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Fred Lai

The air-conditioning supply is unreliable and the water supply could be cut off next, but such hardships have not deterred dedicated customers of the struggling California Fitness gym chain.
One member, who identified herself as Ms Ho, said she had been working out more than ever since the Whampoa branch closed last Monday.
Speaking to the Post at the Quarry Bay Branch, which owes HK$2.94 million in rents and other payments, Ho said she and her fellow customers planned to just “wait and see” while going to the gym as frequently as she could.
Offer for troubled Hong Kong gym chain California Fitness as debts hit HK$130m
But she conceded that with the air conditioners turned down and the floors waiting to be swept, there was little hope.
Tommy Ho, who only signed a three-year contract in April, was putting on a brave face and said he was not worried. “I don’t have a reason to withdraw my membership at the moment,” he said.
At a branch in Kowloon Bay there was no air-conditioning at all, despite the scorching weather. And a staff member said the water supply cut be cut soon.
It proved too much for one sweat-drenched customer. “I will never come back here again,” he said.
Another regular, asked if he was worried about his money after recently renewing his three-year membership, took a philosophical approach. “Let nature take its course,” he said.
The closure of the Whampoa branch fuelled speculation about the survival prospects of operator JV Fitness, which also runs the mYoga and Leap fitness outlets, could be hanging by a thread. It was followed by a flurry of rental claims for millions of dollars filed in court last week. A source close to the situation told the Post the chain could owe up to HK$130 million.
Hundreds of Hong Kong jobs at stake as California Fitness staff demand unpaid wages
Late last month a former California Fitness director, Wong Ping-kuen, filed a winding-up petition against JV Fitness via his own company, BeSpark Technologies Engineering.
Six of JV Fitness’ 12 outlets in the city are struggling to pay rent and fees, leaving the membership of its 100,000 customers hanging in the balance.
On Monday, two senior executives from the chain were arrested when customs officers raided the company’s headquarters in Kowloon Bay.
The uncertainties weigh particularly heavily on the company’s employees, many of whom are owed wages. One complained of being kept in the dark and feeling helpless. “We get all the information from the media just like everyone else,” she said.
California Fitness opened its first outlet in Hong Kong in 1996 and at its height operated nine gyms in the city. More than 1,000 members have joined a social media “victim group” in recent days seeking recompense from the chain.


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California Fitness

Sweating it out: Hong Kong California Fitness members can only wait and hope

California Fitness could owe HK$130 million, according to one estimate. Photo: Felix Wong

News

Hong Kong

Hong Kong economy

Customers of the troubled chain are still turning up for their workouts, but the mood is pessimistic
