Finance for gyms and fitness studios

A gym's income is mostly memberships paid by direct debit, which makes it steadier than most small businesses. The costs are steady too: rent, staff, utilities and equipment that wears out. Finance for a gym should use that steadiness to get a fair price, and match each purchase to how long it lasts.

The cash-flow shape of a gym or studio

Membership. Direct debits arrive on set dates each month. Sign-ups jump in January and again in early autumn; summer brings freezes and cancellations. A gym's members are its balance sheet, so churn is the number funders and owners both watch.

Extras. Personal training, classes, retail and drinks bring card income on top, with less predictability.

Costs. Rent and utilities run all year, and energy for a big site with showers and air handling is a real line. Staff wages are set at the bottom end by law: the National Living Wage for workers aged 21 and over has been £12.71 an hour since April 2026. VAT returns and payments are due one calendar month and 7 days after each VAT period ends.

Equipment. Treadmills, rigs, racks and studio kit are large purchases that wear out and need replacing every few years, and a refit before January is a common pressure point.

Which finance fits, and which doesn't

Equipment suppliers often offer their own lease or hire purchase at the point of sale. That can be convenient, but it is still finance: ask for the total repayable, the term and any balloon or end-of-lease fee, then compare it with an independent quote on the same kit.

Merchant cash advances are built on card takings. If most of your income comes by direct debit, there is less card income for the advance to collect from, and it may end up as a fixed daily debit, which loses its main advantage.

What it costs: a worked example

Say the gym company wants £75,000 for a pre-January refit and is offered an advance at a factor rate of 1.20 over about 12 months, collected weekly.

• You repay £90,000 in total.
• That is 52 weekly payments of £1,730.77.
• The cost is £15,000.
• As an APR, that is about 37%.

Sterling's rule of thumb calls 20–50% APR "in line with many online term loans". Now compare a loan of £100,000 at 18% APR over 24 months: £4,992.41 a month and £19,817.84 of interest on a third more money over twice the time. With steady direct-debit income, you should be asking for the loan quote too. The "how much can I borrow" calculator on this page gives a rough guide to what your turnover supports.

What funders typically ask a gym for

• Bank statements showing membership direct debits.
• Membership numbers and churn over the last year.
• Filed accounts at Companies House and VAT returns.
• Lease details, because the lease term limits how long a funder will lend.
• Equipment quotes for asset finance.

A director's personal guarantee may be required, and a funder may run a credit search, which could be a soft search.

Red flags specific to gyms

1. Repayments set on January. Membership peaks after New Year. A repayment that looks easy then has to survive the summer freezes.
2. A lease shorter than the finance. If the lease ends before the loan does, the funder and you both have a problem.
3. Kit financed longer than it lasts. A treadmill on a term that outlives the treadmill means paying for a machine you've already replaced.

Limited companies only

Ask Sterling only introduces limited companies, because introducing sole traders and small partnerships is regulated credit broking. Plenty of studios and trainers are sole traders, and that's fine; we just can't introduce them. Business finance for limited companies is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.