From hero to zero - how the US fell out of love with Aussie gym chain F45

The Australian gym chain that once-dominated has been sent packing in its latest fail in a spectacular fall from grace.

Australian-founded fitness chain F45 Training will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) tomorrow, marking another chapter in its spectacular decline.

F45 was founded in Sydney’s Paddington where its first gym was opened by Adam Gilchrist (not the cricketer) and Rob Deutsch in 2012, before expanding into the US in 2015.

In 2019, Hollywood actor Mark Wahlberg’s investment firm and another investor, FOD Capital bought a minority stake in the business.

Mr Deutsch sold his stake for an estimated US$145 million (A$224 million) before the company listed on the NYSE in July 2021.

Mark Wahlberg and F45 Founder and CEO Adam Gilchrist on the NYSE trading floor when the company listed. Picture: Noam Galai/Getty Images/F45 Training.

At that time, its shares were valued at $US16 ($A24.75) and it had a total valuation of US$1.4 billion (A$2.17 billion) but its shares closed yesterday at just US$0.047 (A$0.08), giving the business a total value of a meagre US$3.85 million (A$5.96 million).

The business has been plagued by revenue reporting and accounting errors that ultimately saw Mr Gilchrist depart as CEO in July 2022 along with other key executives and directors.

In a statement the NYSE said: “In the opinion of the exchange, the company’s common stock is no longer suitable for continued listing and trading on the NYSE”.

Mark Wahlberg with F45 co-founder Rob Deutsch, who sold up before the company listed. Picture: Instagram / F45 Training.

It comes after F45 was notified that it was in breach of NYSE listing rules because it was behind in filing its financial accounts and because its share price had traded below US$1 for more than 30 consecutive days.

F45, which is well-known for its high intensity interval training (HIIT) classes, operates under a franchise model and has over 2,000 studios in more that 60 countries globally.

David Beckham took F45 to court for a global ambassador deal gonewrong. Picture: Supplied.

In Australia, where there are nearly 500 F45 gyms, multiple gyms have gone bust this year while dozens more are up for sale.

Mr Wahlberg remains on the F45 board and is the company’s chief brand officer.

It also attracted a raft of other celebrities, spending up big on endorcement deals with the likes of David Beckhan, Greg Norman and Magic Johnson.

But both Mr Beckham and Mr Norman subsequently sued F45 alleging that the company had failed to pay them US$15 million (A$23 million) owed in return for promoting the brand.