Latest news
Art Deco cinema becomes £8m gym
Vistastar Leisure, the company which owns the licence to operate Gold's Gym in the UK, is set to open its third club in Harrow, London on May 15.
The £8m health and fitness club is in a refurbished 1930s cinema, and retains the listed building's original Wurlitzer organ and ornate Art Deco ceiling.
'Most people wouldn't touch a building like this due restoration costs,' said Steve Rees, operations director for Gold's Gym. 'But if you accept the cost, you end up with something that everyone goes into and says, wow.'
The 35,000sq ft club includes a tiered, five-floor gym and pool plus a spa, sauna and chilled 'igloo' room complete with crushed ice for cooling down after a workout. There is also a double level aerobics studio, a café, créche and a hair and beauty salon.
Chief executive at Vistastar Leisure, Karl Sandhu, is hoping to secure the master franchise for Gold's Gym in the UK, to enable expansion into Europe. 'We have an additional two sites planned for Britain this year, and I intend to start and overseas rollout programme next year,' he said. 'We also hope to franchise out the Gold's Gym brand in the UK'