Monday, November 18, 2024
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Fitness

Crunch Fitness eyes long-planned south Winnipeg opening date

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Crunch Fitness eyes long-planned south Winnipeg opening date

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For years, a two-storey former gym near Kenaston Boulevard has sat empty.

For the past 12 months, a low-cost American fitness chain has been advertising its arrival at the south Winnipeg location.

Crunch Fitness is now targeting December to open a location on Nature Park Way. It follows months of slowdowns from equipment and material arrivals and construction, according to team leads.



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Crunch Fitness’s Winnipeg location is now expected to open in December, drawing on designs (above) used in its nearly 500 outlets.

While waiting, some potential members have grown confused and annoyed, opting for different gyms.

“The plan has always been to grow throughout all of Canada,” said Katz Foley, Crunch Fitness Canada’s vice-president of strategic initiatives.

The company started in New York City 35 years ago. It touts itself as “high-value, low-price,” with high-intensity interval training spaces and saunas, among other amenities.

It’s mushroomed to nearly 500 locations across America. In 2017, Crunch Fitness looked to Canada. The chain converted clubs in Ontario and Alberta.

The COVID-19 pandemic paused growth. Only in the past 18 months has Crunch been able to get its bearings and continue its trajectory, Foley relayed.

It currently has around 30 Canadian locations. The goal is to hit 35 by the end of 2024 — and Winnipeg is on the list.

Crunch teased its first Winnipeg announcement in October 2023. It shared a picture of the former GoodLife Fitness Centre at 143 Nature Park Way; GoodLife had left upon building a new facility in the Refinery District.

Aaron Witzke was among the locals seeing Crunch Fitness on social media. He was looking for a gym, he said. However, as time passed, it didn’t seem like the site would be ready by early 2024 like he’d expected, based on advertising. He found another gym.

Crunch Fitness announced via social media it would open May 31. The date came and went, and the doors stayed shut. One Winnipegger told the Free Press they signed up in January — the club was collecting $1 deposits — but cancelled in spring due to the “bungled” opening.

Crunch Fitness turned off comments on its Instagram posts.

“They’ve been non-responsive for many consumers,” said Sean MacDonald, a University of Manitoba business professor, adding he’s heard it’s hard for customers to reach Crunch.

Crunch Fitness has corresponded with its members via email, Foley said. The company recently sent an update to enrolled Manitobans, saying it fell behind on schedule and has had hiccups.

“We know you’ve been patiently waiting for your club to open and, trust us, we have been, too,” the email reads. “We want you to know that we are powering ahead like we’re gearing up for a super-set.”

Recipients were assured they wouldn’t be billed until the club has opened and they’ve had 30 free days of workouts.

Crunch Fitness didn’t detail its construction and supply chain delays. It’s creating a new small group training area and upgrading its studio, flooring and lighting, Crunch Fitness Canada’s chief operating officer Sharon Johnny wrote in a statement.

On Monday, the City of Winnipeg issued a permit for Crunch to demolish partition walls, construct a new floor and install wall mirrors, among other things. Permitting wasn’t an issue, Foley said.

“They’re going into a very intense area of the city,” MacDonald noted.

He and a cohort of his business students counted upwards of three gyms nearby — Altea Winnipeg, GoodLife Fitness and Oxygen Yoga and Fitness are among the alternatives.

Planet Fitness has “striking” similarities to Crunch Fitness, MacDonald added. Both have low-cost, high-volume models.

“We really want to attract all people … and provide them an opportunity to go to a gym at a cost point and service point that’s affordable,” Foley said.