F45 Training’s FS8 Targets European Growth

FS8 is strengthening its European core.

What’s happening: F45 Training will expand its reformer Pilates/yoga mash-up in the UK and Europe via a deal with Club Sports Group.

The territory master franchisor, operator of 70+ F45 and VAURA Pilates clubs, is targeting 50 FS8 sites in five years.

Stretching out. Launched in 2021, F45’s Pilates-inspired concept counts 32 studios across Australia, Qatar, Thailand, America and the UK.

All in, Club Sports Group is driving that number up, scaling athletic-style reformer studio VAURA while developing FS8 studios in London, France, Germany, Spain and Luxembourg.

Stretching the limits of its territory, it’ll also target travelers through an overseas site in New Caledonia while exploring options in the British Virgin Islands.

Pilates Powerhouses

Growing 13% annually to $49B by 2030, the European yoga and Pilates market is thriving.

• Australia’s STRONG Pilates operates 55 studios in Europe, APAC, Asia and North America, with ~150 in the pipeline.
• Building on its 850-club estate, Xponential Fitness’s Club Pilates is rolling out in Germany, France, Austria, Ireland and the Netherlands.
• Last month, TRIB3’s PILAT3S concept debuted in Amsterdam’s Clubsportive, with further growth planned in Portugal, the Netherlands, Spain and the UAE.

Seizing the opportunity, franchise models from the US’s JETSET, the UK’s MK Healthhub and the Netherlands’ BodyBase are up and running.

Takeaway: The Pilates boom set off a land-grab, where concepts championing customisation and community can play their advantage.