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Jetts Fitness franchisor gets the thumbs up for acquisition plans

Sarah Stowe

Quadrant, the head franchisor of Jetts Fitness, has the competition watchdog’s approval to acquire one of the largest gym chains in Australia. 

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) will not oppose Quadrant, the head franchisor of the Jetts Fitness chain, in its proposed acquisition of Fitness First Asia Pacific Group Pty Ltd (Fitness First).

Some market participants raised concerns about the combination of Fitness First and Goodlife, which are the two largest chains of full service gyms in Australia. Full service gyms typically offer a range of weight and cardio equipment, as well as group training classes. Fitness First, Goodlife and Jetts’ operations overlap in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.

“The ACCC determined that following the proposed acquisition, Fitness First, Goodlife and Jetts would continue to face competition from other alternatives, including low cost gyms such as Anytime Fitness and specialist gym providers such as F45 and Crossfit,” said Roger Featherston, ACCC Commissioner.

“The ACCC also found that convenience of location was an important factor in a consumer’s choice of gym, thereby giving an individual gym an opportunity to compete against a chain of gyms.

“Other suppliers of fitness services, such as bootcamps, or specialist studios, such as pilates, also impose a degree of competitive constraint on full service gyms,” continued Featherston.

The competition watchdog also took into account the dynamic changes and high churn rates affecting the gym industry in recent years. A number of new operators, including overseas operators, have entered the market and experienced significant growth in a short space of time, particularly in the low cost gym and specialist gym market segments.