Innovative Revenue Streams for Gyms and Fitness Studios

When a business diversifies its revenue streams, it becomes less reliant on a single source of cash flow. This makes the business more resilient: better able to handle new competitors, economic shocks, and all manner of other hurdles it might face.

For fitness businesses like gyms and health clubs, memberships tend to form the primary source of income. But there are a wealth of other revenue opportunities available, and by growing these streams, you can make more money and ensure that your business remains in good health no matter what the future might bring.

What does revenue stream diversification look like for a fitness business? Let’s look at a few additional gym revenue strategies that you could consider implementing.

Traditional revenue streams

Before we get into the additional revenue ideas, let’s first cover off the more basic revenue sources within the fitness industry. Most gym business models are built on three main services:

• Gym membership fees: The regular fees that you charge members to access your gym.
• Personal training sessions: The private, personalized training sessions that members and guests book with personal trainers.
• Fitness classes: The group classes that members and guests can book.

Innovative revenue streams

Various revenue streams, from ancillary services to product sales, lie beyond the traditional money spinners listed above, and can help you to generate additional income, increase profitability, and make your business more resilient in this very competitive industry.

What are these alternative revenue streams? Let’s take a look.

Online training programs

What did successful gyms do during COVID? They found ways to generate income that weren’t reliant on their physical location.

Online training can include:

• Virtual/live streamed classes
• Video-based personal training sessions
• On-demand workout videos
• Subscription services featuring premium fitness content

Online training offers gym members ultimate convenience, letting them train when they want, where they want. And it offers plenty of upside for your business too, beyond the enhanced member experience: pre-recorded sessions can become passive gym revenue streams, and unlike your physical location, there are no class size limits in the digital world, so your potential for profit is far greater.

Nutrition and wellness services

While gyms specialize in physical fitness, diet is every bit as important (and sometimes more important) in ensuring your members reach their fitness goals. You can give them a more complete experience by offering sessions with a qualified nutritionist, and selling the food and supplements that will help get them where they want to go on their fitness journey.

Retail merchandise

Apparel, accessories, training gear, supplements, food and drink - anything your members use while at your gym represents an opportunity to increase revenue through retail sales. You can also earn sales relating to your online training programs by selling the gym equipment a member needs to work out at home.

Retail merchandise has the added benefit of turning members into walking billboards for your gym, so don’t be shy about placing your logo loud and proud on any branded items.

Events and workshops

Another example of an additional revenue stream that doubles as a marketing initiative is an event, be it a workshop, seminar, fitness challenge, boot camp or social occasion.

On top of the entry or participation fees you can charge for such events, you can also:

• Increase levels of member engagement with your gym
• Create a sense of community that many members have joined your gym for
• Expand your client base by inviting non-members to your events
• Capture content that can be used in marketing materials to help attract new members

Facility rentals

Loaded with fitness equipment and open spaces for workouts, gyms and studios tend to occupy buildings with plenty of room - and this wealth of space can represent a significant revenue opportunity if you’re willing to rent it out. Here’s how you could offer up your space:

• For classes and workout sessions run by outside businesses
• As a workplace for other professionals (personal trainers, physios)
• To sports clubs and athletes looking for a private space to train
• For fitness events and competitions
• For non-fitness events (social, corporate)
• For photoshoots

Corporate wellness programs

As a business owner you know the value of treating your staff well. You can help other leaders do just that by offering gym memberships as part of the employee wellness packages of local businesses.

You might consider offering a discount to these corporate clients, as they will allow you to sign up a large number of new members in one go, many of whom won’t actually make use of this employee perk, so don’t really represent a cost.

Childcare services

Busy modern lives mean that it can be difficult for members to find the time for the gym, particularly those with kids. By offering childcare during workout sessions you don’t just create an alternative source of revenue - you also set yourself apart from most other fitness businesses and present yourself as the go-to choice for parents who are passionate about fitness.

Spa and recovery services

While the workout is the main dish, recovery is every bit as important for reaching fitness goals and maintaining long-term health and wellness.

Consider generating revenue, and making your gym more profitable, by offering post-exercise recovery: massage therapy, cryotherapy, sauna sessions and more. Not only can this provide an additional revenue stream, it can also enhance the results that your members enjoy from their training, and helps you to stay ahead of your competitors by offering a more holistic health and wellness experience.

GymMaster: smart gym management software to power your revenue growth

While there are plenty of options on the table, expanding your gym’s revenue streams is no simple task. Doing so successfully demands careful planning, upfront investment and a commitment to ongoing optimization of those new revenue streams.

The good news: in GymMaster you have an all-in-one gym management system that can make this effort far simpler, more efficient and more effective, by automating otherwise tedious tasks and giving you new powers in business management, business marketing and the enhancement of internal operations.

Interested in how GymMaster can assist in diversifying your revenue streams? We’re ready to help.

Book a demo today.