UK gym owners can increase revenue by diversifying beyond membership fees. The most effective strategies include upselling personal training, expanding class packages, monetising floor space, and — increasingly — turning digital screens into passive advertising income. With the UK fitness industry valued at £5.9bn according to the Leisure DB State of the UK Fitness Industry Report 2024, the opportunity to capture more revenue per member is significant.
The UK fitness sector has fully recovered from the pandemic and then some. According to the Leisure DB State of the UK Fitness Industry Report 2024, there are now approximately 7,009 gym sites across the UK, with total membership reaching 10.7 million people. Competition is intense — which means operators who rely solely on monthly memberships are leaving money on the table.
Rising energy costs and commercial rent pressure are compressing margins. That's exactly why ancillary revenue — income beyond the membership fee — has become a strategic priority for operators of all sizes, from independent studios to national chains.
Ancillary revenue refers to income generated from services and products beyond core membership. For gyms, the most proven lines include personal training, paid classes, nutrition products, café or supplement retail, and corporate hire.
Personal training is typically the highest-margin ancillary product available to a gym. When PT is actively promoted in-club — through screen campaigns, staff referrals, and new member onboarding — conversion rates improve measurably. The key is visibility: members need to see the offer at the right moment, ideally mid-session when motivation is high.
Bundled class passes and pay-per-session options create revenue from members who might otherwise use only the gym floor. Promoting limited-availability classes on in-gym screens or via QR codes at the point of checkout drives impulse bookings — and reduces the no-show rate that eats into instructor margins.
Café counters, vending machines, and branded retail (shakers, resistance bands, branded apparel) all contribute to average revenue per member. According to the Leisure DB 2024 report, operators who actively market F&B and retail in-club see a meaningful lift in per-visit spend compared to those who rely on passive product placement alone.
Digital screens installed across a gym can generate revenue in two distinct ways: by promoting the gym's own services (upsell content) and by displaying paid advertising from third-party brands (ad monetisation).
Gym members spend between 45 and 90 minutes per visit. That dwell time is significantly higher than almost any other out-of-home (OOH) environment — which is precisely why advertisers pay a premium for gym-based digital inventory.
Digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising is the digital evolution of traditional poster and billboard advertising, delivered via networked screens in physical venues. UK OOH advertising revenue reached approximately £1.4bn in 2024, with DOOH accounting for around 66% of that total — up roughly 10% year-on-year, according to Outsmart, the UK's OOH trade body.
IAB UK forecasts that DOOH will represent 75% of the total OOH ad market by 2027. For gym operators, this means advertiser demand for in-venue screen inventory is rising — and the window to capture premium rates is open now.
Platforms like Framen allow gym operators to connect their existing or newly installed screens to a managed advertising marketplace. Framen provides and installs the hardware at no upfront cost, handles all scheduling, content delivery, and reporting, and splits ad revenue with the venue.
The gym simply hosts the screens. There's no technical overhead, no content management burden, and no capital expenditure. According to Framen's Screen Manager documentation, the platform enables venues to "Connect. Entertain. Earn." — combining content management with a programmatic ad marketplace.
Framen already works with major UK operators including David Lloyd Clubs, demonstrating the model scales from premium national chains down to independent studios. Brands actively buying gym inventory through the Framen network include Adidas, Premier Protein, Trade Republic, and BNP Paribas — all targeting the health-conscious, higher-disposable-income demographic that gym audiences represent.
Content on gym screens should serve two purposes: drive engagement (and retention) and generate revenue. Effective content types include:
According to StackAdapt's research on DOOH performance, digital out-of-home campaigns consistently produce above-average brand recall and measurable offline actions — making gym screens attractive to both national advertisers and local SMEs looking for a targeted, high-engagement channel.
Not all revenue streams are equal when it comes to the time and cost required to activate them. The table below compares the main options across four practical dimensions.
| Revenue Stream | Upfront Effort | Ongoing Management | Revenue Potential | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal training upsell | Medium | Medium | High | QR-linked PT intro offers on screens |
| Paid class bundles | Low | Low | Medium | Class pass promotion via digital screen |
| Retail / F&B | Medium | Medium | Medium | Supplement counter + café |
| Corporate / room hire | Medium | Low | Medium | Off-peak studio hire |
| DOOH ad monetisation (e.g. Framen) | Zero CapEx | Minimal (managed) | Passive / scalable | National brand campaigns on gym screens |
Programmatic DOOH is the automated buying and selling of screen advertising inventory in real time. Rather than manually negotiating with advertisers, a gym connected to a programmatic platform receives bids automatically — filling screen time with paid content around the clock.
According to ExchangeWire, programmatic DOOH adoption in the UK is projected to increase to 36% within the next 18 months (from a 2024 baseline). For gym operators, this means more advertisers competing for their inventory — which drives up the price per ad play over time.
The practical approach for most UK gym operators is to use a managed platform like Framen, which combines programmatic demand with curated premium campaigns. This avoids the complexity of self-managing inventory while still capturing the upside of a growing ad market.
Yes. Platforms like Framen operate on a revenue-share model with no upfront hardware cost, making the model accessible for independent operators — not just large chains. The key requirement is a sufficient number of active members to make the audience valuable to advertisers.
Not if the content is curated correctly. Ads placed through networks like Framen are selected to match the fitness context — brands like Adidas, nutrition companies, and financial services targeting active adults. Members typically find this relevant rather than intrusive, especially when screen time is balanced with useful gym content.
Earnings vary by gym size, footfall, screen placement, and the ad marketplace used. Framen's model is based on revenue share from ad plays — higher-traffic gyms in urban locations with premium demographics typically command higher CPMs. Framen's best practice documentation provides guidance on maximising earnings through screen placement and content scheduling.
Connecting to a managed DOOH network (zero CapEx, fully managed) is the lowest-friction option. Beyond that, promoting existing services — PT, classes, retail — more actively via in-gym screens or digital communication delivers quick wins without adding new product lines.
Yes. With 10.7 million members and a £5.9bn market value as of 2024 (Leisure DB), the UK fitness market is at record levels. But membership fee growth is constrained by competition from budget operators. Ancillary revenue and passive income from advertising are the realistic growth levers available to most operators today.
