Lockdown refunds are the new clause for gym memberships

With hardly any inquires for virtual classes, gym owners are coming with innovative ways to enhance sales.

The surge in Covid-19 cases has forced gyms to shut shop yet again, with many fitness centres struggling to survive in this bleak period. In an attempt to break even, gym owners are putting forth a host of offers to gain membership, one such being a refund clause, in case of imposition of any curbs or a lockdown.

From agreeing to refund money for the days the gym is shut to heavy discounts, gym owners are trying various ways to gain membership. (Photo: Vipin Kumar/HT)

“We’ve got no bookings at all this new year, virtual or physical. We are requesting people to book memberships and assuring them that we will refund the money for the period of the lockdown, when they couldn’t visit the gym. We are also giving major discounts so that we get some bookings at least and can pay our fixed expenses,” says Tavdeep Singh from Deep Gym in South Extension I.

Ankur Sehgal from Strength Gym in Tilak Nagar also has a set of similar offers in place. “We’ve lowered prices by more than half and have promised to refund the money during the lockdown, when we would be holding virtual classes,” he says.

With curbs being imposed on an industry that’s already struggling to make ends meet, the situation is now worse than ever. “We have no funds left. Aisi situation ho gayi hai ki now, after two waves, we have no capacity to survive. Kisi ko bandh nai karna apna kaam, lekin ab kya karein nahi samajh aa raha. We are even open to having discussions with people where we are negotiating membership prices and also refunding money for the time they can’t come to the gym,” says Kapil Chand from Health 2 Offer Gym in Ashok Vihar, hoping the refund clause will help bring customers. “Paise vapis dene ka promise karenge toh farak toh zaroor padega, plus humein bhi acha lagega. Humein customer ka nuksaan nahi karana,” he adds.

And that’s not all. Gym owners are coming up with a wide variety of virtual workout options for their customers to choose from. “To enhance sales, we have started an online group course twice a day, wherein we give aerobics and Bhangra workout sessions for one hour,” shares Singh.

Author tweets @anjuri

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