Fitness Chains Feel the Burn as Startups Disrupt the Industry

I used to spend a lot of money on fitness. Back in the old days—2009—I supplemented my $85 monthly gym membership with a weekly $28 Pilates class. This month, my exercise budget is $18, the cost of a subscription to YogaGlo, an on-demand yoga website. Instead of schlepping to a studio or gym three times a week, I can find a yoga class that’s 30, 45, or 60 minutes long and do it in the comfort of my living room.

Yoga studios should be worried, but so should big fitness chains, such as Town Sports International, Life Time Fitness, Equinox, and Sports Club/LA. The $21 billion U.S. health and fitness industry, with nearly 30,000 locations, is losing customers to YogaGlo and a host of other fitness companies—most of them startups—that are following a classic disruptive model. They don’t have all the frills of full-service gyms, but what they do offer is convenience and customization that brick-and-mortar operations simply can’t match—and at a much lower price.