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Trive Capital (“Trive”) and 808 Capital Partners (“808”) are excited to announce their investment into Crunch Canada Holdings Inc. (“Crunch Canada” or the “Company”), a Crunch Fitness franchisee headquartered in Cambridge, Ontario, in the Greater Toronto Area.
Crunch Canada is the primary Crunch Fitness franchisee in Canada, serving over 90,000 members across 19 clubs in the provinces of Ontario and Alberta. As Crunch’s designated master franchise for the country, Crunch Canada also has 13 franchised clubs, which together serve an additional 45,000 members across Ontario and Quebec.
“We are excited to team up with Trive and 808, who share our vision for delivering an exceptional fitness offering for our members,” said Wesley Hodgson, CEO of Crunch Canada. “Our new partnership and collaboration present a unique opportunity to enhance our capabilities, expand our leadership team, and execute on several near-term growth opportunities, including new club development and select acquisitions.”
Crunch Canada’s origins date back to 1976, when the Hodgson family opened its first fitness club in Kitchener, Ontario. Wes assumed executive leadership as CEO of the business in 2010 and thereafter opened a number of clubs, before acquiring the Crunch master franchise rights for Canada in 2017.
Jared Reyes, Managing Director at Trive Capital, stated “Trive is impressed with the Crunch Canada team’s track record of opening and operating clubs, in addition to supporting its network of franchisees in Canada. We see significant opportunity in the Canadian market to expand the Company’s footprint and membership base.”
“The North American fitness sector continues to demonstrate strong fundamentals as consumers increasingly prioritize health and wellness, and new age groups enter the gym industry,” added Shravan Thadani, Partner at Trive Capital. “Crunch remains well positioned to capture additional share within the broader industry given its attractive, high amenity offering at a compelling membership price.”
The transaction marks Trive’s second investment into the Crunch Fitness system. In June 2024, Trive invested in JF Fitness of North America, a Crunch Fitness franchisee headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, with 24 clubs serving the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern US.
Chequan Lewis, President of Crunch Fitness, said, “We are thrilled to see Trive and 808’s continued investment in Crunch. We value their support of Crunch Canada as Wes and the team continue their club development plan and strategically deliver Crunch’s unique fitness experience to a much broader base of consumers in Canada.”
King & Spalding LLP and Borden Ladner Gervais LLP served as legal counsel to Trive. McCarter Grespan Beynon Weir PC served as legal counsel to Crunch Canada.
About Crunch Canada
Crunch Canada is a Crunch Fitness franchisee operating 19 corporate-owned gyms across Ontario and Alberta in addition to 13 franchised gyms across Ontario and Quebec. Crunch Canada’s origins date back to 1976 by current CEO Wes Hodgson’s father, Martin Hodgson, before Wes Hodgson assumed operational control in 2010. Crunch Canada is headquartered in Cambridge, Ontario, in the Greater Toronto Area.
About Crunch Fitness
Crunch is a gym that believes in making serious exercise fun by fusing fitness and entertainment and pioneering a philosophy of ‘No Judgments.’ Crunch serves a fitness community for all kinds of people with all types of goals, exercising all different ways, working it out at the same place together. Crunch is renowned for creating one-of-a-kind group fitness classes and unique programming for our wildly diverse members. Headquartered in New York City, Crunch serves 2.5 million members with over 460 gyms worldwide in 41 states, the District of Columbia, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Portugal, Puerto Rico, and Spain. Crunch is rapidly expanding across the U.S. and around the globe.
About 808 Capital Partners
808 Capital Partners is a Maui, Hawaii, based independent private equity sponsor focused on a number of verticals within the consumer sector, including health, wellness, and fitness; multi-unit franchises; youth sports; and enthusiast consumer brands.