{{Short description|European fitness center chain}} {{Infobox company | name = McFIT LLC | logo = Markenlogo McFIT.svg | type = Health club | genre = Fitness | foundation = 1996 | location_city = Schlüsselfeld, Berlin | founder = Rainer Schaller | parent = RSG Group | location_country = Germany | location = | locations = 257 (''2019'') | members = 1.7 millions <ref>{{Cite web |title=McFIT eröffnet 250. Studio in Regensburg |url=https://www.mcfit.com/de/unternehmen/presse/pressedetails/mcfit-eroeffnet-250-studio-in-regensburg/ |access-date=July 25, 2023 |website=www.mcfit.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Anzahl der Mitglieder der Fitnessstudios in Deutschland von 2003 bis 2022|url=https://de.statista.com/statistik/daten/studie/5966/umfrage/mitglieder-der-deutschen-fitnessclubs/ |access-date=July 25, 2023 |website=de.statista.com}}</ref> | num_employees = 4000 (''2012'') | area_served = Europe (5+ countries) | revenue = €347.2 million (''2019'') | homepage = [http://www.mcfit.com/ www.mcfit.com] }}
The '''McFIT LLC''' is Germany's largest fitness studio chain in terms of membership. Across Europe, it has more than 250 studios in Germany, Austria and Italy. The company previously also operated studios in Poland and Spain. McFit is a brand of the German RSG Group, whose headquarters are in Schlüsselfeld and Berlin, Germany.
== History == McFit was founded in 1996 by Rainer Schaller. In the 1990s, he had the idea of opening a discount fitness studio. The goal was to make fitness accessible to everyone at a low monthly fee.<ref>{{Cite web |title=McFit Founder Rainer Schaller: The Man Who Invented Fitness for everybody |url=https://www.ispo.com/en/news-people/portrait-late-mcfit-founder-rainer-schaller |access-date=July 24, 2023 |website=www.ipso.com |date=5 June 2023 }}</ref> The first McFit studio opened in 1997 in the Franconian university town of Würzburg in a converted industrial hall covering an area of around 700 square meters.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ich wollte mit McFit die Nummer 1 werden, hatte aber keine Ahnung |url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/management/fitnessstudios-ich-wollte-mit-mcfit-die-nummer-1-werden-hatte-aber-keine-ahnung/26621696.html |access-date=July 23, 2023 |website=www.handelsblatt.com}}</ref> In the following years, further locations opened in the Ruhr area and Berlin. In 2006, McFit became Germany's largest fitness studio chain in terms of number of members, with almost half a million. In 2007, in addition to the registered headquarters in Schlüsselfeld, another company headquarters was established in the German capital Berlin, where marketing, PR, creative and fitness were concentrated. In the same year McFit took over its most important competitor Fit24 in Germany. In 2008, the 100th studio in Germany opened in Munich, and brothers Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko promoted McFit as celebrity ambassadors over a five-year period. McFit became known to the broad public by sponsoring various TV formats and sporting events that were organized together with moderator Stefan Raab in German TV channel Pro7.
[[File:McFit_Studio_in_Wien.png|thumb|right|McFit studio opened 2009 in Vienna.<ref>{{Cite web |title=McFit startet mit drei Studios in Österreich durch |url=https://www.ots.at/presseaussendung/OTS_20090615_OTS0072/mcfit-startet-mit-drei-studios-in-oesterreich-durch-bild |access-date=July 25, 2023 |website=www.ots.at}}</ref>]] Starting in 2009, the brand also expanded into Austria, Italy and Spain. By 2011, McFit had 1,000,000 members across Europe.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mcfit, Europe's Leading Fitness Chain Expands |url=https://www.cesport.eu/en/Nd/i/more/Mcfit+Europe%27s+leading+fitness+chain+expands/idn/2812 |access-date=July 22, 2023 |website=www.esport.eu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=I fitness club Happy Fit acquisiti da Mcfit |url=https://www.fitnesstrend.com/i-fitness-club-happy-fit-acquisiti-da-mcfit |access-date=July 23, 2023 |website=wwww.fitnesstrend.com|date=23 October 2014 }}</ref> In 2014, German designer Michael Michalsky created a design concept for the so-called "Home of Fitness" studios that was intended to be reminiscent of one's own home.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Jelinek |first=Susanne |date=August 22, 2022 |title=Trainieren wie zu hause |language=de-AT |work=News AT |url=https://www.news.at/a/mcfit-wien-wohnzimmer-design-michalsky |access-date=July 22, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=McFIT: urbane Designer-Studios eröffnet |url=https://www.fitforfun.de/sport/fitness-studio/mcfit.html |access-date=July 22, 2023 |website=www.fitforfun.de |date=6 February 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=McFit: Designer Michael Michalsky entwirft "Home of Fitness" |url=https://www.sports-insider.de/mcfit-designer-michael-michalsky-entwirft-home-of-fitness-7178/ |access-date=July 22, 2023 |website=www.sports-insider.de|date=February 2014 }}</ref> The studios exist in Germany and Austria. While the concept was not grown over time, it did lay the foundation for the further development of the chain. Michael Michalsky also served as the art director of McFit Models, a sports model agency that also belongs to the RSG Group and has its own Body Award.<ref>{{Cite web |title=NEW BODY AWARD MCFIT |url=https://www.ambion.de/en/project/new-body-award-mcfit-models/ |access-date=July 23, 2023 |website=www.ambion.de}}</ref> McFit Models describes itself as the largest sports model agency in Europe and recruits its models from its own studio members. These models are then cast mainly for sports photo campaigns and video shoots.
With diversification of the business model and a larger international focus, McFit GmbH was renamed McFit Global Group in 2016 and thus simultaneously transformed into an umbrella for all the constituent brands. Additional brands such as High5 (2015) and John Reed Fitness (2016) were added, which were lived within the parent company.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The McFIT Global Group |url=https://www.healthclubmanagement.co.uk/health-club-management-features/Interview-The-McFIT-Global-Group/31771 |access-date=July 22, 2023 |website=www.healthclubmanagement.co.uk}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Mystery Shopper: Premium McF |url=https://www.healthclubmanagement.co.uk/health-club-management-features/Mystery-Shopper-Premium-McFIT/31701 |access-date=July 25, 2023 |website=www.healthclubmanagement.co.uk}}</ref> As it progressed, McFit Global Group evolved into RSG Group in 2019. Today, McFit has 18 sister brands in RSG Group as a result.<ref>{{Cite web |title=McFit founder, Rainer Schaller, announces new brand |url=https://www.healthclubmanagement.co.uk/health-club-management-news/Schaller_looks_to_set_new_benchmarks_beyond_fitness/341555 |access-date=July 23, 2023 |website=www.healthclubmanagement.co.uk|date=23 April 2019 }}</ref>
In 2022, the RSG Group exited the Polish market and sold its Polish McFit subsidiary and its studios to the Medicover Group.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Medicover erwirbt McFIT Polska und erweitert sein Fitnessnetzwerk auf über 100 Clubs – RSG Group |url=https://rsggroup.com/de/press/medicover-erwirbt-mcfit-polska-und-erweitert-sein-fitnessnetzwerk-auf-uber-100-clubs/ |access-date=2026-01-13 |language=de-DE}}</ref> Following the acquisition, McFit Poland continued to operate under Medicover, but was increasingly separated from the international McFit brand. Locker systems were changed so that existing McFit key cards no longer functioned, requiring members to use padlocks. International McFit membership cards also stopped working at turnstiles, as the systems were no longer connected. Members from other countries were required to request entry from staff, as cross border access was no longer officially supported. In 2025, Medicover restructured McFit Poland and rebranded all but two locations into two new gym chains, JustGym and WellFitness.<ref>{{Cite news |title=McFIT {{!}} Just GYM |url=https://justgym.pl/mcfit/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250721105020/https://justgym.pl/mcfit/ |archive-date=2025-07-21 |access-date=2026-01-13 |work=Just GYM |language=pl-PL |url-status=live }}</ref> This process included the remodeling of the converted locations. Most of the gym80 equipment originally used by McFit was retained. As of 2026 there are only two McFit locations left in Poland: one in Lodz and one in Katowice.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nasze placówki {{!}} McFIT Polska |url=https://www.mcfit.com.pl/kluby |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324220934/https://www.mcfit.com.pl/kluby |archive-date=2023-03-24 |access-date=2026-01-13 |website=www.mcfit.com.pl |language=pl |url-status=live }}</ref>´
The RSG Group exited the Spanish market in 2024 and sold all of its McFit studios to the Dutch company Basic Fit N.V., which operates a competing low cost international chain of fitness studios.<ref>{{Cite web |title=RSG GROUP WITHDRAWS FROM THE SPANISH MARKET AND WILL SELL ITS 47 STUDIOS TO BASIC-FIT – RSG Group |url=https://rsggroup.com/en/press/rsg-group-withdraws-from-the-spanish-market-and-will-sell-its-47-studios-to-basic-fit/ |access-date=2026-01-13 |language=en-US}}</ref>
== History of the logo == The first studio opened in 1997 with a banana as the mascot in the logo and the words "The gym for everyone". Over the years, only the banderole with the brand name remained. The color scheme was always the yellow McFIT lettering on a bright blue background. Later the advertising message "Simply look good" followed as an addition on the logo. In 2013, there was a revision of the entire design, which is still current today: they revived the original banana, but developed it further and replaced it with a curved, yellow bow on an anthracite background. Underneath the bow is the white McFIT lettering. The adapted color scheme makes the logo look more discreet overall. The advertising message "Simply look good" (German: "Einfach gut aussehen") remained under the brand name.<ref>{{Cite web |author1=Fitnesstribune |title=Interview Rainer Schaller CEO McFIT Global Group |url=https://fitnesstribune.com/interview-rainer-schaller-ceo-mcfit-global-group/ |access-date=July 22, 2023 |website=fitnesstribune.com |date=10 December 2017 |archive-date=25 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230725223600/https://fitnesstribune.com/interview-rainer-schaller-ceo-mcfit-global-group/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
== Concept == The McFit studios are equipped with a variety of machines for endurance and strength training that are available in multiples so that many people can train at the same time. These include, for example, the leg and chest press, but also treadmills, cross trainers, steppers and rowing machines. While the classic fitness studios in the 1990s and prior were used more by bodybuilders and athletes, which often gave the studios a unapproachable reputation<ref>{{Cite web |title=Die Entwicklung des Fitnessmarktes |url=https://www.bodymedia.de/themen/trends-specials/die-entwicklung-des-fitnessmarktes.html |access-date=July 23, 2023 |website=www.bodymedia.de|date=19 July 2021 }}</ref> , Rainer Schaller, in developing his concept, attached importance to making fitness possible for the broad masses and enhancing the reputation of fitness.<ref>{{Cite web |title=McFit benennt sich um – und hat große Pläne |url=https://www.wiwo.de/unternehmen/mittelstand/fitnessstudio-mcfit-benennt-sich-um-und-hat-grosse-plaene/24049772.html |access-date=July 23, 2023 |website=www.wiwo.de|date=28 February 2019 }}</ref> Schaller's basic idea was to keep the offering to consumers as transparent and simple as possible and to focus exclusively on the training equipment. Contrary to the wellness trend that emerged in the fitness sector in the 1990s, additional services such as classrooms, swimming pools or saunas were deliberately omitted in all studios. Even the use of showers initially had to be paid for separately.
Another novelty in Germany at that time was the idea of 24-hour opening hours 365 days a year, which offered members the greatest flexibility in terms of time to go to the gym. Over the years, the McFit concept has changed and evolved somewhat. In the meantime, the studios also have training areas specifically for women, course rooms and areas for functional fitness. The monthly membership fee includes access to all areas, the shower fee and the possibility of fitness courses. Members are allowed to bring their own beverages. With most contracts, training is allowed in all McFit studios throughout Europe. The majority of clubs in Germany and Austria remain open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Wie Mr. McFit sein Unternehmen führte |url=https://www.capital.de/wirtschaft-politik/mcfit-gruender-rainer-schaller--wie-er-sein-unternehmen-fuehrte-32844076.html |access-date=July 22, 2023 |website=www.capital.de|date=24 October 2022 }}</ref>
As of 2026 there are 230 in the following countries:
{| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Country ! data-sort-type="number" | Number of stores |- |{{flagcountry|Germany}} | 176 <ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.mcfit.com/fitnessstudios-nach-bundesland |access-date=2026-01-13 |website=www.mcfit.com}}</ref> |- |{{flagcountry|Italy}} | 46 <ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.mcfit.com/it/palestre-per-citta |access-date=2026-01-13 |website=www.mcfit.com}}</ref> |- |{{flagcountry|Austria}} | 16 <ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.mcfit.com/at/studios |access-date=2026-01-13 |website=www.mcfit.com}}</ref> |}And the list of former countries includes: {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Country ! data-sort-type="number" | Number of stores |- |{{flagcountry|Spain}} | 37 (former locations) |- |{{flagcountry|Poland}} | 13 (former locations) |}
== COVID-19 pandemic == During the COVID-19 pandemic, McFit developed creative measures to defy the officially imposed studio closures.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gyms Adapt Amid Pandemic With Outdoor Training Terraces, Tents |url=https://www.nbcwashington.com/entertainment/the-scene/photos-gyms-open-outdoor-training-terraces-tents-as-pandemic-continues/2436515/ |access-date=July 22, 2023 |website=www.nbcwashington.com|date=6 October 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=McFit öffnet Outdoor-Fitnessstudio in Berlin |url=https://www.morgenpost.de/berlin/article231557695/McFit-Fitness-Studio-Berlin-Pankow-Outdoor-Corona.html |access-date=July 23, 2023 |website=www.morgenpost.de|date=13 February 2021 }}</ref> Together with the infectiologist Prof. Dr. Klaus-Dieter Zastrow, a special hygiene concept was developed that allowed fitness training to take place outdoors.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bei McFit dürfen jetzt wieder die Muskeln spielen |url=https://www.bild.de/politik/inland/politik-inland/mcfit-oeffnet-heute-fitnessstudios-fuer-draussen-75345172.bild.html |access-date=July 22, 2023 |website=www.bild.de|date=13 February 2021 }}</ref> McFit was the first fitness studio chain in Germany to open outdoor training areas in car parks or under tents to offer its own members the sport despite the Corona restrictions.<ref>{{Cite web |title=McFit eröffnet Outdoor-Fitnessstudios - Behörden schreiten ein |url=https://www.nordbayern.de/panorama/mcfit-eroffnet-outdoor-fitnessstudios-behorden-schreiten-ein-1.10839103 |access-date=July 22, 2023 |website=www.nordbayern.de}}</ref> Each training session was limited to a maximum of 45 minutes per person and only possible after prior registration. Locations in Germany were Hamburg, Bremen, Rostock, Braunschweig, Mannheim, Wiesbaden, Mainz, Magdeburg, Neunkirchen and Berlin. McFit also had such outdoor training areas in Italy.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[https://www.mcfit.com/de/ Official website of McFIT] *[https://www.mcfitmodels.com Official website of ''McFIT Models'']
Category:Health clubs Category:Medical and health organisations based in Bavaria