We take time to explain the benefits of our programmes and help members see it as a small investment with a long-term pay-off

How did it all begin?
I started out as a body builder which led to me becoming a personal trainer at David Lloyd. From there I became a self-employed personal trainer at Fitness First and then moved to a boutique PT studio. By 2012, when I was 23, I hit the ceiling – I was doing 45 or 50 sessions a week and couldn't earn any more money. So I decided to find a studio for myself, which is when I stumbled across Fitness Worx Kenilworth.

Nine months later a gym in nearby Warwick went into liquidation and the owners approached me to buy it. Since then Fitness Worx has grown organically and is entirely self-funded, with each new site funding the next one. In December we opened our ninth site, in Rugby.

My Dad, Rich Gibson, who’s a building contractor by trade joined me in the business early on to do all the fit-outs and my brother, Matt Gibson, is head of operations.

What’s your USP?
We offer serious training in an approachable and inclusive environment.

We teach our members to train properly and support them in getting results and we also have a strong focus on retention. Our speciality is our personal transformation programmes that have been written by me and the team, are tailored to the individuals’ goals and are progressive. This is what transforms a 40-year-old woman who’s nervous about coming to the gym into a loyal member who knows exactly what she’s doing.

If a piece of equipment has been asked for by members four or five times then we’ll buy it

Programmes cost an average of £300 a month for two individual sessions a week. We do health metrics such as body fat at the start, middle and end. Programmes get results and also build a love of training and integrate new members into the community.

From the one-to-one sessions they can graduate to the small group training lifting classes on the gym floor, which further strengthens friendships. We’ve recently introduced Baby Worx, a class for new mums who can bring their babies while they get back in shape, and due to member demand we have become a Hyrox affiliate.

We’re also big on community events, sometimes they’re sporting challenges, such as going to a Hyrox competition or the Fitness Worx Games. Or it might be something social, or an excursion such as hiking Snowdon. Membership of each site is between 800 and 1000 and we really care about all of them. Our staff are expected to get to know, understand and help all of our members.

How do you overcome the cost barrier for the personal transformation programmes?
Cost can definitely be a barrier, but more and more people are now making their health and wellbeing a priority. We take the time to explain the benefits of our programmes and help them see it as a small investment with a long-term payoff.

Our goal is to teach clients the fundamentals so they can confidently achieve their goals on their own, long after the programme ends. We often compare it to learning to drive: once you’ve passed your test, you have the skills to drive for life. It’s the same with training – once you understand what to do and why, you can train effectively forever.

We’ve introduced Baby Worx, a class for new mums who can bring their babies while they get back in shape

We also offer a shorter option called the Kickstart, starting from £200, which includes personal training, access to the gym and classes. In the first month the trainer teaches all the key basics of training at our gyms. It also gives clients a chance to regularly check in with a trainer, so if they get stuck in the future they already have that relationship and support in place.

Does everyone new to the gym need this level of personal guidance?
We’ve found that if we can support someone through those first four weeks and help them feel comfortable in a Fitness Worx gym, we can often keep them for 12 months or more. Most novice gym-goers don’t quit because they don’t want to train – they quit because they feel lost, intimidated, or unsure of what they’re doing.

That’s a real shame, because everyone should feel safe and welcome in a gym. Training can bring so much satisfaction and confidence, but people often leave simply because they don’t understand how to train or how to use the equipment properly.

The gym can feel like a scary place at first, but if you give it a bit of time and build your confidence in that environment it can be incredible. You can achieve life-changing results and meet new friends along the way.

That’s why retention is so important to us. It’s not just about training plans – it’s about coaches making new members feel welcome, supported and educated. If you educate and guide new members properly, they’re far more likely to become long-term clients. That’s how you build a real community.

How do you choose your locations? 
Our goal was to dominate the Midlands in the UK. We look for fast-growing towns with a young demographic, for example Leamington Spa, which has a lot of professionals who commute to London. Ideally the population is 60,000 to 70,000. Rugby is a bit smaller but it’s one of the fastest growing towns in the area, with a lot of new-build homes which bring a younger demographic who are interested in fitness. With the pre-sale we hit 500 members in 15 minutes.

How have you kept the quality high?
We’ve got a strong head office team. Along with myself and my brother, we have Chris Bryniarski the sales director, Joe Gray, the full-time videographer who’s in charge of marketing, and Gemma West looks after the admin.

We move our most experienced managers from a thriving site to a new site when they open and put them on a bonus scheme, so the more their site grows, the more money they earn. All our PTs are also employed on a full-time salary with a bonus structure.

All our staff are expected to get to know, understand and help all of our members

When we open a new site, Matt, Chris and I take it in turns being there until we've managed to put across our values and ethos to the trainers. Then we have meetings every Tuesday and site visits twice a week.

What trends are you excited by?
If you had asked me that seven months ago, I would have said none because trends come and go, but I've recently responded to several trends following member requests.

We became a Hyrox affiliate because members were asking for it. We already ran a hybrid class, but everyone wanted the real thing. We’re introducing saunas because I believe in their benefits for health, longevity and wellbeing. And we’ve started implementing glute zones into our new sites, and will also be introducing them into some of the bigger sites. They’re popular and can feel like a safe space for women.

We have feedback boxes at every site and read them each week, as well as doing regular polls on Instagram of what people are looking for. If a piece of gym equipment has been asked for four or five times then we’ll buy it.

What are your goals? 
Five years ago we said we wanted to get up to 10 sites by the end of 2026. We're now at nine and we'll do our 10th early next year.

Training can bring so much satisfaction and confidence

Longer term I’m aiming for 25 sites. We've probably got three or four more around here – Birmingham, Solihull, Daventry, Northampton and then Birmingham City Centre, maybe up to Nottingham. I’d like to go all the way from Manchester to Bristol and would love to have a gym in London.

Will you ever franchise?
I tried it at two sites and they both closed. I hated it. It felt as though I was giving away something that we work very hard on to someone who cares more about a machine than he does about a member.