The Post-Pandemic Consumer

The post-pandemic consumer

A new set of post-pandemic consumer behaviours are impacting fitness operators of all shapes and sizes. Dr Paul Bedford shares the findings of new research, and offers insights into how operators might respond. 

Earlier this year, I put together a report into changing dynamics in the fitness marketplace: new post-pandemic nuances in consumer behaviour compared to pre-COVID norms.

The report was inspired by a request from one of my customers, concerned by some of the changes they were seeing and wanting to know what they could do about it. Their question: ‘Are we alone in this?’

My answer: ‘Absolutely not.’

Because – although all the headlines show club operations returning to pre-pandemic membership numbers, and great news that is – some things have nevertheless changed. And they’ve changed across the sector and around the world, with consistent themes emerging around customer usage patterns.

I’ll dive into the findings of our research in a moment, but let’s first recognise that fitness isn’t alone in this.

A universal shift

Pre-pandemic, most people were working regular hours, generally office-based, across the Monday–Friday working week. When the pandemic forced us all to work remotely, it became apparent that much of the workforce could in fact carry out their roles and responsibilities perfectly well without having to travel to a place of work. Add to that the freedom and extra hours in the day that working from home affords people and it’s little surprise that the desire to work from home for at least part of the week has remained post-pandemic.

It’s a change in behaviour that’s forced Network Rail (UK rail provider) to create new, multi-trip season tickets. That’s led to an increase in usage at WeWork’s suburban locations. And that’s driven a 400 per cent uplift in Monday–Friday visit frequency to David Lloyd’s in-club business centres.

So what else are we seeing in health clubs? Our conversations with operators, and the questionnaire-based qualitative research we conducted among 2,200+ consumers post-pandemic, shines a spotlight on the following three behaviour changes.

#1 – Sales are up, retention is down

If your sales have returned to pre-pandemic levels, but you’re still seeing gaps in your figures, this first theme will be of interest to you: it’s likely down to retention rather than needing to push even harder on your sales.

Our research shows that for the big box operators, membership longevity is typically five to seven months shorter post-pandemic than pre-pandemic. In some cases, the gap is wider still. At one of our big box club customers, the pre-pandemic member lifespan was typically 24–35 months. Post-pandemic – with no change in age groups, demographics or membership types – it’s 13–15 months.

Meanwhile, our research among 11 single-site boutique operators found that 92 per cent of customers now maintain their usage patterns for as little as two months, especially in single-discipline studios. Pilates and yoga seem to escape this shift, but elsewhere, people are moving on far more quickly. I refer to this trend as ‘fitness tourism’, whereby people go and try out new things without any intention of being a long-term customer. This brings us to our second theme…

#2 – Customers want to mix & match

Our questionnaires asked fitness consumers why, when and where they were training. Pre-pandemic, the most common answer to the latter was ‘at one specific club where I have a membership’. Post-pandemic, the answer is either ‘at two locations’ or ‘at multiple locations’.

Whether through the aggregators or via a pay-per-play approach, fitness consumers are now mixing up their workouts and the providers they use.

We’re also seeing usage trends going in opposite directions for city centre clubs versus the suburbs. In the former, visits are now concentrated into Tuesdays–Thursdays. No real surprise there given hybrid working patterns, but it means people are coming less often. Meanwhile, clubs in residential areas are seeing exponential growth in usage.

People are also staying longer on each visit as clubs become places to work in as well as work out. They are no longer just a third place, but a second: people’s place of work.

In city centres especially, it’s also possible that longer visits are being driven by customers seeking to maximise value per visit, whether they’re paying a membership or paying per visit. Which brings us to…

#3 – PAYG is the people’s choice

When you don’t use a club as frequently, your resistance to paying a monthly membership rises. Pay-as-you-go becomes your preferred model.

We’re now seeing consumers willing to pay £25 per visit rather than £50 per month, which is leading to unpredictable revenues and significant revenue gaps for clubs.

So, what’s the answer?

Sadly there’s no silver bullet. I believe these new habits are now ingrained and that, even as sales perform well, operators must build their models and forecasts around shorter memberships and a reduced total revenue per member.

However, I would like to share a few suggestions.

The first is to focus on the member experience, not just the facilities. Whenever a customer visits you, the whole experience has to be great.

The second is to understand your data and focus on what’s right for your business, rather than copying what everyone else is doing. An example: one of our customers was heavily focused on secondary revenue, until it realised that in the post-pandemic world of reduced visit frequency, there would be a far greater impact on its bottom line if it could encourage every member to come to the club just once more every month.

The third suggestion is obvious but still worth saying: where a brand has multiple locations, do consider selling ‘use any club’ memberships.

The fourth and final suggestion is to go back to basics, onboarding every new member in a way that best positions them to become a regular user. I’m talking appropriate – and, ideally, personalised – programmes and encouragement to help them establish a routine rather than ad hoc visits, in turn helping them see the value in the product they’ve purchased. 

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