The weight is over: gyms to open as limit lifted

Gyms pose limited risk of COVID-19 transmission and are better placed than Bunnings or Coles to monitor outbreaks, owners say.

Viva Leisure CEO Harry Konstantinou at one of the company's gyms in Canberra.

Gyms pose limited risk of COVID-19 transmission and are better placed than Bunnings or Coles to monitor potential outbreaks, says Harry Konstantinou, chief executive of health club operator Viva Leisure, as the company outlined steps to reopening its doors.

Mr Konstantinou told The Australian he did not expect any material changes to the way gyms operated, and, citing research in the US, said he couldn’t understand why gyms had not been permitted to open yet.

On Monday morning, Viva Leisure, which owns more than 50 health clubs across the ACT, Victoria, Queensland and NSW, said in a trading update it had confirmed opening dates for 70 per cent of its locations.

However, despite the health crisis, Mr Konstantinou, who is the co-founder of Viva Leisure, said that while booking systems were likely to be implemented, along with additional cleaning, he did not expect significant changes for members or gym operators once doors were reopened.

“Some of the rules being placed on businesses that are allowed to open, such as restaurants and cafes having to keep contact details of patrons, already exist in gyms automatically,” Mr Konstantinou said.

“As gym operators we know who is in our club, what time they visited, and what their contact ­details and medical history is. This information is just not possible in Bunnings, Coles or Woolworths, and this is why we believe gyms are fit to reopen.”

Highlighting that US gyms had been opened for several weeks, Mr Konstantinou said there was no evidence of gym outbreaks. He pointed to research by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention which found that human-to-human transmission was more likely than from surface to human.

Gyms in the ACT are scheduled to open first from May 30, followed by Queensland on June 12 and Victoria on June 21. An announcement regarding NSW is expected shortly.

The staged reopening ends an enforced two-month hibernation for gyms after the closure of non-essential services on March 23. On May 8, Prime Minister Scott Morrison outlined a three-stage road map to relax restrictions, with gyms on step two.

While the details of stage two of the Morrison government’s road map remain unclear, Viva Leisure said initial openings were likely to consist of either 20 members within the entirety of the gym, or in different parts. Stage three, anticipated to follow three or four weeks after stage two, is predicted to allow 100 members within gyms simultaneously, enabling Viva to run most locations at full capacity.

Rental relief is still being negotiated at over two-thirds of Viva Leisure’s 83 property leases.

Negotiations are continuing at 58 locations, with landlords waiting for gyms to reopen before agreeing to arrangements.

Viva Leisure employs 600 staff.

Despite burning through $5m during the mandatory closure period, the cash burn was slightly below management’s expectations. Membership cancellations, currently at 14 per cent of pre-closure levels, also fell significantly below initial estimates of 30 per cent.

At the close of trading, Viva Leisure shares had increased by 4.7 per cent to $2.43.