Just one week after celebrating our 3rd birthday at Hove Fitness and Squash, we received the dreaded email from our landlord informing us that the building we were in on Orchard Road, had RAAC (soft concrete). The news was an awful shock and devastated all of us. We only had a few hours to inform our members that we were closed and had to ask people to leave the building. The members helped us take as much kit as possible to the Greyhound Stadium, where we set up a timetable of classes.

Five days later, we had a schedule of spin, dance, and circuit training, running from the Greyhound Stadium. Membership was dropping by the day, as what we were offering wasn’t as much as our old site could provide. After three weeks, we had to leave the stadium with no plan B. We lost all of our long-term members, as we had little to offer them. It was heartbreaking for the staff and directors.

The company stayed together, looking for alternative locations. We were very close to taking over a site in Southwick, but then heard that the old Dragons/Sports Direct site had become available. After a few emails and face-to-face chats with the landlord, they said they would very much like us to take over this awesome site in St Heilers Avenue. We renamed it Hove Fitness Club and agreed to the takeover in December 2023, 14 weeks after losing our last site. After long hours working on the new setup of the business, we opened our doors in March 2024.

We managed to retain a lot of our members and also gained brand new members local to this fantastic site. As much as we miss the old site and the squash community, we are thrilled with what this club has to offer. The new tennis element, which will be available next year, also brings a lot of excitement to this facility. Once again, we thank all our loyal members and our staff for sticking together and keeping us going through that tough period. We are a community, and we love keeping our members fit and healthy whilst sharing many laughs.

Thank you for your support, and thanks for joining us!

*Photo above is property of The Argus