Healthy Fitness Center

UMUC HEALTHY FITNESS CENTER Health fitness

Stage 1

UR UMUC HEALTHY FITNESS CENTER Health fitness

Introduction

In 1980, the UR UMUC Healthy Fitness Center was opened in a growing area of a bedroom community, by Tom Ellington, a UMUC Business Management graduate after he retired from the US Marine Corps. It has an exercise room with many different kinds of specialized equipment, rooms for various exercise and martial arts classes, and locker rooms with showers for men and women. In addition, there is a small snack area where members can buy bottled water, soda, fruit juices and snacks, with tables and chairs where people can relax. There are several part time staff members that man the counter where people check in; they also sell memberships and collect payments. There are trained exercise room attendants to assist members, and a maintenance staff to ensure cleanliness of the facility and minor maintenance of the equipment.

Industry Analysis:

UR UMUC healthy fitness center is operating in the health and fitness industry which has a potential growth. The industry is fragmented, with the top four firms accounting for only 13 percent of industry sales. There are many small fitness centers, dance studios, gymnasiums, ice skating rinks, and similar facilities, which decreases industry concentration. Barriers to entry are high at the high-end of the market (full-service fitness centers) due to the high cost of real estate and equipment, and low at the lower-end of the market (smaller fitness clubs and dance studios), due to the plentiful nature of rental space available in strip malls.

Other structural characteristics of the industry include the following:

The Aging of the Population .Approximately 25 percent of fitness club members are 55 years old or older, as are 23 percent of all Americans. As time goes on, older Americans will make up even a larger percentage of the population, while those aged 25–44 will decline in numbers. As a result of these trends, the...