Independent thinking

The Independent Gyms Conference returns this November, and everything points towards 2026 being its biggest event yet

Now in its sixth year and marking the eleventh Independent Gyms event, the annual Independent Gyms Conference has continued to grow alongside the independent fitness sector. What started as an opportunity to bring independent gym owners together has developed into two days of education, networking, conversation and connection, built specifically around the people running gyms across the UK. This year, on 18th and 19th November at Cranmore Park in Solihull, the Independent Gyms team are aiming to welcome their biggest audience to date, with around 500 independent gym owners and operators expected across the two days. Ticket registrations are already well ahead of where they were at the same point last year, giving a real indication of the appetite within the sector for gym owners to come together, share ideas and spend time with people facing many of the same opportunities and challenges.

Sessions will focus on everything from growing membership and improving retention through to technology, staffing, strength training, new revenue opportunities and the wider direction of the fitness industry

EVENT PREVIEW

LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

Education will once again sit at the heart of the event. Across three speaker stages, the conference will bring together gym owners, industry experts, entrepreneurs and specialists to cover the areas that matter most to independent operators. Sessions will focus on everything from growing membership and improving retention through to technology, staffing, strength training, new revenue opportunities and the wider direction of the fitness industry.

Alongside the speaker programme, a dedicated podcast stage will host live conversations with gym owners and industry guests. Surrounding the stage, exhibiting brands will create a demonstration gym, bringing equipment and training concepts to life through interactive sessions and practical demonstrations.

“We’re creating a space where gym owners can listen to conversations on the podcast stage, then get involved with the equipment and concepts around them,” says Independent Gyms founder Robert Handy. “Our exhibiting brands will help build that experience, running interactive sessions that give owners the chance to try things for themselves and take fresh ideas back to their gyms.”

“We’re creating a space where gym owners can listen to conversations on the podcast stage, then get involved with the equipment and concepts around them”

NETWORKING

The conference has never just been about what happens on stage. One of the most valuable parts of bringing hundreds of independent gym owners into one building is the networking that naturally happens around it. Independent operators can sometimes be isolated within their own businesses.

The conference gives them an opportunity to meet other owners, compare experiences, share what is working, discuss what is not and build relationships with people who genuinely understand what running an independent gym involves.

There will also be a strong collection of suppliers and partners exhibiting across the event, giving gym owners the opportunity to explore new equipment, services and ideas, while having meaningful conversations with the businesses supporting the independent sector.

And when the first day finishes, the networking will continue.

This year will see the return of the evening event under a new name: Independent Gyms: After Hours. Taking place on the evening of 18th November, After Hours will bring the community together away from the exhibition floor for an informal evening of networking, entertainment and fundraising in support of Movember. It is designed to be the place where conversations from the day continue, new relationships are built and the industry gets the chance to relax together after a busy first day.

There will also be a new face on the Independent Gyms side of the event this year, with Jemma Wright joining the team for her first conference as an Independent Gyms staff member. Having previously experienced the event from the exhibitor side, she will now be helping to deliver it from behind the scenes, bringing a valuable perspective from both sides of the conference floor and marking an exciting next step for the growing Independent Gyms team.

The aim is for people to leave with new ideas they can implement, new relationships they can build on and renewed enthusiasm for their businesses

AUTHENTIC OCCASIONS

As Independent Gyms has grown, the conference has grown with it, but the purpose behind it has remained the same: to create an event genuinely built around independent gym owners.

The aim is for people to leave with new ideas they can implement, new relationships they can build on and renewed enthusiasm for their businesses.

With registrations already ahead of last year, the biggest speaker programme yet, a new show gym and demonstration area, hundreds of operators coming together and Independent Gyms: After Hours rounding off day one, November is shaping up to be a very special couple of days.

The Independent Gyms team cannot wait to welcome everyone to Solihull.