SINGAPORE — With hundreds of gym-goers left in the lurch following the abrupt closure of True Fitness and True Yoga, rival operators across Singapore are wrestling to capture a slice of the pie.
Over the weekend, competing fitness brands have announced incentives for customers of True Group — which operates True Fitness, True Yoga and TFX, as well as Yoga Edition — to make the switch, with perks ranging from sign-up fee waivers to free classes.
Several branches of Anytime Fitness took to Instagram on Sept 12 to advertise a gym membership sign-up promotion priced from $99 per month, with True Fitness, True Yoga and TFX members entitled to a waiver of the first month’s membership fee.
“When one door closes, 163+ purple doors open,” they quipped in a post, in a reference to its number of gyms islandwide.
Similarly, Snap Fitness branches in Potong Pasir, Buangkok and West Mall have called for gym-goers to make “the true switch”.
In Instagram posts on Sept 12, the outlets offered to waive the sign-up fee and membership fees for the first 30 days for affected True Fitness members.
Meanwhile, at REVL Training’s Potong Pasir outlet, free classes are offered to those affected.
“We’re genuinely sad to hear about the closure of True Fitness. A gym is never just a place to work out. For so many people, it becomes part of our routine, our confidence, our friendships, and our community,” it said in an Instagram post on Sept 12.
Likewise, hybrid fitness gym NOVA Training is offering True Fitness members a complimentary class, it said on Instagram on Sept 13.
Muay Champ Fitness — which conducts classes on Muay Thai, pilates and boxing, among others — is also offering two weeks of free coached training to True Fitness customers. The fitness centre is also allowing a one-to-one membership credit match, where True Fitness members can convert their remaining credits to Muay Champ Fitness credits.
“Your gym may be closing, but your fitness journey doesn’t have to,” Muay Champ Fitness said in an Instagram post on Sept 12.
The Loyang, One North and Bugis studios of fitness franchise Body Fit Training (BFT) are also among those looking to lure new customers.
In Instagram posts on Sept 12, the Loyang and One North outlets said they would offer two weeks of free coached training and a membership credit match to True Fitness customers. On Sept 13, BFT Bugis said it would also offer True Fitness members the same value in unused credits at its outlet.
“The sudden closure of True Fitness has left many members without a place to train and disrupted routines that took months or even years to build,” it said in its post.
“If you are an affected True Fitness member, come train with us and keep moving forward.”
True Fitness and True Yoga, as well as affiliated fitness brands TFX and Yoga Edition, ceased operations in Singapore after their Hong Kong parent company Kontafarma declared on Sept 10 that it is winding up the businesses owing to market competition and cost pressures. Combined, the brands operated seven outlets in Singapore.
Customers told The Straits Times that they were not informed of the closures, and are now left in the dark on whether they will be refunded for their unused membership.
As at Sept 11, customers had reported losses of more than $609,000, according to Consumers Association of Singapore president Melvin Yong.
In a statement on Sept 12, the Singapore Fitness Alliance (SFA) said it was collaborating with the National Instructors and Coaches Association and NTUC’s Employment and Employability Institute to help more than 200 affected True Group employees and freelancers find new employment.
SFA president Sean Tan said in an update on the evening of Sept 13 that 32 businesses or companies — most of which are from the fitness or wellness industry — have expressed interest in hiring those affected, and called the response “phenomenal”.
ST has contacted True Fitness, True Yoga, NTUC and the Ministry of Manpower for more information on the closures.
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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.
