Increasing Awareness About Personal Fitness, Propelling Online Fitness Market

The increasing penetration of the internet in major and minor cities, rising internet speeds, increasing awareness about personal fitness, and increasing penetration of smart devices, such as fitness trackers and wearables, are the key driving factors for the global online fitness market. Due to the aforementioned factors, the industry is projected to showcase a significant growth rate during the forecast period.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic provided a huge business opportunity to online fitness platforms. Fitness centers, such as gyms, fitness clubs, and swimming pools, were closed due to government restrictions and lockdowns, and people were forced to stay inside their houses. Hence, more people adopted virtual fitness solutions as they eliminated the need for going out and allowed people to work out in their homes.

Solo Category To Witness Higher Growth Rate

The market is divided into group and solo, based on session type. Of these, the solo category will show a higher growth rate in the forecast period because such sessions give people the flexibility to attend classes according to their convenience. Additionally, the time slot can be managed according to the schedule of individuals. Furthermore, solo sessions allow trainers to concentrate on individuals and train them according to their abilities and needs. Furthermore, since the trainer has to focus on many people at the same time in group sessions, they are not preferred by many.

The subscription-based model is expected to become more popular in the forecast period, based on revenue model,. This model has many benefits, such as unlimited access to services that come within the package, thus providing a large catalog of services to choose from, and the freedom to discontinue the services if the user is not satisfied. Furthermore, since there is no limit on how much content one can consume, it provides a good balance between the services and the amount paid, which offers a higher value for money.

Geographically, North America was the largest market for online fitness classes in 2020. This is mainly attributed to the high awareness of people in the region regarding their health, high disposable income, which enables people to pay for the subscriptions, and high internet penetration with high speeds.

However, Asia-Pacific (APAC) is expected to be the fastest-growing online fitness market during the forecast period. This will primarily be due to the large population, increasing smartphone usage, and rising internet penetration in developing countries, such as India and China.

Mergers & Acquisitions and Creation of Platforms Are Most-Effective Strategic Measures

The online fitness market is fragmented in nature, and the players have involved in mergers and acquisitions to stay ahead.

For instance, in May 2020, HealthAssure, a primary healthcare aggregator, acquired FitMeIn, an on-demand fitness subscription service with more than 2,500 fitness centers and coaches.

Similarly, in November 2019, Alphabet Inc. announced that it will be acquiring Fitbit Inc. for $2 billion.

Major players operating in the global online fitness market include Charter Fitness Inc., FitnessOnDemand, GoodLife, Navigate Wellbeing Solutions, Fit n Fast, Les Mills International Ltd., MoveGB, Peerfit Inc., Sworkit, Fitness First, Viva Leisure, and Wellbeats Inc.