Peter Roberts, Founder of Pure Gym

In addition to keeping you updated about all the great things that are going on at The Clubhouse, we thought we’d turn the tables and put the focus on all the exciting things our fantastic members are achieving!

In our first ‘Member in the spotlight’ feature we spoke to Peter Roberts, Founder and Executive Chairman of leading gym chain Pure Gym and member at The Clubhouse since October 2015, about his successes so far.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and Pure Gym.
I founded Pure Gym in 2009 and was the CEO until last year when I became Executive Chairman. Pure Gym is the leading gym operator in the UK, offering highly affordable gym based health and fitness with an average membership fee of £18 per month. There is no contract and the gyms are open 24 hours every day. There are now 160 gyms throughout the UK with over 800,000 members which is double the size of our nearest competitor.

Why Pure Gym? Was there a ‘lightbulb’ moment behind the concept?
I had been developing hotels under the Golden Tulip brand, which we sold to Whitbread and it was getting quite a management headache with 500 staff to manage and cash problems in the bars. Then I met someone who said “have you heard of this low cost gym concept in America with only 2 members of staff and no cash handling?” so I thought that’s the one for me lets go and find out some more!!

What has been your biggest success so far?
Starting the business from scratch and driving this forward, initially with private shareholders and then with a major American private equity group, CCMP. To the extent that we are now number 3 in Europe, the company has won a number of prestigious awards and had a turnover of over £125m last year.

What’s the best bit of advice you’ve ever been given? 
What goes up comes down.

What is the worst business ‘faux-pas’ you’ve committed? 
Sending a rude note about a competitor and also including them in the email by mistake.

What project are you most excited about right now?  
The company hopes to be able to carry out an IPO this year and continue its growth both in the UK and overseas.

How has being a member of The Clubhouse improved the way you work or contributed to the success of your business?
As my main office is in Yorkshire I find The Clubhouse very convenient to use as a work base and for the many meetings that I have in London.

Where can other members find you?
At Grafton Street in the main room.

Favourite place to go in London? (apart from The Clubhouse obviously!)
Spanish restaurant Cambio de Tercio in South Kensington.

Are you an early bird or night owl?
Both!

We hope you enjoyed finding out a little more about Peter and Pure Gym, don’t forget to say hello if you see him at The Clubhouse! You can also find other members on our Members Directory, either browse the directory or search for a particular skill. Make sure to upload your own information so that other members can also find you – just log into your account and choose My Profile.

If you’d like to be featured in an upcoming Member in the spotlight, please contact elizabeth@theclubhouselondon.com.