Fitness Centers NAICS 713940

May 19, 2025 - Rising Labor Costs

• According to recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), labor costs were on the rise for fitness centers in March 2025. Average wages at fitness centers increased 5.9% in March 2025 year over year, reaching $21.62 an hour for nonsupervisory employees. In the past decade, average wages in fitness centers increased 59.2%, higher than the 48.6% growth in overall private nonsupervisory employee wages. Employment by fitness services grew 1.6% in March 2025 compared to a year ago. Fitness services are monitoring pricing pressures resulting from an uncertain economic environment. The Consumer Price Index for club memberships increased 5% in April 2025 compared to a year ago, per the BLS.
• Fitness centers increasing their recovery services offerings may encounter challenges with the cost of equipment, space, membership education, and consistent use, according to Club Solutions Magazine. Per Ani Oksayan, VP at Chuze Fitness, gyms can start small with foam rollers and massage guns and scale up to massage chairs and infrared machines as demand grows. Space concerns may be addressed by finding underutilized areas. For example, the Cincinnati Sports Club converted a storage closet into a cold plunge alcove. Clubs can also educate members that recovery practices should be an essential and consistent part of fitness and utilized by the average gym goer, not just athletes.

• The US fitness centers industry is projected to grow at a CAGR of 4.5% between 2025 and 2029, faster than the overall economy's projected growth, according to a forecast from Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc. Consumer confidence is expected to improve in the forecast period, which bodes well for the arts, entertainment, and recreation sector. A factor that may curb consumer spending is substantially higher tariffs on consumer goods. On a positive note, lower inflation supports a moderate increase of real disposable income by about 2% in 2025 and 1.9% in 2026. Consumer expenditure for membership clubs, sports centers, parks, theaters, and museums drives much of the revenue for the sector. While this spending dropped severely during the pandemic lockdown, recovery has gradually occurred, and real spending for membership clubs and participant sport centers saw gains of 7.8% in real spending in Q3 2024.
• New Trump administration tariffs on imports from China as well as steel and aluminum imports are expected to impact the prices of gym equipment, sports equipment, and other essential supplies used at fitness centers, according to a CBS News report. Some gym and sports equipment manufacturers may have stockpiled some materials in anticipation of the tariffs, which would allow them to hold off on price increases for a period, per Stanford professor Layna Mosely. According to Reuters, gym and sports equipment is one of the top 10 product groups hit by the steel tariffs. Fitness centers may find it more expensive to purchase new equipment or replace existing machines; gym owners face reduced profitability if they absorb the higher costs, or they may raise membership prices to cover the costs. Supply chain disruptions for fitness equipment makers may result in shortages or delays in equipment availability.