One question I would have for you is if you've been to a Snap Fitness during "peak" hours, 5pm to 7pm Monday through Thursday? I would definitely check it out on a Monday between 5pm to 7pm because that is the busiest time I have found for any gym. I go to a Ballys and their peak hours are pretty busy but there is still cardio equipment available and weight machines available. If I go at other times, it is a lot less busy which is something I like. I go to Ballys and remain a member because my dues are really cheap (~$8/month) and there is no way I can get that price anywhere else. Also, my membership is nationwide so I can go to any Ballys, no matter where I'm at or no matter where I move to.

I think the advantage of Snap Fitness would be that you aren't under a contract. Also, some people may like to belong to a smaller gym. As I said previously, I used to go to a woman's only gym that was small and nice. They had classes, they had clean towels for us to use and they had a decent amount of cardio and weights. I ended up switching to Ballys because even though I liked the small gym, I wanted a gym with nationwide presence as well as the Ballys I joined had a pool, more classes and a bigger weight section.

Of course I'm in a different situation now where I have a pretty decent home gym. I have some free weights, I have an elliptical and not much need to go to Ballys. Also my current Ballys kind of sucks. The weight section is small, there is no pool and they don't maintain their cardio machines properly. I have considered joining another gym nearby and I get discounts through my company but my reasoning for not doing so is if I want to go to a gym, then I should just go to the gym that I belong to.

I looked at the model that they have on their site, which is the 1500 sq foot facility and was disappointed. I would love to have access to a small, convenient, 24-hour facility, but would probably not use one with that set up.

Unless, I am missing something in the diagram. It is basically a hotel fitness center setup. A circuit of machines, some dumbells, and a smith.

I would like to see a dedicated squat rack and Also, while there are som machines that I do find useful, such as an assisted dip/pullup station, and high low-pulleys for pulldowns, cable crunches, rows, etc, they appear to be missing from that setup. Perhaps I missed them or perhaps they are in the larger models only.

Pam, all things being equal, I would probably choose the new big box gym. It would have a place to drop my kiddies if I had to use their dc, and the security of being manned, and I guess safety in crowds. Yes, I'm scared of the boogie-man and always expect the worst. Even your own neighborhood people are capable of flipping out, so being up the street from my home -- I've just seen too much weird stuff around here I guess. Sorry.... But maybe a Fitness2Gether thing would be differentiated enough that it would draw business. Small, but then not trying to be a gym, more of a boutique experience.

Depalma: If you scroll down on the website you can see what the bigger 2400 and 3200 square foot facilities look like, which are similar to the ones we would own. I agree that the 1500 facility doesn't have that much. One thing our gym would NOT have is tanning beds. I'm opposed to selling people something that is so bad for their health (my mom died from melanoma, I've had a melanoma) so no way am I going to get invovled with that. I think they should be bannded, but that's another thread. That could put us at a disadvantage in the marketplace as tanning beds are so popular.

Thanks for the response, Fran. Yes, I can see how child care would be a definite plus since you have kids. Actually, I probably shouldn't have posed the question the way I do because a Snap would never be located on teh same corner of a busy intersection as a big box. They are usually closer to residential areas and trying to make convenience their big thing, where you don't have to navigate a busy parking lot, you can just pull up to the door and go in. Oh, and they do have reciprocity with snaps in other parts of the country, so if you're traveling you could still go to the gym. Oh, and month-to-month is a big plus too. No long contracts to sign.

Pam

How could I miss the larger versions!?

They look a little better. I still don't see the cable station although I could still be missing that, I do see the assisted pullup/dip station as well as a vertical knee raise, unassisted station, so that's good and a few more freeweight benches to go along with the sole rack.


I could care less about the showers and the tanning bed, so I would prefer a franchise who used that space for another power rack or two, but I could definitely see myself using a facility like one of the larger models. It's better than my home gym and far better than the hotel fitness center by my work.

my apologies....I sorted the threads in reverse and accidentally posted in one!