Physical's Wan Chai branch reopens under new name 'HEALTHY'

A Physical Fitness gym branch in Wan Chai has reopened under the new name of “HEALTHY” on Thursday.  

According to an announcement printed on an OOH ad outside the branch, the new "HEALTHY" gym would be available for existing Physical customers for free and would not charge extra for unused services. 

"HEALTHY will only provide all remaining fitness cards, personal trainer sessions and beauty treatment services to customers of Physical on a complimentary basis. HEALTHY shall not be responsible for any financial or contractual disputes arising from Physical," the announcement read. 

Thousands of victims gathered and formed a Facebook group to raise concerns over the abrupt closure of the gym chain, a check by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE saw. A netizen posted on a Facebook group named "Physical Fitness Concern Group" said he has signed a three-year contract in July with Physical, "now that the gym has shut down, I really have no idea what to do...should I report it to the customs or the police?"

Don't miss: HK gym chain Physical's closure garners complaints involving HK$31m

Last Friday, Physical decided to shut all physical stores in the city after 38 years in business, citing its inability to afford high rental costs. 

Physical said in its official statement that although Hong Kong’s economic environment has gradually improved since the COVID-19 pandemic four years ago, some landlords of certain branches still maintained high rents. As such, it decided to temporarily close all physical stores on 6 September to restructure its business. 

"After accompanying everyone for 38 years and witnessing the ups and downs of Hong Kong's economy, it is truly a heartbreaking decision that we could not continue to be with everyone until the end. This is an incredibly difficult choice to make,” the statement read.  

Don't miss: Physical’s directors arrested over potential trade description violations

Soon after the temporary closure of the gym chain, its two directors were arrested by the Hong Kong customs on suspicion of wrongly accepting payments when selling fitness and beauty services on Wednesday.  

Amidst allegations revolving around Physical's failure to provide prepaid services to customers, Customs formed a dedicated team to investigate the case. It found that the chain group still accepted payments for prepaid services from customers even before the announcement of its business suspension. Customers who had purchased prepaid fitness and beauty services were unable to use the services concerned and did not receive any refunds. 

On the other hand, the Consumer Council has received over 3,200 complaints regarding the abrupt shutdown of Hong Kong gym chain "Physical" (舒適堡), involving a total of HK$113 million as of Thursday. 

The average amount involved in each case is HK$34,430, with the highest amount involving approximately HK$1m and the lowest at HK$99. The watchdog has expressed significant concern regarding the incident. 

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to Physical for a statement. 

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