UK based Fitness First, a leading health club operator, will soon set foot in India! It is aggressively hunting for built up space in Delhi, Mumbai and their periphery, to set up health clubs here, with an initial investment of about 20 million pounds.

The growing economy of India, the advent of organised retail, and the booming real estate industry, are some of the things that have lured Fitness First, to set up shop in India. The company is planning to establish about 15 health clubs in the first three years of its presence in India. And is looking for approx 15,000-20,000 sq ft of built up space for each club. To start with, Fitness First is eyeing big cities like Delhi, Mumbai and their suburbs, but hopes to spread out to other cities soon.

Managing Director, Fitness First India, Vikram Aditya Bhatia told CNBC-TV18, "We have committed two sites with developers such as the Unitech and the Runwal Group, and we are in very advanced stages with more sites in these cities and Bangalore. And in time, we will announce those."

Fitness First plans to invest approximately one million pounds for developing each club. It has appointed leading real estate consultant CB Richard Ellis as its strategic advisor in India.

Head, Transaction Services, CB Richard Ellis, Manish Kashyap says, "We are beginning to see people with national rollouts in the retail segment very recently. So, I think it's a significant development."

Fitness First's first health club in India, will be launched in September this year in Gurgaon, followed by the next in Mumbai, in March 2008.

Anumeet Kaur Bedi