Shock at closure of women's gym

5:40pm Saturday 13th September 2008

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HUNDREDS of members of a women-only fitness club have been left without a place to work out after their gym closed.

Motorcise, on Sankey Street, shut up shop on Friday, August 29, without warning its members.

Many had paid hundreds of pounds to the club for their annual subscription and they now have little hope of getting their money back since the liquidators were called in.

Pat Silvester, of Knightsbridge Avenue, Grappenhall, said: “They have been taking all our money up until an hour before closing on Friday night. Most of the people are pensioners so they can’t afford to lose money.”

The club, which has almost 300 women on its books, opened in 2001 aiming it’s business at women aged from 40 to 80 wanting to get fit. It uses armchair equipment for a low impact workouts designed for women of all fitness abilities.

But it was sold on in April this year to Energie Fitness for Women, which bought 24 of the Motorcise Healthy Living centres.

“It is such a friendly group it’s more like a social group,” added Mrs Silvester.

“We have even had Wigan groups come to Warrington. Their Motorcise closed and they came to ours.”

The company is advertising a five-year franchise to run the gym online and is selling it for £15,000, saying its revenue is £61,000.

The advert says it is a well established gym the reason for selling is given as: “The club was purchased by Energie Group with a view to selling to a franchisee as a ready made profitable business to develop.”