Crunch Fitness

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Crunch Holdings LLC
Crunch Fitness
Native name
Crunch
TypeFranchise
IndustryHealth club
Founded1989
FounderDoug Levine
Headquarters
New York City
,
United States
Number of locations
400
Key people
  • Jim Rowley (Worldwide CEO)
  • Ben Midgley (Crunch Franchise CEO)
  • Keith Worts (Crunch Signature CEO)
  • Dan Gallagher (CFO)
  • Chad Waetzig (EVP Marketing & Branding)
BrandsCrunch Signature, Crunch Select, Crunch Fitness
Members1.9 million

Crunch Fitness is a U.S.-based brand of over 400 franchised and corporate owned fitness clubs located in the United States, Canada, Spain, Portugal, Costa Rica, and Australia.[1] Founded by Doug Levine in 1989, its current CEO is Jim Rowley.[2]

History[]

Crunch was founded in 1989 as a fitness studio by Doug Levine, a former stockbroker.[3][4] The clubs became successful by appealing to young upscale members and by selling logo merchandise.[5]

Ownership[]

Bally Total Fitness acquired Crunch in 2001 for $90 million in cash and stock,[6] holding the brand for four years. In 2005 Angelo, Gordon & Co., a private equity firm, purchased Crunch from Ballys for $45 million, and in 2009 added New Evolution Fitness Company ("NEFC"/New Evolution Ventures), a company founded by Mark Mastrov (founder of 24 hour fitness) and fitness Veteran Jim Rowley, as an equity and operating partner.

On July 1, 2019, it was announced that private-equity firm TPG was acquiring Crunch Fitness through its growth-equity unit.[7]

Crunch is led by Worldwide CEO Jim Rowley. Keith Worts is CEO of the company's owned and operated clubs, including the Crunch Signature brand, and Ben Midgley is CEO of Crunch Franchise.[8][9][10]

Partnerships[]

On August 25, 2021, Pegula Sports & Entertainment announced a multi-year extension with Crunch Fitness as an Official Partner of the Buffalo Bills.[11]

Group fitness classes[]

The clubs offer an array of group fitness classes, including stationary bike workouts, Pilates, Yoga, and Zumba. Initially, Crunch Fitness featured some unusual classes such as bicycle-based yoga, coed wrestling, an "Abs, Thighs and Gossip" class run by a drag queen, and (unusual in 1997) pole dancing and capoeira.[4] Although the classes were later standardized across various locations, some popular offbeat classes remain, such karaoke bicycling,[3] Pound,[12] Antigravity Yoga,[13] among others.

Memberships[]

The company has two primary categories of gyms: Crunch Signature and Crunch Fitness.[14] Crunch Signature locations are premium, full-service clubs with monthly memberships that typically range from $85 – $130, mainly located in major metropolitan areas, and offer a wide array of services, classes and amenities. Crunch Fitness locations offer group classes, advanced HIIT classes, and traditional gym services for $9.99 to $29.99 a month.[15] As of 2022, 28 of Crunch's locations were Signature gyms.[16]

References[]

  1. ^ Crunch. "Crunch Fitness Announces Milestone of 400th Franchise Club Opening". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  2. ^ LLC, Crunch. "Crunch Gym | Crunch Heroes". info.crunch.com. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  3. ^ a b Wendy A. Lee (2009-07-29). "The Trapeze, the Catwalk, the Gym". The New York Times.
  4. ^ a b Edward Lewine (1997-11-30). "The Fitness Gurus". The New York Times.
  5. ^ Constance C. R. White (1996-06-16). "Crunch Inc.: Marketing a Gym, as Well as a Way of Life". The New York Times.
  6. ^ "Bally Plans to Purchase Crunch for $90 million". The New York Times. 2001-10-16.
  7. ^ Kang, Jaewon. "TPG to Buy Gym Chain Crunch Fitness". WSJ. Retrieved 2019-07-01.
  8. ^ "Jim Rowley, Crunch Fitness Intl Inc: Profile and Biography". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2019-09-04.
  9. ^ Fitness, Crunch. "Crunch Fitness Appoints Keith Worts To Chief Executive Officer". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2019-09-04.
  10. ^ "Tips From The Top: One On One With Ben Midgley, CEO of Crunch Franchise - Thrive Global". thriveglobal.com. Retrieved 2019-09-04.
  11. ^ "Bills extend partnership with Crunch Fitness". www.buffalobills.com. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
  12. ^ "Drum Your Way Fit With Pound At Crunch". It's Amanda Lauren. Retrieved 2019-09-04.
  13. ^ "AntiGravity Yoga a fun approach to fitness". Reuters. 2011-03-28. Retrieved 2019-09-04.
  14. ^ "Best Workout Gyms - Fitness Rooms, Sports Gyms & Athletic Clubs | Crunch Fitness". www.crunch.com. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  15. ^ "No Judgments | Crunch Fitness". www.crunch.com. Retrieved 2019-09-04.
  16. ^ "Best Workout Gyms - Fitness Rooms, Sports Gyms & Athletic Clubs | Crunch Fitness". www.crunch.com. Retrieved 2022-03-03.

External links[]

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