City Fitness’s Center City Location Will Have a … Co-Working Space?
A few weeks ago, we told you guys about City Fitness’s plans to open a 40,000-square-foot fitness club at 18th Street and JFK Boulevard in Center City, which they’re calling City Fitness Center City West. Obviously, 40,000 square feet is a LOT of space, and marketing director Tom Wingert mentioned they’d be filling it with all sorts of good stuff aside from gym equipment, including retail offerings. But one thing we weren’t expecting to see on that list? A co-working space. So I was surprised when, this morning, I got a press release from City Fitness saying that, yes, among perks like executive locker rooms and high-end cardio and strength-training equipment, the new fitness club will also feature “a fully equipped co-working space — the first of its kind amongst Philadelphia’s fitness clubs.”
So, why a co-working space nestled inside of a sweaty gym? Well, as Wingert tells us, “One of the things that there has been SOME success with elsewhere in the fitness industry has been setting up workspaces (wifi, hot desks, coffee) for members to post up before/after their workout.” So they’re trying it out.
In his eyes, the 1,000-square-foot co-working space, which will only be open to members of City Fitness and will feature work-friendly amenities like soundproofed phone booths and communal desks with power outlets — you know, the stuff of normal co-working spaces — is just another way for City Fitness to accommodate the professionals who will inevitably, given the number of offices surrounded by the gym, make up a huge portion of the Center City West location’s members. (If you’re wondering when, exactly, this fitness club is opening, you’ve got a bit of a wait: It’s slated to open late 2017 or early 2018.)
Wingert went on to say that, back when he was a consultant, he would’ve appreciated having a space to shoot out a few emails in between his sweat sessions and meetings without having to find a coffee shop to hunker down at. This got me thinking about non-gym-equipment perks I’d like to see at my imaginary gym. My first thought: A blow-dry bar. City Fitness, take note.
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