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TIL CreativesRepresentative Image You have two options. The first is to get up, book a class in a gym, take your car out, navigate Bengaluru’s notorious traffic, search desperately for parking in Indiranagar (good luck with that), then rush to clock in at your gym. And then sweat it out.The second: You send a WhatsApp message to your personal trainer, he turns up at the gym in your building, you walk down to the clubhouse. And then sweat it out.The choice for Ajay (named changed), CEO of a startup in Bengaluru, was pretty easy. While he loved the vibe, the curated playlists, the energetic trainers, HRX group classes and strength & conditioning, as well as the app that let him book sessions easily, as soon as he moved to his new apartment in Whitefield with a decently equipped gym, yoga room and a squash court, he changed his routine, and ended his membership of Cult.fit, a fitness startup that has a chain of gyms.Ajay, 41, hired a freelance personal trainer, someone who used to work with Cult.fit.Meanwhile, in Mumbai, Rohit (name changed), a 29-year-old marketing professional, realised he hadn’t stepped inside his gym for over two months and decided to make a change. Instead of renewing his membership, he cleared a corner of his living room and transformed it into a compact home gym.Live EventsA pair of adjustable dumbbells, a kettlebell, a pull-up bar and a yoga mat later, his fitness routine was back on track, minus the commute, waiting time and monthly fees. “Price-wise, while the initial investment can seem steep for a home gym, I found that the equipment pays for itself within a year compared with gym fees,” says Rohit.Therein lies the problem for the plethora of new-age gyms, which have been slowly losing their muscle. Across cities like Mumbai, Pune and Bengaluru, renewal rates for gym memberships have plummeted, often by 25-30%, ever since Covid, says Nikhil Rajpuria, president, Maharashtra Gym Owners Association.The reported numbers for FY24, the latest available, show that Cult.fit, the industry bellwether, saw its EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) slip further into the red, from a loss of Rs 263.2 crore in FY23 to a loss of Rs 587 crore. Other gyms have also been reporting losses. FY25 numbers haven’t been reported yet, but if low renewal rates bear out there as well, it won’t make pretty reading.Renewals are critical because of that old marketing truism: it costs a whole lot less to retain than to acquire a new customer.But why are memberships falling in a country that could do with a lot more people working out?HEAVY WEIGHTSA key reason is a dilution of the gym experience itself.“Overcrowding is an issue during peak hours,” says Rajpuria, who is also director of Gyms For All (India), which runs the Transform chain. “We offer discounted rates for off-peak timings, but it doesn’t always work. Ultimately, people go when it’s convenient for them.”Conventional wisdom suggests that the way around this problem would be to open more and bigger spaces. But in India’s overpriced urban real estate landscape, that is not exactly a wise option.Rajpuria admits that Transform has had to downsize. “Earlier, each gym was at least 6,000 sq ft. Now, we are cutting down to 2,5003,000 sq ft. Rentals in metro cities are just too high.”Mounting operational costs from electricity, taxes and maintenance are eating into the margins. Members chase discounts and expect premium service, creating an unsustainable balance.Adding to the pressure is the GST structure that changed in October, which removed input tax credit on expenses by fitness centres. “That’s an effective 18% increase in rental costs,” says Rajpuria. “Plus, gym equipment still attracts 18% GST. It’s become nearly impossible to sustain.” Most gyms, he says, are losing money. “Our operating costs — rent, salary, power — make up 85% of monthly expenses. Inflation keeps raising these, but membership prices barely increase. Members demand discounts, not realising they are forcing gyms to cut corners.”Some, like Anytime Fitness, a global chain of 5,500 gyms, including over 170 in India, are trying out different models to tackle user worries. “Overcrowding is a key pain point in traditional gyms,” says Vikas Jain, MDof Anytime Fitness India. “Our 24x7 model eliminates that—members work out whenever they want. That flexibility changes the entire experience.”But will that be enough? As mentioned earlier, in many cities, high-rise living is changing how people work out. Newer apartment complexes come equipped with gyms, yoga rooms and even functional training zones. And that convenience is winning.Market leader Cult.fit, which is preparing to go public, did not respond to ET ’s questions.HOME COMFORTSFor those not living in an apartment complex, there is always the possibility of setting up a home gym.These days, dumbbells are available on quick commerce platforms like Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart. Slightly bigger equipment such as resistance bands, treadmills and stationary bikes can also be purchased online. Stores like Decathlon offer a feel of the equipment for a home gym before buying it. Meanwhile, accessory brands like Boldfit and Slovic are becoming popular, offering affordable mats, resistance bands and other gear that cater to the growing tribe of home exercisers.In the US, home fitness was characterised by the rise of equipment brands like Peloton during the pandemic. In India, while no brand has captured the imagination and purse strings to that level (Peloton’s revenue was $2.7 billion in 2024), the ease of creating a home gym has certainly made converts. Add to that, free workout tutorials on YouTube.The DIY gym movement comes with its own risks. “Most setups are basic—a few weights, maybe a treadmill or a bench,” says Leena Mogre, fitness expert. “A professional gym offers a variety of equipment that targets different muscle groups efficiently. Also, a lot of home gear, especially cheaper, imported ones, don’t have the right biomechanics or quality.”Even as brands like AroLeap X introduce multifunctional trainers that promise a full-body workout in one unit, experts insist that equipment alone isn’t enough.Rajpuria likens the trend of following YouTube workouts to self-diagnosis of medical conditions. “No two human bodies are identical,” he says. “If you don’t know how to correctly use a machine or which exercise suits your body type, it’s not of any use.”TRAINER TROUBLESAdding to gyms’ troubles is their inability to hold on to their most critical resource —trainers.“In most gyms, trainers get only 30-40% of the fee that clients pay. Trainers find freelancing lucrative,” says Mogre, 63, one of India’s earliest fitness experts and founder of LM Fitness Academy. “Gyms spend on acquisition, maintenance and overheads, but trainers walk away with clients. That’s become a huge issue.”As trainers gain popularity, many clients prefer hiring them privately to renewing gym memberships. It’s a familiar pattern —celebrities started the trend years ago, and now the urban middle class is following.After Covid, trainers saw an opportunity when people bought basic home fitness equipment, societies upgraded their gyms, and online coaching took off. A personal trainer now charges Rs 12,000-15,000 a month for about 12 sessions. With just six clients, they can earn up to Rs 90,000 a month for roughly three hours of work a day. “Why would they stay in a gym for 10 hours, earning a fraction of that?” asks Mogre.This shift is hurting gyms in two ways: they are losing talent, and their personal training revenue — which once raked in profits—has taken a hit. “It’s a vicious cycle,” adds Mogre. “Gyms can’t afford good trainers, members don’t renew because trainers leave and then revenues drop further.”At the core of the problem is how gyms treat trainers, says Kalyani Capadia, cofounder of K11 School of Fitness Sciences. “Gyms don’t offer stability, benefits, or proper pay structures,” she says. “So, trainers prefer freelancing. Even with four clients, they can make more than they do working in a gym. There’s a rightway to appoint and retain trainers, but most gyms still treat them like replaceable staff.”Equipment quality, too, is a reason. American brands like Life Fitness, Precor and Woodway once dominated the market. Now many gyms opt for cheaper Chinese or Indian alternatives that cost onethird. “Gym A might spend Rs 40-50 lakh on Indian or Chinese equipment,” says Rajpuria, who also represents Woodway USA in India. “Gym B, using American brands, would spend Rs 1.5-2 crore for the same setup. Eventually, Gym A’s RoI is much faster, even if the quality is lower.”For many owners, it’s a question of survival. “They can’t afford premium equipment anymore,” says Rajpuria. “Even maintenance is expensive. So, the market is flooded with low-end machines.”TREADMILL OF INNOVATIONIn South Mumbai, Stay Fit Gym survives largely on members from nearby apartment towers that lack in-house gyms. But even there, owner-trainer Siddesh Raul admits, it’s getting harder: “High rent, upkeep and the fear of non-renewal hang over us. Sometimes I wonder if just having a few HNI clients would have been better.”Nawaz Modi Singhania’s Body Art and Shalini Bhargava’s JG’S Fitness Centre, both in Mumbai, don’t face rental pressure because they own their spaces. “In our area, at least 20 gyms have opened within a kilometre radius,” says Bhargava. “Those on rent struggle to break even and often shut within a year.” To keep members loyal, her centre constantly innovates, offering Zumba, Masala Bhangra and specialised programmes. “We see much higher renewals as we reinvent,” says Bhargava.Singhania, whose chain has run for 30 years, takes a holistic approach: “We offer everything — aerobics, strength training, aqua aerobics. No one medicine works for all diseases.”But at an overall level, industry veterans agree that the gym business, once booming, is now in a precarious position.Back in Whitefield, Ajay, the startup CEO, finishes a quiet early-morning workout. His trainer times his sets precisely. There is no loud music, no waiting lines. “It’s strange,” he says. “Five years ago, I couldn’t imagine not being at Cult every day. Now, I can’t imagine commuting for a workout.”His story holds a mirror to a changing India—one where fitness fits seamlessly into your daily life. The real challenge may be in finding a balance—between the freedom and flexibility of working out at home, and the structure, supervision and expertise of doing that in a professional gym.Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel) Read More News ongymsvikas jainCult.fitGyms For AllAnytime FitnessDecathlongyms in india (Catch all the Business News, Breaking News and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times.) 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