t go crazy in the saddle. But then we hand over to our instructors to bring their own style to each class. They’re the ones in the room with our members. They see what our members enjoy. They know who are beginners and who are more experienced. We give them the flexibility to choreography accordingly.
Don’t you wish your club did this? The Shine community takes part in The Shine Games
We also ask our instructors to help shape the studio timetable, which changes slightly each week to incorporate what members have told our instructors they want.
How do you train your instructors?
Our original team of master trainers all went to the US to train, and every new instructor – we now have a team of eight – goes to London to experience the studios there. But it doesn’t stop there, with regular visits to conferences and studios around the world, from London to Singapore, Malaysia to the Philippines.
We also invite guest instructors to come in from overseas. They instruct classes for our team and spend time with our instructors, sharing knowledge and ideas. From this, our instructors can take away the elements they know will work in Brunei culture.
Shine trains instructors in other markets, too: we recently sent a team to train instructors in Singapore, for example. Our view is that this helps our instructors as much as it helps the people learning from them, furthering their own development.
So, ours is a constant learning and development process, with our instructor team both supported and empowered. As a result, only two instructors have ever left Shine and it was pretty unavoidable: one joined the army and one moved to Australia!
Shine regularly brings in guest instructors from overseas to continually coach and develop its own instructors
Tell us about Shine’s charity work.
There’s a strong social agenda at Shine, with a culture of giving to those in need and helping as much as we can.
Across the year, we host special classes that tie in with events like International Women’s Day, Breast Cancer Day, World Autism Awareness Day and so on. All proceeds from these special classes – and sometimes that whole day of classes – are then donated to a relevant NGO. We also have donation boxes around the club, sometimes for money, other times for things like unused shoes that we can distribute to rural areas.
“For us, success is asking our members what impact shine has had on their life and hearing how happy it makes them”
We also run Shine Community Challenges; we always try to get our members involved in our charity efforts rather than just making simple donations ourselves. Members form teams of two to four people and we set them challenges like ‘most classes in a month’. There’ll be a range of targets they can aim for, with Shine donating a set amount to charity for each target achieved. It’s a win-win-win: members stay active and feel involved in the good work, Shine benefits from even more regular attendance, and the charities benefit from the donations.
What plans for the future?
We take all member and instructor feedback onboard and continually try to make what we do even better. We were thinking about introducing barre classes before COVID, for example, so we may well do this now.
In fact, our instructors are always coming up with new ideas: new equipment to keep things interesting in Studio B, for example. Our approach is to stay flexible and let our instructors take the lead: they know what our members want and they’re also incentivised to ensure every class is great, with commission paid per class attendee on top of their basic class fee.
Would we open another studio or even a new concept? Maybe – we discuss lots of ideas– but probably not yet. We pride ourselves on our customer service and quality of our instructors, so we’d need a really strong team in place to guarantee those same standards at any new location, all without letting levels drop at our original studio. We’d never expand at the expense of quality, and would certainly never franchise Shine.
What motivates you personally?
I get a real buzz from seeing people coming out of class having worked hard but also smiling and knowing they’ve achieved something. We’re helping people become better versions of themselves.
For us, success is asking our members what impact Shine has had on their life and hearing how happy it makes them, how much they look forward to coming back, how we help them escape their daily stresses and provide a space where they don’t feel judged.
I’m also inspired by our founders, who are constantly involved in the business, always looking for ways to make Shine an even better place not only for our members but for our team too.
Barbara Chancey – Studio designer & consultant
Designing a brand
Light and dark
“Design is storytelling, and both Shine Cycle and Shine X create journeys full of adventure and curiosity, incorporating a mix of materials and influences that evoke two opposite moods.
“At Shine Cycle, the brief was to create a sense of radiant joy. A place where your inner light shines to inspire the light in others. It’s a joyful and uplifting space: open and welcoming with touches of art deco modernism that nod to the client’s affinity for art, travel, design and appreciation of quiet details.
Shine X “reflects the journey we all go on in a workout, from dark doubts to bright accomplishments”
“Shine X is the direct opposite in both attitude and design: it’s the dark, mysterious, rebellious little sister that reflects the journey we all go on during a workout. From dark doubts to bright accomplishments, the design embraces both conflict and euphoria, incorporating recycled materials and reclaimed wood indigenous to Brunei’s rainforest.”
Lighting the way
“Shine’s illumination is designed to evoke emotion at the touch of a button, from soft candlelit moments of reflection to high-energy, grand finale sprints to the finish line.
“Daryl Vaughan of Light Partners – a lighting designer who’s worked with some of the biggest names in rock & roll, from Genesis and Paul McCartney to Sting, Pink Floyd and the Rolling Stones – created the lighting systems at Shine Cycle and Shine X.
Lighting is used creatively throughout the social spaces, as well as in the studios
“The starting point was weaving the brand into the lighting and working with Shine instructors to identify specific points in class where lighting changes might bring a sense of drama, a magical moment, something unexpected. We then developed a library of special effects and themes to be used at just the right moment; the magic happens when everything is seamless and timed to perfection.”
“We developed a library of lighting effects to be used at just the right moment; the magic happens when everything is timed to perfection.”
“Lighting is used creatively throughout the social spaces, too. The backlit, suspended X beams along the ceiling of the Shine X corridor are a personal favourite, where high-output LED fixtures produce slow pulses of light all along its length when class is about to start.”
Shine X’s bootcamp classes combine treadmill running with strength
Social interaction
“In Brunei, there are no nightclubs or bars. Shine Cycle and Shine X fill this gap, providing healthy, fun entertainment.
“At Shine Cycle, there’s a juice bar and café for laughter and hanging out, as well as a selfie wall. At Shine X, recessed alcoves along a darkened corridor provide discreet seating for more intimate conversations. In both cases, it’s about creating places to linger, social spaces that allow members to come early and stay late.
“All of a sudden, Shine Cycle and Shine X aren’t just about fitness. They’re about lifestyle. They’re about social interaction and the forging of friendships. And the resulting sense of community is evident when you look at events like the Shine Games, which perfectly illustrate the culture of kindness and joy that imbues everything at Shine.”
Flexible design
“We don’t just design for today: we imagine the future and design spaces to hold fitness trends for the next 10 years.
“For example, Shine Cycle’s Studio B features a barre, built-in storage and reinforced walls and ceilings for anchoring equipment. It’s a versatile space that affords Shine total freedom to adapt to new trends, new instructors, new ideas.”
At Shine X, workouts are designed to train a different body part each day
Natural talent
“Your instructors should be allowed to retain an aura of superstardom, so at Shine, we included a dedicated space for instructors to get ready for class. When they come out, their star persona is in place and they’re ready to command the room and deliver.
“I’ve been amazed by the level of showmanship at Shine. I’ve never come across a more naturally talented group of instructors. Musicality is in their blood.
“Nor have I ever met a group of instructors who take what they do more seriously: they truly see it as a profession. We brought them to the US for training with Parker Williams, a legendary veteran of rhythm rides with 20 years’ experience. He encouraged them to take it back to basics, focusing on technique, consistency in language and meeting their clientele where they were: at the beginning of a journey, having never known anything like rhythm cycling before.”
Spreading joy
“The princess is hugely creative, with an infectious sense of humour, and we had a lot of fun along the way. One great memory was developing names for the juice bar menu, with Diplomatic Immunity one of my favourites!
“Her generosity and gratitude epitomise the essence of Shine. This was a joyful project to work on, surrounded by some of the kindest people I’ve ever met.”
Conceived, powered and funded by BODY BIKE®, RIDE HIGH has a simple mission: to celebrate and champion the very best of indoor cycling, sharing ideas, stories and experiences from around the world to inspire the sector on to even bigger and better things. Subscribe for free by leaving your details below and we'll send indoor cycling's hottest news direct to your inbox three times a year.
