Fitness franchise opens new sites in Birkenhead, Upminster and Leigh-on-Sea as new franchisee enquiries rise by 60%

Leading gym provider Anytime Fitness has enjoyed a flurry of new openings in recent weeks, with three new locations opening their doors in Birkenhead, Leigh-on-Sea and Upminster.

The openings showcase the leisure industry’s potential to breathe new life into the high street, with Upminster and Leigh-on-Sea reinvigorating retail units left unoccupied by M&Co and a Post Office respectively.

All three gyms are operated by new franchisees, demonstrating the sustained interest in the franchise sector and the ambitions of entrepreneurs to run their own fitness facilities.

With a healthy pipeline of openings set for the rest of the year, the openings come at a time where Anytime Fitness has seen new franchisee enquiries rise by over 60% so far in 2023, compared to the same period last year.

“Despite the challenging economic climate we’re operating in, we’re proud to consistently be opening new Anytime Fitness gyms,” said Daniel Penn, Head of Network Development at Anytime Fitness UK. “The franchise sector is proving to be incredibly resilient and it’s exciting to be able to welcome these new franchisees into our network and see them open their first locations.”

The three gyms have all made a strong start to trading, opening their doors with a significant amount of members and already enjoying healthy revenue figures.

“The success of these new openings shows that gyms continue to be a welcome addition to local communities,” Dan added. “It’s been sad to see the demise of the high street in recent years and we want to play our part in occupying these empty units and giving people a reason to visit them again.”

The opening of the location in Birkenhead displayed the versatility of Anytime Fitness’ model, with Anytime Fitness Birkenhead being rebranded and comprehensively refurbished from an existing gym in the town.