A health and fitness venture is going from strength to strength with OneGym owners Paul and David Pearson now looking to expand again in Redcar.
The Newton Aycliffe gym opened on Durham Way South in April 2014 – two years after its first venue, in Bishop Auckland. More than £1m has been invested in the two gyms and another £500,000 is about to be ploughed into a third establishment in Redcar.
But the Pearsons are keen to maintain their local, affordable feel to their County Durham gyms – with their members able to use both with flexible agreements available.
Paul told Aycliffe Today: “We didn’t get into this to make a quick buck, we got into this to make gym membership more accessible and offer genuine value for money.
“You need a lot of £14.99s to break even in this game – It’s very much a long-term plan for us. That is why our prices have never increased since we opened in 2012.
“People think OneGym is a big national chain, we’re actually just a couple of local hard-working brothers with a passion for health and fitness trying to build a business, and we’ve put our houses etc on the line to make it work.”
Paul has vast experience in the leisure industry, including having worked for Dragon’s Den Star Duncan Bannatyne for four years.
Paul says: “I’ve been in the industry for about 25 years and in that time I’ve seen a lot of good habits and a lot of bad ones. What we endeavour to do is keep our members at the heart of everything that we do and every decision we make.
“At OneGym, our philosophy is we do the simple things brilliantly. Our focus is based around a great space in a convenient location, a clean safe, friendly environment with state-of-the-art kit and knowledgeable on-hand fitness professionals all at a very affordable price.
“When you get those basics right, then you can build on it and start bringing in the extras like personal training and classes, but you have to get the very simple things spot on.”
There are flexible contracts available at OneGym, which start at £14.99 a month.
Paul added: “We offer a flexible, rolling monthly agreement so customers aren’t tied into a long-term contract they can’t get out of.
“We also listen to our members, so our timetables and classes aren’t set in stone. If a class isn’t working or the time isn’t right, we can chop and change to suit member demand.
“You’re not going to keep all of your members happy all of the time, but we try to keep as many of them as happy as we can. We’re aware that without our members, we don’t have a business.”
• To enquire about OneGym membership or to book a tour around the gym, call 01325 317005 or email [email protected]. Alternatively, you can find more details at www.onegymfitness.com