Oxford: Buzz Gym chooses Life Fitness to support new expansion strategy

Buzz Gym, the 24/7 low cost operator, has partnered with global leader in commercial fitness equipment, Life Fitness, to deliver a new and transformed business model as part of its UK expansion strategy.

The brand’s fresh approach combines affordable, no contract gym memberships with a premium fitness equipment offering and high specification fit-outs. 

Buzz Gym Oxford will be the first facility to launch with Life Fitness in line with the new model next month; this will be followed by the opening of a new site in Plymouth, taking the operator to five sites.

The new Oxford gym will be home to top-of-the-range equipment from Life Fitness’s extensive brand portfolio including Hammer Strength HD Elite platforms and HD Elite Half Rack, Life Fitness Signature Series strength equipment including an eight-station Multi-Jungle and a range of Life Fitness Integrity Series cardio complete with Discover SE3 HD consoles. 

Building on the popularity of Buzz Gym’s indoor cycling offering at its existing sites, members of the new Oxford gym will have access to an indoor cycling studio fully equipped with ICG® IC7 bikes. Both Oxford and Swindon gyms will also be launching Coach by Color®, ICG®’s unique training system which assigns five coloured zones to users based on power or heart rate to accurately coach exercisers’ efforts for the best customised results. This was a decision made as part of the operator’s strategy to differentiate from its competitors by offering members a varied, engaging and improved indoor cycling experience. 

Buzz Gym utilised Life Fitness’ Gym Design Service to assist with equipment selection and ensure best use of available space at the Oxford site; 3D visuals were also created to support the gym’s pre-sales marketing campaign. 

A private, family-owned business, Buzz Gym launched its first club in Reading in 2013 and now has more than 13,000 members across three gyms. Located in city centre sites, Buzz Gym clubs offer 24/7 access to more than 200 exercise stations, open plan training zones, huge Strength zones and more than 400 group exercise classes every month. 

Buzz Gyms focus on atmospheric designs including live DJ’s and nightclub-feel lighting, where fashion meets fitness gym members are offered an energetic friendly atmosphere from a professional committed club. 

Adam Stowell, CEO of Buzz Gym said: “We chose Life Fitness because they were able to clearly understand our business model and provide a solution that not only meets our current needs but one that is scalable and will support our longer-term growth strategy. The quality and range of our gym equipment is central to our offering and through Life Fitness, we are also able to develop our digital capabilities which is something that we’re really excited about and will further enhance member engagement.” 

Jodi Phillips, Life Fitness regional account manager, said: “Buzz Gym is a great project to be a part of and the brand’s focus on delivering high-quality fitness facilities at low costs to members will create a real point of difference in the market. Our range of brands is such that we’ve been able to support this with a combination of equipment that not only reflects the members’ needs but also represents the premium quality that Buzz Gym seeks whilst maximising space to deliver a motivating and inspiring environment.”