FORMERLY PE OWNED
24 Hour Fitness
Includes 24Hour Fitness, 24 Hr Fitness
gym chain · San Ramon, CA
- PE Firm
- AEA Investors
- Year Acquired
- 2014
AEA Investors loaded it with $1.8 billion in debt. The workout was the bankruptcy filing.
What Happened
- AEA Investors and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan bought 24 Hour Fitness in 2014 and loaded it with $1.8 billion in debt
- Filed Chapter 11 in June 2020 and permanently closed 130+ gyms — over a quarter of its ~445 locations
- Shrank from 445 locations to 286; workforce reduced by approximately 60% during restructuring
- Eliminated $1.2 billion in debt by handing ownership to creditors including Sculptor Capital and Monarch Alternative Capital
The Damage Done
- 134 gyms permanently closed overnight — members showed up to locked doors with no refund and no notice in many cases
- 42 closures in California alone, 26 in Texas, 13 in Colorado — entire metro areas lost their nearest location
- Members who'd prepaid annual memberships were left fighting for refunds — filing claims and waiting months with no guarantee they'd see a dime back
- Annual renewal fees doubled or tripled after bankruptcy, breaking promises to customers who'd locked in fixed rates at sign-up