What is in store for the Russian fitness industry? Main trends, development dynamics and prices

Development Director of 1C: Fitness Club

More than 50% of Russians assess their lifestyle as healthy, according to the survey conducted by VTsIOM at the end of May this year. At the same time, young people to a greater extent hold the opposite opinion: over 60% of respondents under the age of 24 do not believe that they lead a healthy lifestyle.

More than 50% of Russians assess their lifestyle as healthy, according to a survey conducted by the All-Russian Center for Public Opinion Research (VTsIOM) at the end of May this year. At the same time, young people to a greater extent hold the opposite opinion: over 60% of respondents under the age of 24 do not believe that they lead a healthy lifestyle.

What habits of a person indicate a rational approach to the state of the body? In April, the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation prepared a memo on healthy lifestyle, which was based on three basic rules: regular physical examination, balanced diet and physical activity. Experts recommend that people who are prone to a sedentary lifestyle – a problem that is typical of today’s youth – should engage in at least one hour of intensive exercise per week.

According to the research conducted by the Central Sports Center “Platform” and the Ministry of Sport of the Russian Federation, walking and running occupy the honorable place of the most popular and accessible type of sports, practiced by 24% of physically active people. Next come swimming and fitness – they account for 16% and 14%, respectively.

How is the Russian fitness industry coping with the challenges?

If running in the fresh air is attractive because of its particular health benefits, training in fitness clubs offers a wider choice of exercises. A visitor to such facilities can use individual programs or attend group classes.

In recent years, the Russian fitness industry has experienced several painful blows at once. The first serious challenge was the coronavirus pandemic and related bans. According to analysts’ calculations, in 2020 the revenue of chain fitness centers fell by 11%, while non-network clubs lost more than 30%.

Network centers and premium clubs adapted more easily to the new conditions of the pandemic period, while others tried to survive by developing new types of services.

It is no coincidence that it was in 2020 and 2021 that online training became in huge demand, and renting out fitness equipment became a lifesaving source of additional income for many clubs. Last year, the Russian market of fitness services began to regain lost ground, and soon the number of clients was almost approaching the 2019 level. The number of fitness clubs also increased, though largely at the expense of smaller facilities.

Meanwhile, last year the industry began to storm again, but for a different reason. As a result of the introduction of sanctions, companies that supplied equipment for fitness clubs were forced to switch to bypass routes of cargo transportation. The delivery time increased significantly, as well as the cost of the equipment itself, which, in turn, affected the prices for club cards. If it used to take less than a month to deliver the goods, today you can get the equipment in three months at the earliest.

A separate problem is the purchase of parts for repairing equipment. Chinese components are present on the market, but they do not cover all the needs. According to experts’ estimates, about 60% of fitness facilities in Russia have problems with service maintenance of Western-made fitness equipment and finding spare parts for them. In this situation, such a phenomenon as “fitness cannibalism” – the use of spare parts of broken equipment – has become widespread.

What is happening in the fitness industry in Russia?

And yet the Russian fitness industry demonstrates resistance to new challenges. Despite the difficulties, the last year has seen an increase in the market volume and the number of visits to fitness facilities.

Managing partner of the analytical company FitnessData

The beginning of 2023 can be called successful for the Russian fitness industry. The absence of new shocks and stabilization of the situation with real incomes of the population had a positive impact on the market. – says the expert. – In March of this year, the market volume of the fitness industry in Russia exceeded 18.2 billion rubles, increasing by 8.2% by February and by – 18% by March 2022. The best growth rates in March were characterized by the Krasnodar Territory, St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod and Samara regions.

The surge of activity occurred in March, after which the trend of slowing down of the fitness services market growth began. Despite this, the figures for 2023 are higher than last year.

Maxim Borovikov: In April 2023 the volume of the fitness industry market in Russia amounted to 16.7 billion rubles, which is 8% less compared to March, but still 13% higher than in April last year. – he noted. – The best growth rates are in the Krasnodar region due to the start of the summer season, as well as in the Irkutsk region, St. Petersburg, Moscow and the Sverdlovsk region. In May, the market growth rates were traditionally lower than in April and March due to the long May holidays and the beginning of the seasonal summer slump. The industry market volume in the last month of spring amounted to RUB 14.3 billion, which is 14.6% lower than in April 2023, but still 9% higher than in May 2022.

What is the situation with prices?

What is the situation with prices for club cards and what is the average active visitor of a fitness club?

According to the analytical system 1C: Fitness Club, the highest attendance of fitness clubs in Russia over the last six months was in mid-March. By May, this indicator decreased by 33%. In the same period of 2022, the May decline in fitness club attendance was smaller and shorter in time. This is explained by the fact that last year was the recovery phase of the industry after the coronavirus crisis. In comparison, between March and May 2021, the drop in fitness club attendance reached 32%.

Short-term memberships are still a priority

When it comes to club card sales, this figure fell by 35% between March and May this year. The exception were two growth spurts at the end of March and April, which can be attributed to seasonal fluctuations and marketing campaigns conducted by fitness clubs. However, since the beginning of May, the trend has reversed and membership demand has not only rebounded from the drop, but has surpassed March’s numbers.

Spring 2021 and 2022 saw a similar trend, ending with a marked increase in club card sales in June. Thus, a possible increase in demand for memberships in Russian fitness clubs can be predicted in the near future. At the same time, in the current year the increase in sales in this sector is mostly due to renewals of existing cards, while in 2022 purchases of new cards prevailed.

In terms of validity period, short-term memberships of one to two months traditionally lead in the number of sales. This is not surprising, as this format gives the client more flexibility and allows them to cancel further visits to the club without financial losses. Annual memberships are usually cheaper than monthly memberships, but they require payment for the whole year, even if the cardholder stops visiting the fitness club.

As a deterrent, the cost of fitness club services has increased. Between March and May this year, monthly memberships went up in price by an average of 14% from 2,386 to 2,754 rubles. However, in June, when the trend of growing attendance of fitness clubs began, prices fell by 19% to 2244 rubles.

In spring, the cost of club cards from six to 11 months increased by 14% to 2,038 rubles per month, while annual membership rose in price by 8% to 1,516 rubles per month. Since the beginning of summer, the prices for semi-annual and annual cards have also started to decrease. It is noteworthy that in the same period in 2022, the prices for these services remained largely unchanged, except for short-term cards, which went up in price by more than 20%.

The main reason for the rising cost of memberships in 2023 is the rising cost of equipment and components. At the same time, fitness clubs are likely to take the course of gradual price increases if the paying capacity of the population decreases. After all, in such a case expenses in the sphere of services and on sports in particular are among the first to be cut in family budgets.

Portrait of a typical visitor

Women are still the most frequent visitors of fitness clubs. Representatives of the weaker sex not only train more often and in greater numbers, but their priorities are different. In this regard, such a format as a women’s fitness club, adapted to the peculiarities of women’s bodies, is becoming more and more widespread.

In terms of frequency of visits to gyms, young people were extremely active in March, but by the beginning of summer the enthusiasm of young people and girls went down. At the same time, the share of clients aged 25 to 44, who today form the backbone of active users of fitness services, increased.

What is in store for the Russian fitness industry?

In the near future we should not expect significant amounts of state investments in popularization of sports in Russia. Under these conditions, the industry is likely to develop through diversification of services, business automation and promotion of medical fitness. In addition to direct fitness, more and more clubs will offer their clients other areas, such as swimming in the pool and cosmetology services.

On the other hand, the coronavirus crisis has stimulated the development of medical fitness. The population’s interest in health has increased significantly, as has the need for rehabilitation. For this reason, it can be assumed that in the future fitness clubs will put more emphasis on medical fitness programs and expansion of the cardio equipment fleet.

Another important trend is the demand for automation. Where more costly human labor was once required, today a computer program works. Automation of document flow and other routine processes of interaction with the client relieves the burden from administrators and commercial department. Costs are reduced, staff time is saved and the quality of customer service is improved – all of which leads to increased profits for the fitness club.