JD Gyms is coming to Newport for the first time as it plans to take over the old Xercise4Less gym, it has been announced.
The fitness brand revealed this week it will be opening in Wales' third city in the spring, taking over the former Xercise4Less building in Newport Leisure Park in Spytty.
On social media JD Gyms said it was aiming to transform the building into a "state-of-the-art facility" with new fitness equipment, an extension to the free weights area and more than 300 classes a month.
There will also be a new functional area with a rig, new decor and lighting and a sprint and prowler track.
A deal by JD Gyms to buy 50 Xercise4Less gyms out of administration was confirmed last July after Xercise4Less ran into financial difficulties as a result of the pandemic.
Managing director of JD Gyms, Alun Peacock, said at the time: “We are delighted to have completed this acquisition which enhances our position in the highly competitive gym market and which will ensure the continued employment of many hundreds of people."
Its gym in Newport was a popular spot for gym-goers and fitness fans and its takeover by JD Gyms, which has also announced plans to open in Swansea in addition to its busy gym in Cardiff, is likely to go down well.
Members of Xercise4Less have been sent an e-mail stating that payments will remain frozen until the gym re-opens, along with an offer concerning their membership.
Discounted membership rates are being offered to the first 200 people who sign up for JD Gyms in Newport.
The news comes amid a number of other new businesses announcing their opening in the city in the past few weeks.
Earlier this month Eggfree Cake Box announced the opening of a new store on Commercial Street, while Coffee Corner, an independent coffee shop, is set to open in Friars Walk.
Richard Steele from Coffee Corner said he was optimistic that businesses in the city could recover after spending months closed due to the pandemic.
"We believe that the economy will bounce back after April this year," he said this week.
"People want to come out having been stuck indoors for so long, and we look forward to seeing so many regular faces return to the city centre."
Meanwhile North Street Bar & Grill, the second business in six months to be opened by Newport chef Vivienne Read, is also opening for the first time this week.
Read, a former chef at the Celtic Manor Resort and head chef at the Golden Lion in Magor, launched Chef Read last September, with its eye-catching bright pink van opening for business at the Market site on Usk Way.
