Life Is A Luxury: Equinox's Approach To Wellness And Fitness

Following a needed reinvention that resulted from the pandemic, there is now a seismic shift taking place in the fitness industry toward overall wellness. Whereas for decades, most gyms were seen as an outlet purely designed for physical training, individuals are now looking for a more holistic approach to their health. They’re seeking experiences that address both physical and mental well-being.

While many companies have struggled to adapt to evolving market demands and some are facing significant headwinds, at the luxury end of the market, there are companies that continue to trend set. Some of these brands have strived to create fully integrated lifestyle platforms.

A leader in the space is Equinox. The company has embraced the movement toward high-end curated longevity, wellness and a rise in the use of weight loss drugs, to create innovative new offerings. Longevity is the theme behind their new eye-popping $40,000 per year membership program, “Optimize.” At a time when some companies might be looking to attract cost-conscious members, Equinox is doubling down on its premium offering, leaning into its club moniker and going way beyond what has traditionally been offered at the neighborhood “gym”.

Equinox entered into a partnership with Function Health to create Optimize. The program integrates the highest standards in personal training with cutting-edge research and data across nutrition and regeneration. As members begin their journey, they will be provided with a recovery welcome kit, an in-depth medical and fitness assessment, one-on-one coaching focused on nutrition, sleep and fitness, massage therapy, and Function Health’s lab work analysis.

The lab work analysis is what makes this program unique. It starts with a battery of 100 biomarker tests. These tests are designed to help members and their coaches better understand how their immune system is performing, heart, kidney, and liver health, and it will look at cancer markers. Following these tests, Equinox’s performance coaches will run fitness exams and design an optimized plan with all of the data that’s been collected.

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As part of the program, each member can work with a specialist hone in on their physical and mental health and longevity. This can include a fitness trainer, a nutrition coach, sleep coach and even a massage therapist who helps members achieve peak performance.

Julia Klim, Equinox’s vice president of strategic partnerships and business development, explained the program to CNBC in a recent interview, “It’s the same as Formula One or an athlete, where you are given a team of top experts in all these different verticals, to design a program based on all the data that we collected.”

The company’s ability to anticipate where the market is headed doesn’t stop with longevity.

Having seen an uptick of clients using GLP1s, more commonly known by brand names like Ozempic, Wegovy, or Mounjaro, Equinox has also developed a program that will design workout regimens specifically for people who are experiencing or have experienced the rapid and sometimes drastic weight loss.

Part of the plan is creating targeted conditioning programs to combat adverse side effects, like losing lean muscle mass. The program also works to address the fact that most people on these weight loss drugs will not stay on them indefinitely or that people might cycle on and off them. Workout and exercise needs will change and vary based on where a client is in the cycle of these drugs and their weight loss, and Equinox coaches have been trained to address the needs of individuals depending on where they are in this journey.

Equinox was one of the first fitness brands to offer programs tailored to this group of growing consumers – many of whom can afford to pay for these drugs out of pocket and therefore fit into the brand's affluent demographic. Other fitness brands have also responded to this trend including Xponential Fitness, which acquired weight loss medical clinics in California.

Equinox approach to innovation and its loyal membership is paying off for the company. Revenue in 2023 increased 27%, membership levels have returned to early 2020 numbers and they have a pipeline of more than 25 new clubs across the country.

With such results, it would seem likely that other companies in the space may try to follow Equinox’s lead but if history is any indication, Equinox may already be onto the next big thing.