Jeffrey Young is the Managing Director of Allegra Strategies, a strategic research consultancy, pioneering research in the health and wellness industry for over 15 years. He is also the CEO and Co-Founder of Balance Inc, the group who own Balance […]
Andy Lewis is one of a rare breed of sales and marketing specialist whose experience falls evenly across both disciplines. As the Export Sales Director for Maclaren’s Buggies, Andy took sales in the US from £100,000 to £6 million, before […]
With a background in IT systems, marketing and data analysis, Guy Griffiths from GGFit is regarded as one of the industry’s leading experts in maximising retention rates for health clubs through data mining/processes and targeted communications. We met with Guy […]
Sam Theyers is an experienced fitness director with two decades global industry experience. Most recently Head of Fitness at Anytime Fitness Australia, Sam has been instrumental in the development and rollout of new products and services which increase participation and […]
Joel Burgess is the founder of Nutrifix, an exciting start-up that has recently successfully raised £150k through Crowdcuve the world’s leading crowdfunding website. With so many apps on the market, it’s become more difficult than ever to differentiate your product and […]
Rory McGown is the founder of the award winning GYMetrix who are credited with transforming the industry’s approach to kit selection and floor layout. By tracking the usage of each piece of kit, GYMetrix ensure that operators make decisions based […]
Richard Moore is the Head of eCommerce for USN UK, responsible for their growth and development online. Prior to joining USN, Richard performed the same role for Claire’s Accessories and Cloggs, providing him with tremendous insight into what makes a […]
Adrian Worsley is a Regional Manager with more than a decade of experience. Currently with Bannatyne, he oversees their largest region with 13 sites and 40,000 members. Most recently he has spearheaded the development of a functional class series, created […]
Rachel Chatham is the Marketing Manager of Be:FIT London. As well as being the UK’s only health & fitness festival for women, Be:FIT also organise regular small events and supper clubs in partnership with many of London’s most popular gyms […]
Young entrepreneur and Microsoft Apprentice of the Year, Josh Uwadiae, is the founder of WeGym, an online service that is on a mission to make personal training accessible to all. For the majority, personal training is still perceived as a […]
Alina Cooper is regarded as one of the most entrepreneurial young minds in the UK fitness sector, and for good reason. Alongside her Director roles at Matuta Consulting, BaseFit and Six3Nine, Alina is also the Co-Founder and Managing Director of […]
Kayleigh O’Connor is the Director of Operations for inbound.co.uk, one of the agencies behind the Fitness Network. Alongside this role Kayleigh is also a professional actress, the founder of Good Grief, a keen crossfitter and fitness blogger. It was this […]
Robin Karn is the National Sales Manager for Harlands Group. Having started in the industry managing a number of private gyms and then as a regional sales manager for Holmes Place, there is little Robin hasn’t experienced when it comes […]
Rob Johnson is the managing director and founder of Future Fit Training, the ukactive Training Provider of the Year, 2016. He built the business out of a desire to deliver better qualified personal trainers and fitness instructors to the industry […]
Jochen Michaelis is the MD UK of eGym, provider of state of the art gym equipment, powered by software that adjusts resistance based on the user’s strength and objectives. Workout data is automatically synchronised with the eGym platform and is […]
Jenny Patrickson is the Managing Director of Active IQ, one of the UK’s leading awarding organisations for the leisure and wellbeing sector. With over 25 years of experience in the industry, a reputation for strategic business planning and a deep […]
Ed Yates is a Digital Strategist for Xercise4Less. With an extensive agency background, Ed has considerable experience in all aspects of digital marketing, from SEO and link building to content production and conversion rate optimisation. Since joining Xercise4Less Ed has […]
Owen Bowling is the founder and CEO of CrankIt Fitness, Australia’s leading functional training product and education company. With a background in both gymnastics, circus and elite level sports (both playing and coaching), Owen has a unique experience in human […]
Nicola Joyce is a leading copywriter in the fitness industry. She has worked with some of the industry’s most respected brands, such as Speedo, Berghaus, Bulk Powders, Escape Fitness and Holland & Barrett, as well as writing for large media […]
Michael Clark is the Business Development Director for Swimming Nature, the largest independent provider of personalised swimming tuition in the UK. Michael has over 20 years of experience within the sector, which include senior positions at Living Well and Leisure […]
A gold medalist in the 2012 Olympics, Zac Purchase MBE has founded ZacsFitness.com, a boutique group fitness facility in the small town of Marlow. Having only opened their studio in November, within weeks they were already up to 7 classes […]
Andrew Slack and Kirstie Gascoyne are the directors of MoreNiche, a leading affiliate marketing agency with a growing presence in the fitness market. Andrew started making money from the web in his teens, selling his first website at 16 for […]
Paul Ferris is the Managing Director of Speedflex, a company that offers high intensity circuit training “with a difference”. In 2011 Paul set up the business with Sage Software founder Graham Wylie and former Newcastle United and England Captain Alan […]
Charlotte James is the Marketing Manager for ELLESPORT, fashion forward activewear brand. Charlotte is a fashion marketing professional with experience working on brands including Lipsy, Debenhams and House of Fraser. She has been instrumental in developing the ecommerce side of […]
Dan Holt is the Managing Director of Inbound.co.uk, a full service digital agency specialising in digital brand strategy, content marketing, SEO and social media. Introduction You have probably heard about the rise of mobile technology and what it means for […]
Duncan Jefford is a Regional Director with Everyone Active, a leading leisure operator managing 150 leisure facilities nationwide. Over the last decade Duncan has been instrumental in the company’s extensive growth, increasing the number of operational sites five-fold and growing […]
Dr. Gil Blander is internationally recognised for his research in the basic biology of ageing and translating research discoveries into new ways of detecting and preventing age-related conditions. He leads a team of biology, nutrition & exercise physiology experts, and […]
Joe Welstead and Charles Matthews are the founders of Motion Nutrition, a leading nutrition brand specialising in organic sports supplements. Despite operating in an increasingly saturated market, they have been able to carve out a strong identity for the brand […]
Quentin Auberger is UK Director for Sport Heroes Group, a collection of websites that rewards runners, cyclists and skiers with discounts every time they participate in their sport. Despite only being founded in 2014, they have already developed a highly […]
David Williamson leads the UK health and fitness accounts for Imagesound, who provide visual and audio solutions to over 22,000 sites in 139 countries. We met with David to learn about how gyms and clubs can use sound to enhance […]
Liz Dickinson is the CEO of Mio Global, creators of strapless EKG accurate heart rate monitor watches and activity fitness trackers to help you improve your performance and health. As the first person in the world to figure out how […]
Alister Rollins is the founder and CEO of MoveGB, a free online platform that enables fitness operators to offer their services to a network of 100,000s of active people in the UK. Think ‘Netflix’ for physical fitness outlets. Prior to […]
Vishal Lodhia is the founder of Fitness Buddy 24/7. Having launched only 7 months ago, Fitness Buddy 24/7 has hundreds of trainers signed up nationwide onto their TripAdvisor-style service allowing users to be able to find the best rated nearby […]
We spoke to Stretch Rayner, Founder and Trainer at Momentum – CrossFit Hackney, one of London’s leading CrossFit boxes, who transformed Runner’s World’s, Kerry McCarthy into a lean machine. CrossFit Hackney affiliated the London Box Battles, who partner with Fresh […]
Rob Smyth is the Commercial Director of British Military Fitness (BMF), With over 400 classes in more than 140 locations across the UK, BMF is regarded by many as the leading provider of outdoor fitness. Prior to joining BMF, Rob […]
Paul Bowman is the CEO of Wexer Virtual, a global provider of digital fitness solutions, present in more than 30 countries across 5 continents. With over 100% growth in the past year and installations in the majority of the top […]
Zoom Media is one of the world’s leading providers of advertising and promotion for the health and fitness sector. In the UK alone it has 4000 screens across 700 venues and works in association with all the leading health and fitness chains […]
Three years ago University friends Greg Duggan and Damien Kennedy set out on a mission to bring protein to the masses by creating Wheyhey, the world’s first healthy, high protein ice cream. Today the business is taking on some of […]
Andy Gill is the MD of Ethics Leisure, a leading fitness consultancy with specific expertise in gym floor design. Over the past 20 years Andy has advised more than 200 facilities on equipment procurement, mix and layout. We spoke to […]
Becky Fletcher, Senior Digital Writer at NetDoctor, is regarded as one of the UK’s leading fitness journalists, having worked with the likes of Health & Fitness, The Express, and Cosmopolitan. NetDoctor is the UK’s independent health website, which aims to […]
James Poole is the co-founder of Advent Running, a rapidly growing free running group that has recently been nominated for the best online community at The Running Awards, 2016. James is also a triathlon coach, an ultra runner and a member of the 2016 […]
Fiona McAuslan is the Managing Editor of FitPro, the world’s largest network of fitness professionals. With a background in journalism for publications such as the Guardian newspaper, The Telegraph Group, The Independent and The Financial Times, Fiona took over the […]
Rob Beale is the leading consultant to multi-site fitness operators. He is currently advising Next Gen on product and member services in Australasia. He has spent the last decade in senior roles with Holmes Place, Virgin Active and David Lloyd […]
Joanne Mathews is Founder and Managing Director of Ten Health and Fitness, widely regarded as the UK’s leading chain for dynamic pilates. The brand is highly regarded for its holistic approach to health, exercise and rehabilitation, and for its unique […]
Sarah Scott has been pole dancing for the last 8 years and is a master trainer for Xpert Pole and Aerial Fitness. Her many accolades include 1st place for Miss Pole Dance UK, 2012, and 2nd place in the 2012 […]
Christina Eccles is the Editor of Workout Magazine, one of the UK’s top industry magazines. Christina has been a journalist for 10 years and has been the editor at Workout Magazine for the past three, so she certainly knows a […]
Jacqueline Hooton is the founder of WIFE (Women in Fitness Empowerment) Events. She created the first ever all-female conference in March 2015 to champion professional women working in health and fitness and provide a platform for their voices to be […]
Award winning fitness expert and author of The High Fat Diet, Zana Morris is founder of The Library Gym, The Little Library and The Clock, a collection of premium boutique gyms around London. We met with Zana to learn why […]
Gemma Newton is the Managing Director of the UK Blog Awards with a legal background and over 10 years’ experience in the events and marketing sector. Gemma sat on the idea of developing the UK Blog Awards for over 2 […]
Apprentice star Katie Bulmer Cooke has become one of the leading figures in the UK personal training industry. Her many awards and accolades include UK Personal Trainer of the Year 2012 and UK Fitness Professional of the Year 2012. We […]
Lesley Aitken is one of the fitness industry’s leading experts in lead generation and conversion. With over 25 years experience in sales, Lesley now works internationally across many brands, including the likes of Matrix Fitness, and speaks at regular industry […]
Dan Craddock is one of the leading marketing strategists in sports nutrition. After filling key marketing roles at Coca Cola, Philips and Heinz, Dan then played a central role in the Maximuscle rebrand to MaxiNutrition before moving onto Marketing Director […]
Having launched nearly 50 separate health clubs, Neil Haughin of Impact Fitness is regarded as one of the UK’s leading experts in gym and health club pre-sales, with huge experience in everything from sales systems and offline media to SEO […]
David Monkhouse is a Trustee and Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity. He has an MBA in International Sports Management from Loughborough and is joint Director of Leisure-net Solutions. Working with the […]
Michael Clark heads up Customer Relationships and Business Development for e-commerce fitness specialists Gym-Partners. Over 25 years Michael has held numerous senior positions with the likes of Leisure Connection (1Life), Livingwell and Fitness First as well as having created and […]
Paul Donegan is Business Manager with Kinetica Sports, one of the UK and Ireland’s leading sports nutrition brands. We met with Paul to learn about how brands are having to respond to the growing but increasingly fragmented market, and how […]
Since founding Your Personal Training in 2008, Joe Oliver’s team have been shortlisted for numerous awards including employer and supplier of the year. They now work with over 400 gyms and over 700 personal trainers, making them the largest brand […]
Chris Walton leads the personal training team at Embody Fitness, London’s luxury, elite performance gym. Over the past 15 years Chris has trained professional athletes and high profile celebrities, as well as being a published author and accomplished speaker. We […]
Adam Rossiter is the co-founder and Managing Director of BULK POWDERS, one of the largest supplement companies in the UK. 10 years ago Adam and his co-founder Elliot Dawes used a £6,000 loan to create the supplements brand. This year […]
In the last 5 years, Cheryl Hersey has been part of the duo who have built Action PR into one of the fitness industry’s leading PR agencies. They put their success down to a complete understanding of the industry, and […]
Adrian Hon is one of the world’s leading online and alternate reality game designers, and has spoken at venues including TED, Google, GDC, Nordic Game and the Montreal Games Summit. Adrian previously studied neuroscience at the University of Cambridge, the […]
John Halls is the Managing Director of Physical Company Ltd, one of the UK’s fastest growing gym equipment company with 55% growth since John joined in 2007. We met with John to learn how he’d achieved this growth and, in […]
At the age of just 18 years old, Michael Hughes created premium fitness clothing brand Pursue Fitness. In the following two years Michael has built the business into one of the UK’s leading fitness clothing brands with a rapidly growing customer […]
With a background in IT systems, marketing and data analysis, Guy Griffiths from GGFit is regarded as one of the industry’s leading experts in maximising retention rates for health clubs through data mining/processes and targeted communications. We met with Guy […]
Lee Cain is the founder of HFE, one of the UK’s foremost fitness industry training providers. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and has a First Class Honours Degree in Sport and Exercise Science. For over 15 years […]
James Alexander-Ellis is a WBFF Pro Muscle Model, a SCI-MX & Pursue Fitness Athlete, and a Personal Trainer in west London. James also offers online coaching for people training for fitness competitions and sells training products online. He also has […]
Dr Paul Bedford of Retention Guru is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading authorities on gym membership retention. With a master’s degree in exercise and health behaviours and a PHD from the London Sports Institute into adherence and […]
David Minton is widely regarded as one of the leading authorities on fitness trends within the UK, and for good reason. Having founded the Leisure Database Company 30 years ago, David has collected more insight into consumer and operator trends […]
Rory McGown is the founder of the award winning GYMetrix who are credited with transforming the industry’s approach to kit selection and floor layout. By tracking the usage of each piece of kit, GYMetrix ensure that operators make decisions based […]
Andy Lewis is the Commercial Director of USN. The brand was founded by Mountain Biking enthusiast Albé Geldenhuys in South Africa in 1999 and has since become one of the world’s most prominent supplement brands, with a strong and increasing […]
Jon Johnston is the Managing Director of Matrix Fitness UK, one of the UK’s leading suppliers of fitness equipment. He has helped grow the commercial division of the business from £3m to over £31m in under 8 years. Jon has […]
Ben Coomber is a qualified Nutritionist and the owner of online nutrition and education company Body Type Nutrition. He also owns and operates a number of other businesses including a transdermal technology business, a weight loss coaching programme for women […]
Kimberly Wyatt is a former member of one of the most successful girl bands of all time: The Pussycat Dolls. She has been a dancer since the age of 7, and also taught dance for many of those years. Her […]
Dan Edwardes is a founder and director of Parkour Generations, and the co-creator of two global instructor certifications: A.D.A.P.T™ and Movement Fitness Specialist™. Over the past decade Parkour has gone from being a very underground sport to one that is […]
Rachel Brice is Head of Business for Sports Nutrition at Omega Pharma UK & Ireland. Omega Pharma owns Etixx Sports Nutrition, a leading sports nutrition company set up in 2009. Their sports nutrition products are used by over 82,000 different […]
Neil Harmsworth and Jamie Ward are the co-founders of PayasUgym, an online aggregator which currently features over 2300 gyms across the UK. PayasUgym customers can view reviews and other information about these gyms on the PayasUgym website, and use these […]
Niki Rein is the founder of barrecore, a series of movements that uses a ballet barre, someone’s body weight and isometric exercises to stretch every muscle group in the body. After moving to London in 2009, Niki spotted a gap […]
After a career as player, coach and manager in rugby league, Callum Irving took a position with Sport England working on projects to increase participation in sport. Since that time Callum has developed a boutique consultancy, gorillaBC, that’s renowned for […]
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson is the chair of the board for ukactive, an organisation set up to get more people, more active, more often. She is widely regarded as one of the UK’s most successful disabled athletes; during her career she […]
Ben Davidson is the founder of Total Diet Food. Before setting up the company, Ben ran a Recruitment business in London’s West End. Frustrated with the lack of readily available healthy options, he set up the business with his wife […]
Paul Slater and Dave Stidolph are the co-founders of Fit Gurus, an online personal training platform offering people unrestricted access to tough, no-frills workouts designed by their vetted PT’s, and in turn creating a more scalable revenue stream for those […]
Jonathan Woodward and Nick Luder are the management team of Edge Cycle, an indoor cycling studio based in Holborn, London. The studio has been described as London’s most innovative cycle studio, offering a wide variety of combination-based workouts alongside the […]
Jared Williams is the founder of Fresh Fitness Food, a London-based business offering tailored pre-prepared food packages that are delivered daily. After working as a lawyer for 4 years, Jared set up Fresh Fitness Food in 2012 as a result […]
Giles Dean and James Balfour are the co-founders of 1Rebel, a no-contract, ‘pay-as-you-train’ group training boutique based in the heart of London. 1Rebel has cultivated an incredibly strong brand and a large contingent of brand advocates, and in September they […]
Karl Brandt is the CEO of Mealtek, one of the UK’s leading personalised meal delivery services with up to 2000 meals distributed a day. We met with Karl to learn the key drivers behind this rapidly emerging market and the […]
Don Saladino is a celebrity trainer and co-founder of Drive 495, a golf-specific gym based in Manhattan. He started the club with his brother Joe, a former professional golfer, in 2004. As well as being featured in the likes of […]
Christina Albe is the Marketing Director of BOOM Cycle, “A high energy, bike-based, music focused fitness experience.” In 2011 American Model Hilary Gilbert partnered with Robert Rowland to set up BOOM Cycle. Their Shoreditch site was London’s first indoor cycling […]
Former international swimmers, Lee Forster and Charlie Turner, have long felt that the supplements market is in need of a serious change of direction. In a market dominated by hardcore messaging, they believe that the growing mainstream audience really craves […]
John Treharne pioneered the Budget Gym model with The Gym Group back in 2007. They now have 62 gyms live with have a further 18 due to launch this year. However, far from approaching saturation, John believes the budget market […]
After retiring from an international rugby career which saw him represent both England and the British Lions, Phil Greening turned his attention to professional coaching and has since been involved with London Welsh, England 7’s, Scotland 7’s and has been […]
James Brant is the Social Media Manager for David Lloyd Leisure. James oversees the strategy and implementation for each of their social media platforms as well as the new David Lloyd blog. We met with James to discover how David […]
For the past 12 years Mel Spooner has worked with the biggest fitness brands in the industry, including TRX, TriggerPoint, PTA Global as well as the top 100 health clubs. In a career which has encompassed domestic roles, EMEA and […]
Mark Anthony, also known as the ‘body genius’, is not only one of the UK’s most notorious celebrity personal trainers but also the owner of Rush Fitness, a new chain of “premium budget” gyms around London. We met with Mark […]
Andy Tee is the Managing Director of Simply Gym, a rapidly expanding chain of premium budget gyms. With 9 profitable sites active and plans for another 4 over the next 12 months, Simply Gym have developed a highly effective budget […]
Having worked for over a decade with the England Rugby team as well as UK Athletics, Leicester Tigers, Saracens, Man City, Tottenham and The England Women’s Football team, Matt Lovell is widely regarded as one of the top nutritionists in […]
As Chairman of PTA Global’s Certification Board and Fitness Manager at 24 Hour Fitness, Christopher Ybanez is well known for his strong leadership style. With over 12,000 members and 44,000 workouts a month in his gym, Christopher needs to know […]
Dan Duran is a leading expert on behaviour based training, but his training background actually began in a very different field. Dan first spent almost two decades within state law enforcement where he rose rapidly through the ranks to hold […]
Graham Bertrand is the owner of Physique Sports, the UK’s largest provider of remanufactured gym equipment, and advisor to many of the fastest growing budget gyms in the UK. We met with Graham to learn what separates the best budget […]
With over 150 gyms using his member subscription software, Jack Malin, the founder and MD of membr.com, has some strong views on how the market is embracing marketing technology and where major improvements still need to be made. Jack founded […]
Scott Borthwick started White Collar Boxing London in 2010, since which time over a thousand office workers have switched the comfort of their desks for the fear and adrenaline of the boxing ring. With over 10 large events a year, […]