AT A GLANCE
WHO:
UFC Gym
WHAT:
Branded fitness center that also
offers group fitness classes,
private mixed martial arts training
and other activities for all ages and
fitness levels
WHERE:
Headquarters in Santa Ana,
Calif.; More than 100 locations
across U.S. and in Australia
WEBSITE:
www.UFCGym.com
May 2014
| BusinessWorld | 127
organizationally feasible.
“The UFC owns the white male demographic,
but doesn’t own Asians, African-Americans,
Latins and women,” Jacobs said, “and they also
neededmore retail apparel outlets.”
The UFC subsequently partnered with Marc
Mastrov – founder of 24-Hour Fitness and owner
of several other gym-related brands – and in early
2013 purchased LA Boxing, which had been the
largest existing boxing/kickboxing gymoperation
for 15 years, with80 gyms open in23 states.
The remainder of 2013 was spent converting
those LA Boxing gyms to the new UFC label,
while keeping the same business model that
serviced the same crowd with a “get fit, not hit”
marketing theme.
“That’s where we’re at today,” Jacobs said. “We
spent all last year rebranding and we now have
more than 100 gyms open, andwe’re building two
to three a month and we’re awarding a couple of
dozen franchises a month. So we’re going to go
from 100 gyms to 500 gyms in 36 months. And
then we’re going global – Australia, Brazil,
Mexico, theU.K. This thing is going to take off.”
Most of the gyms are about 5,000 or 6,000 square
