A lot of clubs have started thinking outside the box when it comes to engaging members. Some, like The Rush Fitness, have produced an octagon stage in the center of their gyms for members to get a circuit-type workout with a trainer. Other clubs, like Mountainside Fitness have given members an indoor version of a favorite Arizona outdoor activity — mountain climbing.
“We initially did it as a differentiator,” said Billy Malkovich, the CEO of Mountainside Fitness, a chain throughout Arizona. “We wanted to signal to our customers that we recognize there are many ways to get in shape that don’t involve the traditional treadmill and selectorized equipment offerings.”
The climbing wall is hard to miss in the facility. Members are reminded daily that they don’t have to come to Mountainside for the typical exercise routine. They can arrive and look forward to something completely different from their normal routine.
“All of our walls are setup with auto belays so very little training or supervision is required,” Malkovich said. Over the last year Mountainside’s climbing walls have remained dormant due to a recall of the auto belays. However, recently the walls have reopened with the addition of new auto belays.
Malkovich said the club couldn’t justify staffing the wall for manual belays or the potential liability. Although, the walls serve as a “valuable amenity in the same way that TRX, basketball, yoga or any other means by which a customer may reach their fitness goals,” he said.
“A rockwall can entertain six customers at one time,” he said. “It takes six treadmills to ‘entertain’ the same number of customers at the time. Factor in the square footage occupied by each product as well as the cost of each product and you will find that on a cost-per-hour basis, a rock wall occupies the same cost space as does most other fixed equipment in our facility.”
Originally, Mountainside used the climbing wall as another revenue generator, but that didn’t fly with the members. “We do not sell a la carte memberships, so members had a difficult time understanding why they had to pay to use one specific piece of equipment and not another,” Malkovich said. “We agreed with them, and now treat it as we do a treadmill, the basketball court or any other piece of equipment in the facility.”
By Tyler Montgomery
