Singapore's large gyms struggle to stay in shape as smaller chains win over customers
The recent shutdown of one of Singapore's most popular gym chains show a fragmentation in the fitness market where businesses which do not excel in either convenience, cost or special training will eventually collapse.
Singapore's large gyms are struggling to stay afloat as smaller chains attract more customers. True Fitness and True Yoga, two major gym operators in the country, recently closed all their 10 outlets, citing cost pressures and intense competition as the main reasons. Jack Tong, an assistant professor of business at Nanyang Technological University, explained that the market for gyms has fragmented, making it difficult for traditional full-service gyms to compete with both low-cost gyms on price and specialized operators on experience.
Industry experts suggest that the closure of True Fitness and True Yoga does not signal a saturated fitness market in Singapore, but rather a shift in consumer preferences. More people are now divided into two groups: those looking for value and convenience, and those seeking specialized experiences beyond traditional big-box facilities.
SportSG data shows that 76% of Singapore residents exercised at least once a week last year, a figure that has been increasing since 2019, even before the Covid-19 pandemic. Fitness studio owners have argued that the difficulties faced by True Fitness and True Yoga are not due to industry-wide headwinds, but rather the lack of a clear identity in the middle of the market.
Conventional big-box gyms, which typically measure more than 1,390 square meters and offer various forms of training, face high fixed costs, making profitability challenging when utilization falls. In contrast, boutique gyms, which are less expensive to establish and focus on a single modality, offer specialized expertise, personalization, a sense of community, and measurable fitness outcomes.
These gyms are more effective in competing with larger operators on convenience and affordability. While there is still plenty of demand for fitness in Singapore, the businesses that will survive may increasingly be those with a clear identity: low-cost and convenient, specialized and community-driven, or genuinely premium.
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