Genesis Health Clubs is growing—again.

The privately owned, Kansas-based club operator is adding eight Esporta Fitness locations to its portfolio, expanding its footprint in Kentucky and marking its entry into Arkansas and Louisiana.

The newly acquired clubs—acquired from LA Fitness parent Fitness International LLC and located in Lexington, Louisville, Little Rock, Baton Rouge and Slidell—will now operate under the Genesis Health Clubs banner, bringing the company’s total club count to 77.

The deal follows a successful 2024, when Genesis Health Clubs acquired Saw Mill Club’s two locations in Mt. Kisco, New York and The Atlantic Club’s Manasquan and Red Bank clubs in New Jersey. 

Rodney Steven, president of Genesis Health Clubs, confirmed in a LinkedIn post that the latest move will welcome 250 new employees and thousands of new members into the Genesis Family. 

“These are stunning facilities with strong teams in place, and we have big plans to elevate the member experience—upgraded equipment, expanded group fitness, top-tier personal training, and enhanced amenities,” Steven wrote. “Genesis isn’t just about working out—it’s about community, results, and delivering the best fitness experience possible. We can’t wait to make an impact in these new cities.”

Genesis Health Clubs offers members access to state-of-the-art equipment, group fitness classes, personal training, meal prep and location-dependent amenities like indoor pools, basketball courts, steam rooms, saunas, tennis and childcare.

The recent growth has also created opportunities for fitness professionals, as Genesis Health Clubs is actively seeking Regional Club Managers with multi-unit management experience, according to a LinkedIn post.

LA Fitness, under its parent company Fitness International LLC, launched the Esporta Fitness brand in 2020, using the new name to rebrand several LA Fitness locations across the U.S.

By 2022, Fitness International introduced Club Studio Fitness — a high-end, amenity-packed club concept. The brand currently has 18 locations, a handful of which are coming soon, including one in Coconut Grove, Florida, a blossoming hub for premium fitness and wellness experiences that has attracted The Well and JetSet Pilates.

Starting last year, however, Fitness International appeared to signal a phasing out of Esporta, either reverting clubs back to the LA Fitness name or closing them altogether. Following the Genesis Health Club acquisition, only three Esporta locations remain in California, Illinois and Massachusetts. LA Fitness has also shuttered some locations in recent months, including a few that were rebranded from XSport Fitness locations, which were acquired by Fitness International last July.

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Interactive Strength Inc., maker of fitness equipment under Clmbr and Forme, has struck a deal to acquire German-connected fitness and equipment company Sportstech, which sells indoor fitness equipment like the sBike Lite, sWalk Treadmill and sTread Fold.

A binding transaction agreement has been signed and the deal is expected to close in early April. Sportstech serves customers in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France and Spain.

“At Sportstech, we’re focused on a world where fitness and health are accessible to everyone and attractive to anyone,” Sportstech founder and CEO Ali Ahmad said. Ahmad founded the company in 2012 and will join the TRNR board upon closing of the deal.

“TRNR’s equipment, distribution and finance experience as well as its Nasdaq listing represent the resources our employees and customers need to grow our fitness community without sacrificing quality of experience or outcomes,” Ahmad continued. “We’re very excited to bring our mission of helping everyone achieve their fitness goals to even more people, across more markets.”

TRNR founder and CEO Trent Ward stated that the deal is a huge leap forward for both companies — one that accelerates their joint ability to serve both consumers and businesses and grow globally. Ahmad and Ward both discussed the opportunities in the health and wellness market during a fireside chat at the Connected Fitness & Health Summit.

“In Ali and Sportstech, we have the ideal partner – an experienced and successful founder of a highly complementary fitness platform who bootstrapped his way to eight figures in profitable revenue and is motivated to grow even further and faster,” Ward said. “This is a proud day for the teams from both companies and a major boost for our ability to create shareholder value.”

Last December, Interactive Strength secured exclusive distribution in Metropolitan France and French Regions with French training and equipment brand Planet Fitness SAS — a three-year agreement that will yield a minimum commitment of 162 Clmbr units for Planet Fitness SAS.

“The global health and wellness market is growing, but also fragmented,” Ward added. “There’s a significant opportunity to create shareholder value by consolidating a portfolio of quality businesses that offer a variety of equipment, training and content to different types of customers, across many markets. Sportstech is exactly that kind of business, with an experienced, sophisticated team that’s also passionate about fitness.”

Before the announcement, Interactive Strength noted that Germany is the second-largest fitness market —second only to the U.S.—and is expected to be worth an estimated $6.8 billion by 2027. In a post on its website, the company stated that international expansion is one of the key pillars of its growth strategy, highlighting that it had established a presence in France, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and the UAE in 2024.

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