Technogym is helping Odyssey Health Club launch new gym floor formats that enhance the member experience

Odyssey Health Club’s Stevenage site has been home to a club since the 1970s, but the venue you'll find there today has been thoughtfully developed to offer the true health club experience.

Ian Riches, club director at Odyssey Health Club, tells us how the vision for the business has been brought to life.

“Odyssey Health Club was launched in the late 90s, and I came on board in 2004 to help consolidate the business to focus on the core elements of a health club,” he says. “Although we have a gym and group exercise classes, we’re not just a gym – we offer leisure, relaxation, food, and the spa, which is a huge part of the business.

"It was important that we offer a true health club experience by creating a social environment to differentiate us from other leisure facilities.”

Enhancing the member experience
Last year Riches thought it was time to modernise the gym floor offering to enhance the total customer journey.

Once he started to look at the digital experiences on offer, Ian sought the guidance and support of Technogym and soon discovered how new innovative formats and a change in layout can create more engagement on the gym floor.

“Technogym gives us expert advice on design, layout, and on how to get the most out of the equipment and digital," he explains, “They’re interested in understanding what we need – we feed them ideas, and they give us great advice.”

With the help of Technogym, Odyssey has changed the gym layout to improve uptake of gym floor classes, and to increase staff and member engagement.

“We run small group sessions using the Technogym Skillbike, Skillrun, and Skillrow Classes," says Riches. “The Uptake of group exercise has increased significantly. Having central areas to run classes helps us engage with all members. Having the equipment in the middle of the gym has brought different people into the group element, because they can see what is going on and feel encouraged to have a go.”

Reaching different demographics
Odyssey Health Club has two distinct types of members: what Riches calls the day time and the evening members. He explains how the Technogym digital solutions helped Odyssey connect with all types of members.

“Since installing the new zones we decided to change the way we deliver our inductions, focusing on really showing people what the Skill Line equipment can do,” he says.

“Technogym Skill Line is very different, so we run workshops where we educate members on each element of the equipment, including its features and benefits. Uptake has been great, and feedback shows people really appreciate knowing just how much they can do on the equipment.”

Offering gym floor classes focusing on a specific product is appealing to a wider variety of member. “For example,” says Riches, “we ran summer Skillbike classes which replicated Tour de France hill climbs. These were led by cyclists, and brought in a new group of customers who would usually prefer to exercise outside. We've never had the ability to do this before.”

Pleasing the crowd
The feedback on Odyssey’s recent upgrades show that they continue to strengthen the health club brand.

“We have great communication with our members,” says Riches. “We’ll always question what we do. The quality of our customer experience drives our commercial decisions. Ultimately, we want to be a great health club where people get results, enjoy their visits, and improve their health.”

“We combine listening to our members with watching what’s developing in the industry. We make sure new purchases are future-proofed so they will still deliver value when we make inevitable changes to our gym and studios.

“We never sit still, and with support from Technogym, we know we’ll always offer the best health club experience.”

As Odyssey has discovered, changing the layout of a gym’s space can revolutionise the offering and transform customer engagement, instructor input and the entire member journey.

Partnership with Technogym
This round of investment is the latest in a long relationship between Odyssey Health Club and Technogym.

“We come back to Technogym not just because they develop market-leading equipment, but because of their support and training,” says Riches.