$30 for a Single SoulCycle Class? Not When a Recession Hits

What do you get when you combine an earnest quest to get healthier with a vain desire to look fabulous on Instagram? A growing number of Americans spending an increasing amount of money at boutique fitness centers.

But the boutique-fitness market — which includes not just old-standby yoga studios and CrossFit “boxes” but also newer exercise meccas such as SoulCycle, Pure Barre, Orangetheory Fitness and Club Pilates — may be getting irrational. It’s not just that the workouts are becoming comically niche, though they certainly are. (Would you prefer a so-called “prison-style” workout, or a hybrid of boxing and ballet? How about a studio designed around cold-temperature workouts?) It’s that the explosive growth of boutique fitness centers masks some harsh realities about their chances of long-term survival.