DLL acquires The Park Club and boosts its premium Harbour Club brand with Kensington makeover

David Lloyd Leisure (DLL) has acquired The Park Club – one of the most exclusive health clubs in London – and spent £5.5m (US$7.1m, €6.3m) transforming its Kensington site into a 'Harbour Club'.

Following its acquisition of the club, DLL will plough £8m (US$10.3m, €9.2m) into its refurbishment with the intention of making it “west London’s leading health and racquet club”.

The Park Club previously offered a range of activities, from swimming and tennis, to yoga and spa treatment.

Separately, DLL's Kensington club has been refurbished as a premium Harbour Club facility – the company's luxury brand. It is the third Harbour Club opened by DLL after fellow west London sites Notting Hill and Chelsea.

DLL recently completed the acquisition of 14 Virgin Active clubs, although a further two clubs that were originally part of the deal were handed back to Virgin after the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) expressed concerns.

However, the acquisition takes the number of clubs owned by DLL up to 109 and chief executive Glenn Earlam said both moves the company’s “ambitious commitment to growth” and making DLL “the number one health and fitness brand in the whole of Europe”.

“An organisation like DLL with such ambitious growth and development plans depends upon the skill and dedication of so many people working on projects from identifying and developing new sites to acquiring and refurbishing existing clubs and to training of club teams to deliver the skills and levels of service that DLL is known for,” he added.