Basic-Fit Acquires RSG Group’s Spanish Clubs

Basic-Fit acquired RSG Group’s club network in Spain.

What’s happening: The Dutch gym chain will own 42 McFIT and five Holmes Place locations when greenlit by the Spanish Competition Authority (CNMC). A syndicated bank loan of €110M finances the purchase and club rebrands throughout 2024.

Growth mode. As Europe’s largest fitness operator, with 1,402 clubs and over 3.3M members, the deal extends Basic-Fit’s Spanish network to 187. Based on RSG Spain’s €39M revenue in 2022, it’s pitched to deliver a ROIC of ~30% by 2026.

Basic-Fit CEO René Moos says the new network supports company growth tactics, as well as revenue objectives.

“We will strengthen our positions in several important regional markets. In Barcelona, for example, we will grow the number of clubs from 2 to 9 clubs, which fits our cluster strategy.”

New territory. With fitness industry revenues increasing by 34% in Spain over the last two years, Basic-Fit isn’t the only chain vying for growth.

• French brand Fitness Park aims to almost double its Spanish network in 2024 to 50 clubs.
• Pursuing growth from three to 200 Spanish gyms in five years, L’Orange Bleue opened its first Madrid club with four further openings due this month.
• Spain’s Brooklyn Fitboxing will expand on 167 locations by upping Catalonian clubs from 19 to 50 by 2025.
• The UK’s énergie Fitness recently added a sixth gym in Vitoria and plans six Spanish openings in Q1 2024.

Takeaway: European operators are bulking up in Spain, particularly through cluster strategies in urban areas. However, with Germany, the UK and France consistently racking up revenue and membership gains, Europe’s other leading territories also provide fertile ground for growth in 2024.