Goji Studios (Gym And Wellness)
Various locations (in the premises of the defunct California Fitness):
- Whampoa (April 2017)
- Tsim Sha Tsui (June 2017)
- Mong Kok (June 2017)
- Kowloon Bay (June 2017)
- Central (June 2017)
- Causeway Bay (June 2017)
- Wanchai (July 2017)
Email: hello@gojistudios.com.hk
Tel: 2530 3038
Walking down Granville Road last night, FuelMix was approached by a gym marketing guy who handed FuelMix a flyer for Goji Studios, a gym and wellness centre. It was located on the 9th, 10th and 11th floors of The One, Tsim Sha Tsui.
"Aren't those the premises of California Fitness..?" enquired FuelMix
"Yes", said the marketing guy, "but we are NOT California Fitness at all. We give you the choice of 1 year or 6 month membership. And it is all fixed price. Everyone pays the same in all our branches. The basic membership is about HK$500.00 per month.
(Underlining highlighting and bold print by FuelMix):
A newly established gym chain has quietly rented seven premises previously occupied by the shuttered California Fitness, with the first to open in Hung Hom next month.
Goji Studios, owned by a local consortium led by
financial services firm Opus, was offered significant rent discounts
after the seven prime locations had been left vacant for 10 months, the Post has learned.
Unlike California Fitness, whose members paid
multiple years of membership fees in advance, Goji charges on a monthly
basis to reassure customers who were left in limbo by the former chain’s
sudden collapse.
“We are not California Fitness,” Ricky Cheuk Ming-yin, chief operating office of Goji Studios told the Post in an email.
The former Hong Kong rugby sevens player said
the closure of California Fitness had provided a “special investment
opportunity” to take over numerous vacated premises well suited for a
fitness club.
Opus has taken over the former chain’s premises
in Causeway Bay, Wan Chai, Central, Hung Hom, Mong Kok, Kowloon Bay and
Tsim Sha Tsui. They would be launched before the end of August, Cheuk
said.
It is understood that most Goji Studios outlets
have been leased for five years at a total monthly rent of about HK$10
million. Its Hung Hom branch received a 13 per cent discount for a
monthly rent of HK$1.3 million.
The consortium is currently in discussions with landlords to rent other vacant premises once used by California Fitness.
Despite expensive rents and stiff competition
from smaller rivals, Cheuk was confident about prospects for the fitness
industry, with a plan to ride the wave of family interest in health.
“Our market research has found that Hong Kong
people place great importance on health, and fitness is a growing
industry,”he said, citing a 2015 survey that showed 69 per cent of
respondents placed health and fitness as their top priority.
“In addition to sports lovers and health and
wellness enthusiastics, we also target families and kids. We aim to
offer activities that adults and kids can enjoy together as valuable
family time,” he said.
The chain charges HK$588 a month for basic membership and HK$888 for a premium plan.
About 300 people had joined the chain as of last Friday, a sales manager told the Post. Many of them are former members of California Fitness........
"They're not doing any hard sell", said the muscleboy working in BC Connection in Tsim Sha Tsui, "they know what will happen if they try....it's a fixed rate membership. Everyone pays the same. But the guys working there are the staff and trainers who used to work in California Fitness and Pure Fitness".
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