It was reported in both The Saturday Times and the Milton Keynes Sunday Citizen that Healthland have called in the receivers. A £70m deal with Virgin Active has falled through, although it looks likely that all the Healthland sites and developments will be snapped up pretty quickly by the likes of Fitness First and LA Fitness.
The failure is being put down to a rapid and agressive expansion scheme which could not generate enough income to sustain itself. One analyst said that it was bound to run out of money as the clubs sold their membership too cheaply! Yikes, I hope any new owner doesn't increase the slope prices further.
