Linklaters is advising Pure Gym, the UK’s leading gym operator, on the competition aspects of its completed acquisition of LA Fitness and its 43 fitness clubs, in a combination that will extend the availability of affordable fitness centres to people across Britain, particularly in London and the South East.

Subject to regulatory approval it is the company’s intention to convert most of the LA Fitness sites into Pure Gym gyms in a managed transition. This will require significant investment in refurbishing LA Fitness’s gyms and will provide its existing 123,000 members with access to a growing nationwide network of over 130 gyms. Pure Gym has already been working with the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and the transaction has been submitted to the CMA for review.  During this period or until such time as the CMA grants a derogation, the businesses will be operated separately.

Simon Pritchard, Linklaters Competition partner, says:  “We are very pleased to be working with Pure Gym and the CMA on this transaction.  The deal has closed but we have already had considerable constructive engagement with the CMA, and are confident in the CMA process and in our evidence that the parties are not close competitors.   For these purposes, each deal turns on its facts, and this one is very different to the earlier proposed deal with The Gym - which the CMA regarded as combining closest competitors and as raising ‘national’ issues for reasons unique to combining those two players.”  

The Linklaters team is led by Competition partner Simon Pritchard and included associates Verity Doyle and Josh Buckland.