South Africa’s health and fitness industry brings in the highest revenue in the world. This is, obviously, a great business to be in if you’re in South Africa.
Even though this is a huge industry with a lot of opportunities for business, you will also be facing a lot of competition. You will need to think carefully about what is it that you are providing to your customers if you want to keep generating a profit.
What you should offer
From gyms to nutrition apps, the health and fitness industry has multiple aspects that entrepreneurs should consider if they are going into this sector.
You should consider what your strengths are so that you can play to those in the business that you are running. As well as your strengths, you should consider what it is that your customers need.
In a market as big as this one, you should identify a problem that needs solving and then create the best possible solution to that problem.
Fitness trends
There are a lot of major trends that are happening in the South African fitness industry. Busy modern lives and the schedules that accompany these are certainly driving some of these trends.
For example, High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), has become very popular as the same kind of fitness results are achieved in a shorter period of time. This way, people are able to fit their workouts around their busy schedules.
Group training has also become more popular and most people aren’t satisfied with their gym or fitness centre simply offering gym equipment for them to work out on. Most gyms now offer a range of classes from Yoga to Boxing.
There are several fitness training groups that are opting to take advantage of South Africa’s open spaces and good climate by providing outdoor fitness classes and activities.
These outdoor fitness classes can also be provided at a greatly reduced cost because there is no rent to be paid for expensive studios. This is helpful if you are considering appealing to the lower end of the market or to those who are not ready to pay huge amounts of money for gym memberships.
Payment structures
There is a traditional view of gym fees as being associated with lengthy contracts, however, this is no longer necessarily the case.
Due to the competition in this sector, businesses are, instead, focusing on providing an experience that customers will not want to leave. It has also become important to allow customers to try before they buy.
Giving customers a taste of what you have to offer is important in an industry that has so much to offer and can be intimidating to many people. Getting people to come in and try what it is you have to offer and offering them something you are proud of is the best way to make a dent in this market.
Other avenues
Gyms and fitness classes are only one aspect of this industry. Nutrition has also become a booming business with blogs, websites and apps providing service and content to users.
This aspect of the industry has made fitness part of the tech world with fitness classes also being offered online.
Creating a following and building this type of business can be difficult but, like with a gym, if you choose the right niche and work at solving a problem, you can market your business successfully.
