FIBO 2025: Global Voices on Market Shifts, Member Retention & What’s Ahead

Recorded live at FIBO 2025 — one of the world’s largest trade shows for fitness, wellness, and health — this episode of The ATFW Podcast captures insights from global industry leaders.

Host Krissy Vann sits down with executives from Canada, the UK, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, and Finland to explore what’s shaping the fitness landscape in 2025 and beyond. From economic pressures and consumer trends to retention strategies and digital innovation, this episode is a powerful snapshot of where the industry is headed.

Featured Guests:

• Chris Smith – Fitness World Canada, Chairman of the Health & Fitness Association
• Justin Musgrove – Fitness First UK
• Marcos – Gym-Fit, Spain
• Dr. Gregor Hackfort – EVO Fitness, Germany
• Kenshj Savary – TC Training Center, Switzerland
• Tomi Peltonen – Ole.Fit, Finland

Topics Covered:

• Takeaways from the European Health & Fitness Forum
• International growth opportunities
• VAT and pricing accessibility
• Retention strategies in a post-pandemic landscape
• Digital ecosystems and Gen Z expectations
• Mergers, acquisitions, and franchise models with purpose

📢 Don’t forget to subscribe to the All Things Fitness and Wellness YouTube channel and follow us on LinkedIn for behind-the-scenes content, extended interviews, and more industry insights.

Transcript

Unknown: 0:00

The industry is growing, right? So the health and wellness, fitness, certainly perspective internationally, as it continues to grow as well, I think, led by the HVLP sector, similar to that that we see in North America. So that part's not dissimilar in any way, shape or form. I think definitely a lot of nervousness around the business environment that we see right now internationally, just with all the different conversations around data and privacy tax, the VAT tax, as well as an obviously, the current environment from a tariff perspective. So there's a lot of dialog and conversation there that wasn't all necessarily in the research per se. That was more on the networking and the breaks, but yeah, that's a great report, and it was great information to certainly understand. Well, there were people in the room where they were like, This is the first I've ever heard of this. And so that, in itself, is pretty crazy when you consider how mainstream it is from a US and or North American perspective. So that part was very, very different. So interesting there, and a lot that I think that, again, they can learn from a North American perspective, because I think there's things that the US, if you will, got wrong, and there's things that now they've figured out. And so the learning curve for other countries and other people, as they look to that as a potential solution, for those that that might be the only or best solution, then I think there's things that can be learned there. It's probably a combination of sales and marketing and just consumer outreach, and then member journey and some of these things. I think there's a lot of products and services and providers and certainly things within the different sectors they're doing a great job with. But I think there's probably some things just from, again, limited conversations I've had at least this week, and I'm not coming to any final conclusion, but just to say, yeah, there's certainly some some elements around optimization of the business, prioritizing, maximizing in certain areas that they might be just, just have an opportunity to grow and learn from it is a different, certainly, business environment, right? You have a very different kind of consumer and so I think the socio economics, the demographics, the psychographics, all those things are looking at, it's just, it's, it's not, it's not same, same, right? So you can't just kind of link it all together and say, well, it is, because it's certainly not, but it's interesting. I mean, there's a lot that I think can also be learned from a North American perspective to what the folks in Europe are doing with respect to some of the differences in terms of how they deal with consumers or the experiences that they're creating. I think the biggest one is the tax situation, the VAT tax, and it varies on a country by country basis. And it's not to say that in North America there is not a sales tax, which there is. And then certainly in Canada, right? GST and HST and all these other taxes that certainly can be implied. It's just so variable. So the countries that they look to in Europe, when they talk about the Nordic countries, they have the lowest, if any, VAT tax, right? I think Sweden has zero. Again, with the zero VAT tax has the highest fitness participation, and people look at it in Europe and say it's the healthiest population of people. So if we want to emulate that globally, or even certainly from a European perspective, I think part of the answer is for government to understand and advocate for their constituents and their citizens to understand that that pricing, if you will. And again, the H of A did a fantastic study around pricing elasticity, to understand that, like, it makes a difference the affordability of fitness makes a difference for your community, your constituents getting healthier. And it goes back to reactive versus proactive medicine, right? Like, let's be proactive and not reactive. From a healthcare continuum in terms of when we're helping people and how we're helping people, state of the industry report came out last week actually, with Deloitte 16.9% population, so yeah, growing 2% up from last time it was checked. And in regards to which categories, where do you see the most opportunity? Well, we're still seeing strong growth in the low cost sector. We're seeing now recovery the mid sector and certainly the premium end of market with the next phase, David Lloyd Fitness First, we're sort of edging mid market into premium. So when you're at fibo, what are the types of things that you're focusing on personally, deeper integrations, ecosystems that support digital generation. Z's Millennials all like their either data, so that's customer base as well. And in regards to mergers and acquisitions, we're starting to see a lot of buzz and activity in North America. How are things looking here? A lot of m&a in the next couple of years, certainly from our standpoint, where we're looking to acquire new locations, distressed properties, smaller operators are going by the wayside, some of the boutiques. So yeah, I think we've seen a lot of activity. And lastly, two quick things here. What are the biggest challenges that you're experiencing as an operator in 2025 Well, the biggest challenge for all operators is retaining their members, and that's we're looking at with deep integration for the likes of Egypt and some premier farmers, how we can really break the mold of and lastly, the better question, the biggest. Opportunity, because we are seeing that growth. Well, I think it's the golden area for us, industry with the generations here and millennials who are just so into their health and well being. So we've got to capitalize on that meet their needs. So we've got a really unique opportunity. Can you tell me a little bit about the market penetration in Spain, in regards to how many people are active in your community, Spain, I think now we are about 12% of penetration, increasingly, every year. But we are far from other numbers, like Germany, England, etc. How about when you look toward the United States, they're at about 23% are they a bit of a model for you? Or what countries do you look toward in regards to learning and growth? We better look for European countries. United States is a completely different market. Other business models is is very different. In example, Planet Fitness now is entering Spain, and they are trying to have the same model than in the States, and it's impossible think to have more than 5000 6000 people in a in a club in Spain, like Planet Fitness does in the States. It's impossible in mergers and acquisitions. How is that landscape looking in Spain? In Spain, we have a very concentration stage now, a lot of companies that are merging. We have a lot of movement in that sense. And how about the growth in the industry? What are your thoughts as we look ahead? Because I know when we're seeing a much younger, fit population. So what's the sentiment now that we're really seeing the momentum post COVID, it's a good moment. Young people are increasingly go to the club for strength, for beauty, more than health. That's what we're trying to explore. What the fitness market is like in Germany in regards to the rate of consumers that are taking part in exercise, I think it's growing. That's what we know. Last week was German Fitness Industry Market report. For the first time, we had more members I'm looking for COVID, and it's growing. Yeah, that's what we see in our club. So want to train, want to work out, that's what we see on a daily basis. And yeah, we are also growing. Our business is growing when it comes to growing in the fitness industry. What markets do you use as role models? The Nordics are the markets in Europe with the higher penetration rate. So I think between 20 and 25% in Germany, it's still only 20% so there's a lot of potential. And I think especially with other players coming into the market, like the aggregators, well, up well, pass club, you know, this kind of platforms. I think that the markets, the market is growing well. And on that note, what segments are you seeing the biggest growth in right now? Definitely. The two markets reformat is, I think High Rocks is a big trend. Yeah. So these kind of concepts also our concept. We are operating in a segment where we don't have staff, so it's our clubs are a little bit smaller, so we are operating neighborhood concepts, right? Well, I know that labor shortages are a huge issue right now globally, in regards to staffing gyms, so that's a great way to solve it. What are some of the challenges that you're facing right now in that growth perspective? Yeah, more competitors coming into the market, of course, similar concepts, similar to it yourself. Concepts, but do you find because what we find out in Canada, sometimes competitors open nearby, but everyone kind of wins. So do you see that same thing? Yeah, I wouldn't say everyone is winning, but yeah. I mean, you know, supply also creates demand, so that's definitely, definitely what we see as well. But it's always coming to a point where it's too much competition, especially in the big cities, the city centers, there's a lot of competition. There was the Deloitte market report that just came out. So through Europe, about 8% of people are getting active in gyms. In North America, we're at roughly 23% so in Switzerland, how are things overall looking? In regards to consumer uptake, I think we are a little bit in the middle. As far as I know, we're at the 11% so we still have so much possible growth, and the goal is to get. 20 25% so it's for us, it's awesome to be in that industry. Are there any global regions that you look to as role models in regards to that growth? Probably America is beautiful with What did you say 25 Yeah, if you, if you're at 10, and we know that 25 is possible, just imagine that growth that's still coming when you come to fibo. What type of things are you looking for? What are you looking to gain here? So today we are here just to get some impression on the newest technologies that map the AI integrations that are coming up the dancer that's in body scales, Seca, true scales, so body compositioning, that's interesting. And the integration of the software, so that our chimp software integrates with the different devices and the different machines, that's interesting for us now, yeah, for sure, and it's kind of what consumers are demanding. And on the topic of consumers, what type of demographic Are you seeing the biggest growth opportunities with in your facilities. So we are in our facilities. We are targeted at 40 years, bus and family, and that's interesting for us, but I know that in general, also the younger people, they want to go to the gyms we have, we have kids from 14, 1516, that are coming, that are influenced by by by influencers, and that are seeing a tomb is cool, and I want to move. I want to I want to work out. And we see that a lot. What are the biggest opportunities you see for the fitness industry right now? I think it's in a niche. Just focus on your niche, and don't go broad, because the big trims, the big, big box tunes, they're already here. It's really hard to compete. But if you go, if you go niche, as in every market, you can really build. How about the challenges? What challenges do you face in Switzerland? In Switzerland's costs, labor, rent is extremely high, and especially if you want to have a good spot, rents are extreme. And just last question here, in regards to competition, how do you view it? Is competition a help or a hindrance? In regards to getting more people moving? As we say, if you have your niche, you can, you can separate yourself really good. So competition is good? Yeah, it's doing it well in Finland. Tell me about because, for example, they had the Deloitte Report that here in Europe, it's about 8% penetration. In North America, it's about 23 How are things in Finland? Yeah, well, actually, the Nordics, especially Finland and Sweden, the penetration is about 21% so it's really high. It's one of the highest in the Europe. And of course, that's a great time and challenge. But also, where are you seeing the biggest growth? What sectors? What sector Young has been already? And luckily, we get now more than 50 years old, and that's the one you know that we try to grow absolutely when it comes to the consumer. What's the demographic that you're seeing come in the doors we've had that biggest growth? Well, I think, I think it's still 30, between 3045, years I think it's are getting more popular, it's getting more younger still. And how do you view competition? Is it helpful or a hindrance? I feel it's good. I feel it's good. I mean, there's a lot of places, still small cities, and there's nothing we can go but also, like last week, we were even in the capitalist Helsinki, a small area already existing, eight bucks, we've already moved so we covered, you know, we try to get the exercises in the team. So it's also create the opportunities. And last question, when it comes to mergers and acquisitions, is there a lot of activity in Finland? There's two chains. We actually olive it, and one hour that we are growing. We try to make about 50 clubs per year, new ones. We also buy our old collapse. So that's the speed, more or less. But yeah, that's just two in Finland who is going up with.