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What If the Fitness Industry Stopped Competing on Price and Started Competing on Value?
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Let’s be honest about something first.
Offers and price-led promotions are always going to exist. Clubs have bills to pay, teams to support and targets to hit. In the short term, dropping price works. It brings enquiries through the door and fills quieter periods.
The problem is not that price is used.
The problem is that price has become the default.
Over time, the fitness industry has trained the public to believe that gyms are cheap, interchangeable and disposable. Free months. Zero joining fees. Flash sales. Permanent discounts. Price has become the headline, not the experience, not the service, not the outcome.
And once price becomes the anchor, everything else loses its perceived value.
What If Clubs Worked Together Instead of Against Each Other?
Imagine a different approach.
Not price fixing. Not identical pricing. Not pretending every club is the same.
But a shared understanding across the sector that while price points may differ, the messaging does not need to be competitive or destructive.
Instead of “we’re cheaper than them”, the message becomes more collective and positive. This is what fitness gives you. This is why movement matters. This is how gyms improve lives. This is how to choose the right environment for you.
Clubs would still compete, but not on who can discount the hardest. They would compete on service standards, community, coaching quality and delivery.
That is a far healthier battleground.
Different Clubs Will Always Perform Differently and That’s Fine
Some clubs will outperform others. That’s reality.
They may be better located, better suited to a particular demographic, more premium, more community-driven or more specialised. That isn’t a failure of the market. That is choice.
The aim should not be to eliminate competition.
The aim should be to grow the total market.
Right now, only around 16.9 percent of the population engages with fitness clubs. That means more than 80 percent do not.
Imagine if that figure was 25 percent. Or 30 percent.
The opportunity for every operator would be enormous, without anyone needing to steal members from each other.
Competing on Value Changes the Conversation Completely
If the industry stopped shouting about price and started talking consistently about value, the conversation would shift almost immediately.
Customers would no longer choose purely on cost. They would compare clubs based on environment and culture, coaching and support, community and belonging, values and ethos, and how well a club fits their lifestyle.
Instead of asking “which is the cheapest?”, people would ask “which is right for me?”.
That single shift improves retention, results and long-term satisfaction.
The Impact on Businesses, Staff and Standards
When price stops being the primary lever, businesses gain breathing room.
Healthier margins allow clubs to reinvest in staff, improve facilities, add services, increase education and development, and deliver stronger member experiences.
Staff benefit too. Competing on price often squeezes wages, increases pressure and lowers expectations. Competing on value allows coaching, service and leadership to be treated as professions rather than commodities.
Standards rise across the board.
How This Changes External Perception of the Industry
A fragmented industry arguing over price is easy to ignore.
A united industry speaking positively about health, wellbeing, prevention and long-term outcomes is not.
If the sector presented a more consistent message, it would be far easier to defend gyms against rising costs and business rates, position fitness as part of the health solution rather than a luxury, gain credibility with local authorities, healthcare and government, and be taken seriously as a contributor to public wellbeing.
Messaging matters. And right now, ours is confused.
The Real Challenge
Price competition feels safe. It is immediate, measurable and familiar.
Positive, collective messaging requires confidence. It requires patience. It requires clubs to genuinely deliver on the promises they make.
It also requires a shift in mindset from short-term wins to long-term impact.
That is uncomfortable. But it is necessary.
A Better Future Is Possible
If the fitness industry stopped competing on price and started working together on positive messaging, the change would be far greater than most people expect.
We would grow participation.
We would improve standards.
We would retain members longer.
We would build stronger businesses.
We would elevate the profession.
The question is not whether it would work.
The question is whether we are willing to move beyond short-term tactics and build something better together.
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