A new flagship club is set for Finsbury Park, London
Urban Gym Group (UGG) has acquired Sparring Partners Holdings, owners of the London-based boutique gym brand Gymbox.
The move sees the exit of Gymbox CEO Marc Diaper, CFO Scott Vernon and co-founder David Cooper. UGG’s CEO Neil Randall and CFO Pascal Averdijk will now lead the gym brand, beginning with the development of a new flagship club in Finsbury Park, London. The new club will be the eleventh Gymbox gym, each offering group fitness classes and personal training.
Urban Gym Group has over 40 clubs and studios in major cities across the Netherlands under several brands, including TrainMore, Clubsportive, Renessence, BTY CLB, PILAT3S and TRIB3.
“This acquisition is testament to the incredible work our team has put into growing the brand and consistently delivering the most unique fitness and lifestyle experiences to Londoner for more than 20 years,” Diaper said. “I’d like to thank each and every team member both past and present for their contributions to the successes over the years. With over 50 years of service at Gymbox between us, the timing feels right for the exec team to exit and we wish the team at UGG all the best for the future.”
Randall noted that Gymbox is an iconic brand with a unique personality and acknowledged the leadership team.
“On behalf of all at Urban Gym Group, I would like to extend my gratitude to Marc, Scott, and David and wish them the very best for their next challenge,” Randall said.
Urban Gym Group’s deal follows several others this year: World Gym International was just acquired by World Fitness Services, Ltd, the parent company of World Gym Taiwan, U.K.-based PureGym has made a play for Blink Fitness and LA Fitness has acquired XSport Gyms.
