The fitness market - France (2024)

1.2 Robust growth on the global market

Size of the fitness market World, ****-****, in billions of USD Source: ****

In ****, the global fitness industry is valued at over $*** billion, up from **** after a period of growth between **** and ****. Growth in demand is mainly due to increased health awareness, and in particular the fight against obesity, which remains a widespread problem. The industry was impacted by the closure of fitness centers during the health crisis, but is set to grow again at a compound annual growth rate of *.**% over the period ****-****, according to forecasts by Verified Market Research.

Fitness market forecasts World, ****-****, in billions of dollars Source: ****

The fitness equipment industry is valued at $** billion in ****, and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of *% through to ****. This is an important component of the fitness industry, as it forms the backbone of every gym. According to the same source, by ****, over **% of the fitness equipment market will be weight training equipment (***).

Fitness equipment market size World, ****-****, in billions of USD Source: ****

The USA leads the fitness market in terms of sales generated and number of fitness centers, well ahead of Germany and the UK.

Geographical breakdown of the fitness market World, ****, in Source: ...

1.3 A geographically concentrated European market

the European market is worth mentioning for its size; although smaller than the US market, Research and Markets rican market, in ****, Research and Markets estimates the European fitness market at **.* billion euros, for a total of around **.* million members in European fitness centers. European fitness market Europe, ****-**** Source: Research and Markets In its **** report on the European health and fitness market, Deloitte estimates it at **.* billion euros, and points to a decline in sales since ****. At that time, the market was valued at **.* billion euros, before recording a -**.*% drop in sales between **** and ****, then -**.*% between **** and ****.

Germany, the UK and Spain would hold **% of the European market in ****, for a total of over * billion euros.

Fitness market size Europe, ****, in millions of euros Source: ****

In Europe in ****, there were ** mergers and acquisitions in the fitness sector as industry leaders look to consolidate their positions. The top ** European fitness players have **.* million members.

Top * European fitness markets by average budget/year Europe, ****, in £ Source: ****

The ranking of Europe's top fitness markets in **** reveals significant disparities in average annual budgets.Italy comes out on top with a total spend of £*,***, closely followed by France (***). Gym memberships dominate spending in France, ...

1.4 The strength of domestic market signals

With *.* million people registered by the end of ****, the fitness market has reached *.** billion euros. [***]. This trend is set to continue until at least ****, underpinned by three main factors:

The major ambitions of well-known networks such as L'Orange Bleue, Keepcool and Neoness, which will stimulate demand. French people's growing interest in fitness, never more pronounced than at present. Socio-demographic trends, including a growing preoccupation with appearance, well-being and performance, amplified by the influence of social networks, which will continue to boost club attendance.

To observe the evolution of market size in France, we use INSEE data and NAF code **.**Z - "Activities of fitness centers" "Activities of fitness centers." The graph below highlights the sector's strong growth, with an increase of ***% between **** and ****. Between **** and ****, the sector grew by **%. it should be noted that this market was strongly impacted by the health crisis in **** and ****.

Size of fitness center market France, ****-*****, in millions of euros Source: ****

Nevertheless, NAF code **.**Z does not necessarily cover the fitness industry as a whole. Taking into account complementary products such as food and beverages, merchandise and other market sub-segments, the market value of the fitness industry as a whole would most likely be higher. ...

1.5 The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the fitness market: A shrinking market

Fitness gyms sales index France, ****-****, Base *** in **** Source: ****

On the one hand, we note that fitness gyms have obviously suffered from the *st confinement (***). On the other hand, we can also see that the recovery has begun slowly for fitness centers, insofar as the sales index for the November-December-January-February ****/**** period seems to be struggling to pick up again. What's more, when we compare this period with that of the previous year, we have a difference of ***.** points.

This shortfall was felt in gym registrations, since according to an article in Les Echos, gyms saw a **% drop in attendance in September **** compared with September ****. Over the full year ****, fitness gyms posted a **% drop in subscriptions compared with ****. Some gyms, like RITM Sport (***), have lost **% of their customers.

The introduction of the health pass in June **** has also reduced the number of gym customers, as almost **% did not have the full vaccination schedule, according to David Bory, manager of Fitness Park gym in Aubière. This is also the case on a national level, as Thierry Doll, president of the Active-FNEAPL union, which represents nearly *,*** fitness clubs, points out: "We've received a huge number of requests for cancellation, as people don't want ...

2.1 The growing popularity of fitness among the French

The fitness market is profoundly impacted by the growing number of French people practicing sports. While some of their sporting activities are purely for leisure, others are motivated by an awareness or even a trend towards sporting activities for health or aesthetic reasons. In January ****, a survey conducted by Odoxa revealed that **% of French people had resolved to do more sport, mainly for reasons of health, well-being (***) or aesthetics.

Reasons why French people want to do more sport France, ****, in Source: ****

French people's participation in sport can be influenced by other factors, such as awareness campaigns run by government authorities. These regularly encourage the practice of physical activity, as illustrated by the March *, **** law aimed at democratizing sport in France, in particular by facilitating access to it for as many people as possible.

On the podium of sports that French people who are determined to do more sport intend to practice the most, fitness appears in second place, after hiking, and before running.

Sports that the French intend to do more of France, ****, in Odoxa

In France, a **** INJEP study reveals that fitness is already the second most popular sport among French people, after running . it is favored by **% of those ...

2.2 Demand trends

Interest in fitness is highly cyclical

Fitness" searches on Google Trends France, ****-****, in index of google trends searches Source: ****

The graph above represents the proportion of searches for a given term in a given region over a given period of time, relative to when it was most searched for (***). Thus, a value of ** means that the keyword has been used less frequently in the region concerned, and a value of * means that there is insufficient data for this keyword.

This graph shows that interest in search is stable, but cyclical. There are clear peaks around certain periods, such as after summer (***). This corresponds to what we might expect; at these times, many people want to get back into shape after a longer vacation period, probably with less movement and a less healthy diet. **** appears to be a breakthrough year, as the peak of the year is in June rather than September, as has been the case in previous years.

Searches for "gym" on Google Trends France, ****-****, in google trends search index Source: ****

Indeed, the trend is also confirmed when we analyze search interest in gyms. The graph above shows a clear cyclical pattern, with peaks around September and December ...

2.3 The impact of the global pandemic on the fitness market: towards an increase in home sports practice

In a report by INJEP (***), compared with **% in ****.

Main place of sporting activity France, ****/****, in Source: ****

We can see that sport at home is becoming firmly rooted in French habits. Indeed, this is underlined by the rise in the percentage of home sports practice, which was **% in **** excluding confinement , compared with **% in ****.

The practice of sport at home saw a slight decline in **** and ****, but nevertheless remains higher than in ****, with **% of practitioners (***). On the other hand, **% of those who have practised over the past ** months have done so outdoors, whether in a natural environment or in the city.

Despite a slight increase between **** and **** (***)[***].

What is your main reason for practicing at home? France, **** (***), in % [INJEP Source: ****

2.4 OpinionWay survey on brand awareness (exclusive)

As part of our partnership with MFP, we conducted a survey on the awareness of gyms in France in ****.

Here are some of the results:

French people's favorite gyms France, March ****, in Source: ****

In the fitness market, three leaders stand out for their strong positioning. Basic-Fit leads the way with a popularity rating of **.**%, closely followed by Fitness Park and L'Orange bleue with **.**% and **.**% respectively. However, these three leaders also have their share of detractors, with disapproval percentages of *.**% for Basic-Fit, *.**% for Fitness Park and *.**% for L'Orange bleue. Other market players such as Keep Cool, CMG Sport and Le Cercle de la forme, although present, are less popular. Comparison of gym ratings by age category France, March ****, in Source: Opinionway French Favourite Brand survey conducted in March **** - Base: representative sample of *,*** French Internet users aged ** and over Gyms are increasingly appealing to young people, particularly those under the age of **. In fact, according to the statistics, Basic-Fit and Fitness Park are the most popular, with **.*% and **.*% brand awareness for this age group respectively. These figures testify to a strong trend for these two brands, which are more popular than the others. By contrast, some gyms, such as L'Orange Bleue and ...

3.1 Market overview, the different structures: gym, fitness center, sport-health centre

According to the Robert dictionary, fitness is a "set of activities designed to maintain physical fitness by means of exercises performed with the aid of equipment". However, several places and gyms exist, so here's a quick overview:

Source: ****

All these centers and gyms generally offer cardio, strength training and stretching equipment. Some also offer group activities such as zumba, step, body combat, yoga... From now on, gym, bodybuilding and fitness are all terms that are mixed and matched. Some centers differentiate themselves by offering additional services such as hammams, saunas, swimming pools, massage, sports dietetics...[***]. Fitness centers can then also be called wellness centers.

Another trend is the development of hyper-specialized gyms, otherwise known as "Gym Boutique" or "studios", as defined in Territoires Marketing. These are clubs dedicated to a single discipline, such as aquagym, dance, spinning or yoga. This type of fitness center requires less space, which explains why they are concentrated in major cities.

Sport-health centers are more recent, having been officially named at the beginning of ****. These are classic sports centers, but they are also medical structures and require a medical prescription to go there. They provide medical follow-up with examination rooms, cardio-respiratory tests, scanners and doctors. These ...

3.2 Companies and workforce: a dispersed and increasingly saturated market

companies and employees of fitness center activities

Industry, companies and jobs France, ****-****, in units Source: ****

In ****, *,*** companies were registered under NAF code **.**Z, which covers fitness and body-building clubs and centers, with **,*** employees. Despite the drop recorded in ****, these figures have overall increased by **% and **% respectively since ****, testifying to a remarkable development of fitness center activity in France. The number of businesses and the number of employees have thus increased at almost the same rate, showing that the market is fragmented with a large number of players, or at least includes a high number of franchises within fitness center chains.

Indeed, at the start of this activity, large-scale centers were favored (***), but this trend has fallen out of favor since the ****s, when smaller, more intimate centers of around ***m* have been favored[***].

Number of maisons sport-santé

By January ****, *** facilities held the label, and by the end of ****, this number had risen to ***, doubling in just over a year[***]. By the end of ****, the symbolic figure of *** "maisons santé" had been reached.

Number of fitness clubs

A Deloitte study counted *,*** fitness clubs in France in ****.Another study, carried out in early ****, managed to count *,*** verified fitness clubs [***]. This would represent ...

3.3 The players: a highly fragmented market with no omnipotent player

There are several different types of player: there are very high-end gyms offering maximum on-site comfort, but also intermediate gyms and, finally, low-cost gyms which have disrupted the market over the last ten years by offering significantly lower subscription prices. The democratization of fitness and the exacerbation of competition have enabled membership prices to fall steadily. Now, in ****, we're seeing a polarization of the market, with basic low-cost offers and premium offerings; in between, centers are struggling to keep up and are in trouble, like CMG Sports Clubs, which had to lay off **% of its head office staff in ****[***].

The market is made up of a large number of independents; in ****, **% of clubs were independent, with around *.*% to *% of clubs attached to a chain.were attached to a national brand (***) and accounted for **-**% of sales. Although the players have changed in ** years, many independents are still present: in ****, *,*** were counted as a reminder, and yet L'Orange Bleu, one of the most present players as we shall see, has only *** clubs in France, representing around *.*% of the total fitness club base. Basic Fit accounted for another *%. In terms of the number of gyms available, no player has a share of more ...

4.1 Room comparison: room rates, activities

Different fitness packages

Source: ****

Pricing is an ongoing war and remains an essential aspect for companies to differentiate themselves, which is why prices vary widely between clubs.

The lowest package available is €**.**/month, but there are also "luxury" fitness gyms, particularly in the Paris region, such as Club Blanche or La Mondolfière, with prices ranging from €*** to €***/month.

The offers included in the packages enable the clubs to differentiate themselves from one another:

One or more months at a reduced price on registration Different packages (***) Different payment methods: monthly (***) or "pay as you go" system Refer a friend, take a vacation break, invite a friend, compatible membership in all gyms in France and abroad... Virtual coaching Limited access times according to package International presence or not

Another means of differentiation lies in the services provided. For example, some fitness centers offer unlimited access to a weight room for a fee. They may also offer access to a relaxation and wellness area, group classes, personalized classes and extra-sport services such as program coaching, for example. Here's the list of fitness activities offered by L'orange bleue to give you an idea:

Abdo-Fessier Aerobic Boxing Cardio training Functional training Relaxation Dance

With a ...

4.2 The digitization of supply

Like most sectors, the fitness market is no exception to the trend towards digitalization, which has been further accentuated by the COVID-** health crisis and confinements. Practising at home with the aid of CDs, watching classes on TV or on the internet, has been around for years, but "digital fitness" hasrique" (***) has developed enormously, in particular to enable people confined to their homes to maintain not only physical activity, but also a social link. Numerous sporting challenges were launched during this period via social networks, gyms offered sports apps to keep training, and numerous means were developed to maintain a social link through the practice of sport[***].

New offers are continually being developed, for example, multiple applications turn the smartphone into a personal fitness coach. These include Formation Nike Club, which offers yoga, muscle strengthening and cardio-respiratory training through personalized programs. There are also a few apps more focused on alternative activities, such as Yoga Pocket, which accompanies yoga practice at home.

Faced with competition from home fitness platforms such as Apple Fitness+ and Netflix, Fitness Park has launched Home Park. This service offers video classes filmed in Saint-Ouen and available via the Fitness Park app. This allows members to continue ...

4.3 Sports nutrition, a lever for fitness centers

Several centers have partnerships with sports nutrition brands. Basic Fit and Fitness Park, for example, both offer the Yanga sports drink in their gyms.

Having nutrition offers within gyms is a way of increasing revenue, especially as the sports nutrition market is booming. The Lactalis Group highlights this in an article entitled"Le renouveau du marché de la nutrition sportive", which discusses the evolution of the sports nutrition market and its importance for players in the sports market.

When it comes to sports nutrition supplements, there is a multitude of products available, not only in terms of the number of brands on the market, but also in terms of the type of products they offer. Products differ in appearance and composition. Here's a list of the main products used in food supplements by athletes:

Whey: a dietary supplement used for recovery after exercise, its real name is "whey protein"; BCAAs (***): these are branched amino acids called leucine, valine and isoleucine. They are consumed in the form of tablets, capsules or powders, and help improve strength, performance and recovery, for example; Creatine: a molecule synthesized from * amino acids: glycine, arginine and methionine. Its role is to fuel muscles, enabling them to go ...

4.4 Growing fitness communities

Community applications, such as Meetup, enable the creation of low-cost outdoor fitness practice groups. Many fitness centers and gyms offer an online coach service, which helps build customer loyalty and makes digitization an added value of the gym presence. The aim is to go beyond the gym and accompany the customer in his or her daily life with a comprehensive follow-up that will not be limited to sports care alone.

In fact, it's worth mentioning the community aspect, which is booming even in the world of fitness. This is reflected in the growing use of connections to various platforms via social networks, and the sharing of results and challenges with others. The trend is strongest in the USA at the moment, but France is following suit since, according to an Ipsos study **% of practitioners are connected during their training through apps, for example via the Strava app. Digitization is an integral part of the fitness industry.

On the other hand, the use of social media in fitness has transformed the way professionals and amateurs share their content. Platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok have become essential for fitness professionals who post exercise demos, educational content, and celebrate their clients' successes, contributing ...

5.1 Regulations

In theory, no diploma is required to open a gym. However, staff and trainers must hold a state diploma in order to work in the establishment. Here is a list of diplomas relevant to this activity: Brevet d'Etat d'éducateur sportif option métiers de la forme, BPJEPS, DEUST des métiers de la forme, DEUST STATPS or even a licence STAPS, details of the training required are available here.

As an EAPS (***), here are a few obligations listed on Sport.gouv.fr:

the EAPS operator must be of good repute (***); the obligation to have an emergency organization chart (***); the obligation to take out an insurance policy covering its own civil liability, and that of persons teaching, supervising or leading a physical or sporting activity, or training its participants in return for remuneration, within the establishment, or on its premises.the operator's employees, as well as persons admitted to the establishment to take part in the physical activities taught there (***); the obligation to display a certain number of items: diplomas or qualifications and professional cards, trainee attestations, texts setting out the health and safety guarantees applicable to the establishment, insurance contract attestation (***).

Please note that the obligation to declare EAPSs was ...

6.1 Player segmentation

6.2 Online market share of gym brands in France

Based on estimates of Internet traffic in France for the various brands, we can obtain an initial estimate of the market shares of the main gym brands in France.

These data are obtained from access to databases, including SEMRUSH, and enable us to compare websites with each other over a given month.

Estimated market share of leading gyms in France France, **.**, estimated number of visits Source: ****

according to the data, basic-fit.comfr captures **.*% of online visits, significantly more than its nearest competitors.

6.3 Analyse financière des entreprises du secteur

• Neoness (Group3S)
• Vita Liberté
• KeepCool
• L’Orange Bleue
• Club Movin
• Basic-Fit
• CMG Sports Club (Club Med Gym)
• Curves
• MMA Factory
• UFC GYM
• L'Appart Fitness
• N4 Brands Fitness Boutique
• Zumba Fitness France
• Fitness Park Group
• GigaFit
• Elancia
• BodyHit
• Iron Bodyfit
• Miha Bodytec
• On Air Fitness (Keep Cool groupe)
• Resofit Les Clubs
• Wake Up Form
• Wefit club
• Planet Fitness Equipements
• Magic Form (Groupe Mateus)
• Liberty Gym
• Vert Marine
• Les Cercles de la Forme
• Pro Trainer
• MyoTec
• Gymlib
• La French Co (Réseau Cross Fit)
• Fitness Blender
• Dynamo Cycling