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Newmark’s retail research team reports that the largest fitness chains it tracked had no major closings, preserving an estimated 8.1 million to 11.8 million square feet of retail space. The report also says health and beauty businesses are expanding quickly and that landlords are increasingly treating fitness and wellness operators as traffic-driving tenants.
Fitness chains are holding their retail footprint, with no major closings among the largest gym and fitness operators tracked this year, according to a report from Newmark’s U.S. retail research team. The firm estimates that stability kept 8.1 million to 11.8 million square feet of retail space from going dark, as landlords increasingly look to fitness and wellness businesses to attract regular visits.
Newmark’s report, written by Neal Ohm and Brandon Isner, says fitness clubs, recovery studios, spas and healthy-food operators are supplying the kind of recurring foot traffic that landlords once relied on from big-box retailers. The finding describes conditions among the large retail chains Newmark tracked; it does not establish that every fitness business has avoided closures.
The report also points to rapid growth in health and beauty, a category Newmark says has nearly doubled its number of locations since 2018 and expanded at an 8.4% annual rate, faster than any other retail segment the firm tracks. Isner said the pace had reached 11.8% since 2024. He said the category was drawing foot traffic at a higher rate than fast food and grocery businesses, while longer visits could encourage customers to visit other stores and services nearby.
Newmark identifies a rise in “super-boutique” concepts: single-format gyms that combine strength training, cardio, group fitness and recovery. The report names Sweat and Tonic and Animo as examples. It attributes the sector’s appeal to lasting wellness habits formed during the pandemic, more hospitality-inspired design and consumers’ desire for community.
Why Wellness Tenants Matter to Landlords
For shopping-center owners, regular gym visits can help bring customers to a property even when they are not planning to shop. Newmark argues that longer stays and frequent visits may also support cross-visitation to neighboring businesses, giving fitness operators a role beyond filling a vacant unit.
The report links this appeal to the membership model. Recurring revenue and a community that members return to may make a business more durable than one competing solely on the price of a service, the authors say. Those are Newmark’s assessments, not a guarantee that a particular gym will remain profitable or that nearby retailers will gain sales.
The trend could shape how developers assemble retail projects. Newmark advises brands to invest in hospitality and community, and suggests landlords group complementary uses such as fitness, recovery, spas and healthy food. The idea is to create a destination where businesses can draw customers to one another rather than depend entirely on a shopping center’s existing traffic.
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Wellness Clusters Take Shape
Other industry activity reflects the co-tenancy strategy described by Newmark. Homegrown, which provides expansion capital to brick-and-mortar businesses, has identified co-tenancy as one of 11 trends it expects to affect Main Street over the coming decade. Its report describes a possible cluster of a Pilates studio, recovery lounge, skincare clinic and smoothie bar, with each business helping market the others. That is a forecast and example, not evidence that every cluster will succeed.
In Henderson, Nevada, VAC Development is converting a 10-acre office property into The Cliff, a planned $100 million open-air destination. Its first two fitness tenants are Bodyrok, a Pilates-inspired studio, and Pvolve, a low-impact strength brand. They are set to share the development with furniture and lighting retailers and food, coffee and dessert businesses.
In Manhattan’s Tribeca neighborhood, FaceGym signed a 10-year lease for about 2,400 square feet at 110 Reade Street, according to Platinum Commercial, the brokerage that represented the deal. The brokerage said the brand selected the location for its residential customer base and its proximity to boutique fitness, luxury retail and wellness businesses, including Equinox and Aire Ancient Baths.
Other projects put gyms into large retail or mixed-use spaces. Onelife Fitness plans a flagship at the former Saks Fifth Avenue space at Tysons Galleria in McLean, Virginia, with an opening planned for late 2027. The operator, which the source says has 76 locations open or in development, is also investing $24 million in a 65,000-square-foot club at Richmond’s Midtown64, a development expected to open in 2028. Plans for that club include a recovery studio, reformer Pilates, a saltwater pool, a hot tub and a cold plunge.
“The category has become a sought-after tenant for retail centers and has been growing foot traffic at a higher rate than industries such as fast food and groceries.”
— Brandon Isner, head of U.S. retail research at Newmark
Limits of the Retail Data
The report’s finding covers the largest retail chains Newmark tracked and says they recorded no major closings; it does not provide a full account of closures among smaller operators, independent gyms or all fitness businesses. The source also does not give the tracking period’s exact dates or define what Newmark counted as a major closing.
The estimated 8.1 million to 11.8 million square feet is space the firm says was kept from going dark; the source does not provide the calculation method. It is also unclear whether the growth in health and beauty will continue at the reported pace, how much of that growth comes from fitness specifically, or whether the foot traffic described leads to higher sales for neighboring tenants.
Several developments cited are plans rather than completed openings. Onelife’s Tysons Galleria flagship is planned for late 2027, while Midtown64 is expected to open in 2028. The source does not report later construction updates or confirm that those schedules have changed.
Planned Openings and Leasing
The next tangible measures will be whether announced projects reach opening and whether retailers continue to lease space to fitness and wellness operators. Onelife Fitness has set a late-2027 target for its Tysons Galleria flagship, while its Midtown64 club is tied to a development expected to open in 2028.
For landlords and operators, Newmark’s report points to continued attention to wellness clusters, recurring membership businesses and the customer experience. Further evidence about openings, closures and tenant performance will show whether the report’s picture of fitness chains as stable, traffic-generating tenants holds beyond the chains and examples it cites.
Key Questions
What did Newmark report about fitness chains?
Newmark says the largest retail chains it tracked had no major fitness or gym closings during the period covered. It estimates that this stability preserved 8.1 million to 11.8 million square feet of retail space.
Does the report say all gyms are growing?
No. The finding concerns major closings among the largest chains Newmark tracked. It does not show that every gym is expanding or provide a complete picture of independent and smaller operators.
Why are fitness and wellness tenants appealing to retail centers?
Newmark says gyms and wellness businesses can bring frequent visits and longer stays, potentially sending customers to neighboring stores and services. It also points to recurring membership revenue and community as factors that may support tenant stability.
Which fitness projects are planned?
Onelife Fitness plans a flagship at Tysons Galleria for late 2027 and a 65,000-square-foot club at Richmond’s Midtown64, a development expected to open in 2028. These are plans reported in the source, not completed openings.
Source: athletechnews.com
