BFT Enters Scandinavia, Grows in APAC

BFT wants to scale Scandinavia’s boutique sector.

The news: The Aussie fitness brand inked a master franchise deal for Scandinavia with plans to open 40 studios in 10 years.

Citing alignment between the Scandinavia mindset and BFT’s “no nonsense approach” rights-holder Tage Flugeim will open flagships in Oslo, Stockholm and Copenhagen before driving expansion through sub-franchisee partnerships.

“I know that Scandinavians appreciate foreign fitness brands. We look up to the US, UK and Australia, and introducing BFT’s culture, story, and high-quality workouts to our region will be a perfect fit for Scandinavia.”

Of note, Flugeim is credited with launching and developing US HIIT studio Barry’s in the Nordic countries.

Growing Gains

BFT has found international footholds in the US (through a deal with Xponential Fitness) and Europe, with its entry into Spain this year marking its 300th studio and Glasgow opening this month.

Meanwhile, at home in APAC, its 50-minute strength and conditioning formats are on fire:

• Membership at its APAC studios grew by 18% to 66K in the last 12 months.
• After entering Malaysia in April, BFT will open its first Indonesian studio in July.
• In Hong Kong, 27% of franchise licences were signed six months from entry; 80% are sold in NZ; and 70% in Australia.

Growing in tandem with HYROX, BFT was named the exclusive training centre for the global fitness racing phenomenon in APAC in 2023.

Takeaway: Keeping pace with global franchise rivals like F45, BFT is carving out its lane, delivering on strength and running community-minded weight loss challenges as people worldwide seek out what works.