Exclusive: 24 Hour Fitness sold as gym "pioneer" Mark Mastrov returns
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Raghavan Dads, 93, teaches a "Mind Body" yoga class at 24 Hour Fitness on Oct. 15 in Santa Monica, California. Photo: Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
24 Hour Fitness founder Mark Mastrov and private equity firm LongRange Capital have agreed to buy the gym chain he founded and sold more than 20 years ago.
Why it matters: The fitness industry — which has returned to stability after a bruising period during the pandemic — is now dealing with shifting consumer preferences and the effects of weight-loss drugs.
Driving the news: Mastrov, who left 24 Hour Fitness in 2008 after selling it three years earlier, is returning as owner with plans to grow the brand after it shrunk following that 2005 sale.
- 24 Hour Fitness went from about 420 locations at the time to some 240 today, mostly concentrated in the western U.S., having nearly gone out of business during the pandemic. The company currently has about 7,000 employees.
- Majority owners Monarch Alternative Capital, Sculptor Capital Management and Keyframe Capital Partners are selling the chain after helping it get back on its feet following its bankruptcy in 2020.
- The sale price wasn't immediately disclosed.
The big picture: Mastrov has earned a reputation in the industry as "one of the pioneers of the modern gym movement," per Athletech News.
- After leaving 24 Hour Fitness, Mastrov acquired Crunch Fitness in 2009 and helped build that brand into a national powerhouse, expanding it from a handful of locations to 550 when it was sold in 2025.
Zoom in: Mastrov will work with 24 Hour Fitness CEO Karl Sanft on a growth trajectory.
- They said in a joint interview that the deal provides the capital to help the company complete additional club renovations and open new locations.
- Sanft said the company has designs on new premium amenities. Those could include options like cold plunges and massage rooms, Mastrov added.
State of play: The deal comes amid shifting user preferences and the effects of GLP-1 medications, as exercisers increasingly favor strength training over cardio.
- This includes weight-loss drug users, who often need to counterbalance the effects of their medications by rebuilding muscle.
- "I know so many people that have gone through the GLP-1 program, and almost all of them I meet with — they've lost a lot of body weight — have said, 'Look, I've got to get into the gym,'" Mastrov tells Axios.
- While there is some debate over whether GLP-1 users will work out more or less, Sanft said he views it as an opportunity.
The intrigue: Sanft — who joined 24 Hour Fitness as COO in 2019 and became CEO in 2022 — helped the company rebuild after bankruptcy during a challenging period for the fitness industry.
- Sanft will remain as CEO, while Mastrov will become executive chair.
What we're watching: Mastrov has not ruled out franchising.
- Crunch Fitness thrived with a heavily franchised model, but 24 Hour Fitness owns all of its locations.
- "Obviously I have a tremendous amount of experience in franchising, but we haven't decided whether this brand makes sense to franchise yet or not," Mastrov said. "But if we do, I know there'd be a lot of interest. So we'll talk about it at the board level with Karl and I, and see if we think it makes sense in the future."
