Gold’s Gym International, Dallas, has closed 30 company-owned clubs, mostly in Alabama, Colorado and Missouri, noting that the COVID-19 pandemic had caused the company to evaluate the viability of some of its locations. The company posted the announcement on its social media channels.
Gold’s Gym International had temporarily closed all of its corporate-owned locations on March 16 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Temporary closures of franchised locations were left up to each franchisee.
The announcement stated: “While the COVID-19-related closures have caused us to reassess the viability of some company-owned locations and make the difficult decision to permanently close about 30 gyms, we know that we will emerge from this stronger and ready to grow. This decision affects only company-owned gyms, mainly in our St. Louis, Alabama and Colorado Springs markets, and does not have an impact on any of our franchise-owned gyms. Our focus is and always will be on our members in nearly 700 gyms in 29 countries around the world, and we look forward to welcoming you back as soon as it is safe for our members, team members and communities.”
At the end of 2019, Gold’s Gym had 140 corporate-owned locations. They refranchised 24 locations in the Washington, D.C., area, the company announced in early March and refranchised two locations in Los Angeles and eight in Tennessee prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, putting their total company-owned clubs at around 106.
In 2019, Gold’s Gym finalized 22 American franchise agreements and opened 35 locations, the latter of which is a company record, the company shared in January.
Gold’s Gym International ranked No. 8 on Club Industry’s Top 100 Clubs list, reporting 2018 revenue of $302 million for company-owned locations and franchisee fees. This number did not include revenue from individual franchised locations.