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tmactive MoveAnywhere
08 Dec 2020
"MoveAnywhere plays an important part in our package of measures to help ensure survival," says Martin Guyton, tmactive chief executive, on switching to a hybrid fitness model.
Run on behalf of Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council, a charitable not-for-profit organisation in Kent, tmactive is made up of four separate facilities and caters for around 5,000 members. Martin Guyton talks us through his need for a virtual solution and how he plans to incorporate it into his long-term strategy.
After being forced to shut their doors for the nation-wide lockdown in March, tmactive’s income dried up overnight. All direct debits were frozen and the majority of staff furloughed. Like all leisure centres and gyms across the country, tmactive took a significant financial hit.
Even since reopening in July it’s clear that things aren’t just going to bounce straight back to how they were pre-lockdown. Although regaining an impressive 75 per cent of direct debits by September with new sales coming in each month, Martin comments that a large proportion of these are younger members with older and vulnerable members more hesitant to return to centres.
"COVID-19 will change the world for some time to come. There will be a percentage of people who will not come out of that Covid fear for a year or two or more I suspect. So, we realised that but also, we understand that people are busy – they have all sorts of reasons why they can’t make it to the gym," says Martin. With the added threat of further lockdowns across the country, it became clear that it was time for a change of tack for tmactive.
That’s where MoveAnywhere comes in.
"Even after this struggle, you realise that there’s still a community out there that wants you," says Martin.
Serving the community is still a top priority for tmactive – but for this to be possible they had to alter their methods and keep an open mind as to how best to achieve this crucial community connection in these uncertain times.
Since reopening centres, tmactive has been using MoveAnywhere, Gladstone Software’s interactive livestreaming platform, to stream a selection of classes to their customers. This virtual platform has allowed them to maintain that connection with all members and provide them with an alternative to physically visiting a centre for a class.
Currently streaming about a dozen classes per week, Martin says that the ultimate aim will be to reach 20-30 classes.
And the result?
"This is a natural evolution that we probably would have found our way to, but COVID-19 has just accelerated that," Martin says.
As tmactive has found, a blended approach really is the way forward for the fitness industry – it allows operators to stay connected to customers whilst also creating the option for an additional revenue stream.
By adapting to a hybrid fitness model, class numbers can remain high. With restricted numbers in-studio due to social distancing measures, livestreaming classes overcomes this by allowing an unlimited number of virtual places.
As the only solution completely integrated with the Gladstone database, it checks for specific digital subscriptions before giving access to the platform, ensuring operators can recognise revenue from digital memberships.
Not only a handy tool to have in place in the event of further local or nation-wide lockdowns, but also extremely well suited to busy lifestyles and the increased proportion of people now working from home, MoveAnywhere provides an unparalleled flexibility for members.
tmactive’s Fitness Manager, Mike Stevens, instructing a livestreamed Born to Move class for children.
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