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Gold’s Gym
re-enters Oahu
fitness market

The chain is buying
The Gym in Kakaako

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By Tim Ruel
Star-Bulletin

Gold's Gym International Inc. is flexing its muscles on Oahu.

The Venice, Calif.-based chain of workout gyms said today it is buying The Gym in Kakaako in a deal scheduled to close Oct. 12. Sale terms were not disclosed.

"We were given an offer we couldn't refuse," said Mike Sapp, who has co-owned The Gym Inc. with Maris Ozolins since 1989.

Once the purchase closes, Gold's Gym will stick its name on the 19,288-square-foot building at 768 South St. and start a company-run operation.

The Gym, previously housed a block away on Keawe Street, leased the concrete block warehouse from landowner Kamehameha Schools for about $1.1 million in 1998, according to public records.

The Gym's 3,500 members have been learning about the arrangement as they come in to work out, Sapp said. "We've already been leaking it out."

Sapp, who will remain at the site and head Gold's personal training department, said all 35 employees will stay on board. Membership fees aren't projected to change either, he said.

Gold's picked The Gym because the space, with a 40-foot ceiling, white walls and massive windows, fit Gold's image, said Gene LaMott, chief operating officer for Gold's Gym.

The company also liked the central business location, which has plenty of parking, LaMott said.

Gold's purchase of The Gym not only marks the re-entry of the company to Oahu, but could signal the beginning of a possible expansion.

Gold's Gym, founded 35 years ago, has more than 2 million members in 561 outlets in 30 countries.

The company had run several gyms on Oahu from the 1980s to the mid-90s, but the locations were bought in 1996 by another gym giant, 24 Hour Fitness Inc.

"We're excited to be back here," LaMott said. He noted the company also has three gyms on Maui and one in Kona on the Big Island.

Pleasanton, Calif.-based 24 Hour Fitness now has four locations in Honolulu, and a total of three in Aiea, Kaneohe and Mililani.

LaMott said the renewed presence of Gold's Gym will provide competition to 24 Hour Fitness for local customers who want to join a so-called "big box" chain of gyms. Gold's is also checking out other potential locations on Oahu, LaMott said. The company sees Hawaii as a link between its strong West Coast market and Asia.

Bill Monsen, president of the Clark Hatch Fitness Center on Fort Street, said he isn't too worried about Gold's because his customers seek Clark Hatch's smaller, more intimate climate.