US-based health club company Crunch Franchise has revealed ambitious plans to expand its portfolio of franchised clubs from 12 to 300 in the next five years.

Crunch Franchise is the franchised, low cost club division of Crunch Fitness, which is owned by New Evolution Ventures (NEV). NEV was founded by fitness entrepreneurs Mark Mastrov and Jim Rowley in 2008.

Speaking to Health Club Management Ben Midgley, president of Crunch Franchise, said the company had already secured deals for 100 more clubs in the US and Australia - and added that while the company was looking at the opportunities in other countries, the US would remain its priority for the immediate future.

"We're certainly working on other international markets - I'm not going to talk about which ones at this point - but at the moment we're really concentrating on growth in the US."

"You have to go into new markets at the right time and most importantly with the right operator. For us it's not about selling as fast as you can."

To read the full interview with Ben Midgley, click here for Health Club Management February 2012, pp.34