Boxing-based workout studios have exploded with expansion, and new brands in this fitness category are popping up with strong national franchising goals. This boutique fitness concept works well in all types of retail spaces — lifestyle centers, power centers, street-front retail and the ground floor of mixed-use spaces. Boxing fitness studios have even successfully taken up space in former office buildings on retail-heavy streets. Boxing workouts appeal to all demographics in all locations, from downtown urban hipsters to upscale suburban mothers to college students. Part of the appeal of a boxing workout is that it not only conditions and strengthens the whole body but is a great outlet for releasing any sort of pent-up stress or rage in a safe way. The younger Generation Z audience is especially interested in boxing as a fitness option, as the sport has been touted by such popular influencers such as Logan Paul and Gigi Hadid. Look for TITLE Boxing Club, Jabz Boxing, Mayweather Boxing + Fitness, Rumble Boxing and Bash Boxing to all take advantage of the national boxing craze by expanding their footprint throughout the country.
TITLE Boxing Club, a U.S. franchise with 155 units that was purchased in January by BoxUnion — a similar boxing fitness brand with three locations in Los Angeles — expects robust expansion, with a goal of opening about 65 new units per year over the next five years, starting in 2022. Markets targeted will include the West and the South, especially Georgia and North Carolina, in addition to Illinois, Indiana, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Connecticut. TITLE Boxing Club seeks inline or end cap space that averages 3,500 s.f. In retail street-front units (ideally within five miles of a college), grocery-anchored power centers, suburban lifestyle centers (within 15 to 20 miles of major metros), and the ground floor of urban mixed-use buildings with office or residential components. Preferred co-tenants include health-minded grocers, such as Sprouts Farmers Market, vitamin store brands, including The Vitamin Shoppe, and other errand-heavy destinations, such as The UPS Store. The brand’s upcoming units are expected to retain the TITLE Boxing Club name and will benefit from BoxUnion’s digital subscription app services that feature live workouts multiple times a day. The future TITLE Boxing Clubs will also feature workouts more closely related to what BoxUnion offers, which include weight lifting, stretching and circuit training in addition to boxing.
Jabz Boxing expects to open up to 150 new units over the next three years, and its projections include at least 15 new units in 2022, 30 new units in 2023, and about 50 to 55 new units in 2024. Areas targeted for growth include Texas, Colorado, Florida and the Northeast, especially New York. This will be followed by the brand eyeing space in the Western coastal states, as well as Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan. The Jabz Boxing franchise ideally seeks 2,500- to 3,500-s.f. inline or end cap units, in strip malls, upscale shopping centers, grocery-anchored power centers, outdoor lifestyle center malls and retail street-front spaces. The preferred demographics are fitness enthusiasts and high-achieving executives between the ages of 20 and 45. Jabz had previously been primarily geared to female audiences but is now marketing itself as inclusive of all sexes; the brand still looks for space in high-growth suburban metros near offices. Preferred co-tenants include complementary high-end health, wellness and boutique fitness brands, such as Massage Envy, Orangetheory Fitness, F45, SoulCycle, Whole Foods Market and Lululemon Athletica.
Mayweather Boxing + Fitness expects to open approximately 50 new units per year over the next two to three years. Growth will be geared in all markets, with a concentration in California, especially Sacramento and West Los Angeles, as well as the Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic region, with a focus on New Jersey and throughout the Washington, D.C./Maryland/Virginia regions, in addition to continued growth in the Southeast, primarily Central and South Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama. Look for the franchise to zero in on suburban regions in the future, up to 40 miles outside of major metropolitan metros. Preferred sites are inline or end cap spaces in the 2,000- to 4,000-s.f. range that are in neighborhood grocery-anchored power centers, strip centers, lifestyle centers, standalone units — including office building space on a busy retail street — as well as ground-floor mixed-use spaces within luxury residential multifamily developments or offices.
The franchise’s ideal co-tenants include health, fitness and wellness brands, such as Orangetheory Fitness, Road Runner Sports and Bath & Body Works, as well as popular food and beverage brands, such as Starbucks and Chipotle. Mayweather Boxing + Fitness is a group exercise, conceived of by the former professional boxer, Floyd Mayweather, that incorporates high-intensity cardio conditioning and power boxing workouts. The studios also offer virtual reality 12-week programs in which Floyd Mayweather will coach the customers.
The Rumble Boxing brand was purchased by Xponential Fitness in March for $300M, and Rumble expects to benefit from the company’s boutique fitness franchising expertise, as Xponential Fitness is also responsible for the expansion success of CycleBar, YogaSix and Pure Barre, to name a few. Expect growth to be approximately 30 to 50 new units per year in all metro markets that have a mix of residential and business traffic, especially in areas with a more diverse population. New units will be opening in metros such as Las Vegas, Denver, Tempe and Scottsdale, Ariz., Charlotte, N.C., Nashville, Tenn., Oklahoma City, Irvine, Calif., Hoboken, N.J., and Anchorage, Alaska. Expect the suburbs of Washington, D.C., such as Bethesda and Northern Virginia, to also be targeted. Rumble prefers space in the 4,000- to 8,500-s.f. range in densely populated upscale urban neighborhoods, in both retail street-front units and the ground floor of mixed-use buildings. Space can also be in multi-story standalone office buildings on a busy street near Class A multifamily properties and retail. Close proximity to universities or community colleges is a plus. Co-tenants should be higher end brands popular with Gen Z and millennials, including Warby Parker, Lush, Sephora, Shake Shack and Lululemon Athletica. Rumble, which has celebrity investors such as Justin Bieber and Sylvester Stallone, is known for its 45-minute high-energy cardio and strength building group boxing fitness classes that incorporate water-filled boxing bags, and that utilize elements such as DJ-music dance-like workouts. Studios include locker rooms and saunas.
Bash Boxing expects to open between five and 10 new units per year over the next three years. The brand, which anticipates opening its first franchised unit in Pittsburgh by 2022, will continue its nationwide franchising expansion after first targeting the Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia regions, followed by the major metros along the upper and lower East Coast. Bash Boxing will zero in on well-populated markets that are on an upward density trend and that are within commuting distance to major business centers. Potential space should be in a zoning area that contains a blend of residential and professional traffic. Retail space should be between 2,500 and 4,000 s.f. in freestanding, end cap or inline, in Class A upscale retail, urban and suburban shopping centers in high-traffic and highly visible areas in dense residential neighborhoods. Its core demographic is the young to middle-aged college educated professional who is into health and wellness. Ideal co-tenants would be non-competing fitness brands, such as SoulCycle, and specialty grocery stores, such as Trader Joe’s. Bash Boxing is a 45-minute group fitness high-intensity conditioning program that utilizes water-filled boxing bags, resistance bands, medicine balls, free weights and interval training.
