The énergie Group has brokered the acquisition of eight Fitness First Clubs in the UK on behalf of Qatar-based investment group Ghanim Bin Saad Al Saad & Sons Holding Group (GSSG).
GSSG purchased the eight clubs as part of the investment group's plans to grow its portfolio of énergie clubs both in the UK and the Middle East simultaneously. The firm plans to invest in 30 clubs in the UK.
énergie's new Management Services division will operate the clubs on behalf of GSSG. All eight sites will undergo a £1m rebranding over the next eight weeks and two of the clubs, in Northampton and Southampton, will become women-only facilities. The other six clubs are located in Inverness and Dundee in Scotland, Rotherham, Milton Keynes, Swindon and Epson.
As part of the deal, énergie has taken a 50 per cent stake in the Milton Keynes site with a view to using it as a national training centre for its franchisees.
GSSG, which has net assets of more than 1.8bn Qatari riyals (£338m) and interests across the Middle East and Europe, has also agreed a development pipeline with énergie in the Middle East. This agreement will see the two groups open an additional 50 clubs across the Middle East over the first five years of the partnership.
The deal followed énergie’s acquisition in 2008 of 23 Motorcise Healthy Living Centres, as well as fitness franchise Attiva.
It now has 80 clubs – mainly in the UK and Ireland, with two in Latvia – and 25 in the pipeline for 2009. In 2008, it opened one franchise site approximately every seven days, making it one of the fastest brands to expand.
Last year, GSSG was granted a master franchise licence for six énergie brands across Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Libya. GSSG is already a market leader in the Qatari fitness club sector, with four large sites in operation and two under construction.
Caption: Jan Spaticchia with GSSG managing director, Mohammed Al Hamadi.
