One of New York City's hottest new clubs is a yoga studio in SoHo. Its address is a closely guarded secret, and the only way to gain admittance is by invitation of one of its 300 members.
Tera, whose red front door is currently trending all over social media, is selling more than just yoga classes— it's offering exclusivity for some of the city's wealthiest and best connected residents.
"With the referral, we’re almost filtering our clientele to be somewhat of the same person,” Tera founder Georgia Wood Murphy told Business Insider. Their ideal clientele is someone "that wants to invest in wellness, that wants to be on trend, and a part of what’s hot in New York right now.”
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Tera isn't the only fitness studio building client lists off of referrals and exclusivity. According to the website, millennials and Gen Zers currently make up more than 80% of gymgoers. While their proclivity for regular workouts is great news for their overall health and fitness levels, it's bad news for your average gym.
With so many people popping in and out for their daily sweat sessions, gyms and fitness studios have become overcrowded. Finding yourself deep in line for the squat rack or on a waitlist for that afternoon pilates class has become a regular occurrence. Hence, the rise of the exclusive fitness club.
For their part, these studios take member curation quite seriously.
“Would you post flyers on the street to invite someone to a dinner party at your house?” asked Colette Dong, co-founder of trampoline fitness program Ness, which vets all potential members. “You wouldn’t. You would curate the vibe.”
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It's not just bank accounts these studios are taking into consideration, either. Giving out, what Business Insider and Dong call the "wrong vibes" by doing things like engaging in negative body talk can be enough to get you blacklisted from some places.
"We don't want any of that energy in our community," Dong says.
Dogpound, a boutique gym favored by celebrities, hasn't fully committed to a referral-only model for membership just yet. Instead, they have sky-high fees, which top out at $100,000 per year. Xander Hodge, the gym's general manager, told Business Insider the exorbitant fees are designed to help ensure members are committed, tight-knit, and guaranteed a scene of privacy.
One thirty-something Dogpound member told the outlet that the cost is worth it because it grants her access to a community where it's easy to meet and bond with like-minded people.
“Fitness in New York can feel very transient,” Dong told Business Insider. “There are so many studios and classes, and people often hop around… [studio membership] is reserved for people who are truly engaged with what we offer and who feel aligned with our community.”
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