The majority of fitness facility operators polled in the 2011 Club Industry State of the Industry survey anticipate an improved 2012, with moderate-to-high expectations of increased revenue, membership, renovations, additions and equipment purchasing.
Sixty-four percent of respondents expect to generate more revenue in 2012, while 31 percent expect revenue to remain the same. The operators with the highest expectations in increased revenue in 2012 are hotel/resort facility operators (82 percent), commercial express operators (79 percent) and commercial studio operators (79 percent). Slightly more than half of responding nonprofit operators expect revenue to increase in 2012 while a majority of university rec center operators expect revenue to remain the same as 2011.
Of the total facility operators surveyed, 60 percent expect higher membership in 2012, 36 percent expect membership to be about the same as 2011 and 4 percent expect a decrease in membership. However, 81 percent of express club operators and 84 percent of studio operators expect higher membership. A slight majority of nonprofit operators who responded expect an increase in membership while a large majority of university rec center operators expect membership to be about the same as 2011.
The survey was split down the middle in terms of operators who plan to add new equipment in 2012 (49 percent said yes, 51 percent said no). A majority of commercial multipurpose operators (57 percent) said they will add new equipment while only 35 percent of commercial express operators plan to add new equipment. A majority of the nonprofit facility operators and university rec center operators polled do not plan to add new equipment in 2012. The average amount of anticipated spending on equipment among all respondents is more than $56,000.
Sixty-eight percent of operators surveyed plan to renovate or remodel one or more of their facilities.