Fitness chain in Singapore gets shut down overnight, members left reeling
SINGAPORE -- California Fitness, one of the earliest fitness chains in the country, has ceased all of its operations in Singapore with immediate effect.
The announcement was made shortly after midnight on Wednesday local time, by Singapore High Court-appointed liquidators, Tim Reid and Theresa Ng of Ferrier Hodgson.
California Fitness is owned by JV Fitness, which was the second largest gym operator in Hong Kong until it shut down all of its outlets on Friday. It was reported that the company owed HK$130 million ($16.7 million) in rent and operational costs.
You May Also Like
According to the media statement: "JV Fitness does not have adequate liquid resources to continue its operations and therefore all outlets in Singapore will be closed from today until further notice.
The Provisional Liquidators will quickly explore options that may be available to enable the business to operate but for time being, it is necessary to cease the operations of the fitness centres with immediate effect."
The closure affects California's remaining two outlets in Novena and Bugis. Prior to this, gym members started to sense something was wrong when the chain announced on its Facebook page on Saturday that it had closed its biggest branch at Raffles Place.
Outraged netizens were quick to demand a proper explanation and wanted to know if they would get refunded on their memberships.
Some even went as far as to call California Fitness "cheats" that deserved to be punished.
California Fitness was first established in Hong Kong back in 1996, and quickly expanded into Mainland China and Singapore in less than four years.
The chain has however had its fair share of controversies in the past few years, mostly involving consumer complaints accusing the gym and its staff of unfair trade practices.
Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.
