Edinburgh and Glasgow targeted as Aussie boxing fitness venture looks to open hundreds of sites

A fast-growing boxing and group fitness business is targeting Edinburgh and Glasgow as it looks to roll out hundreds of sites across the UK and Ireland.

Specialist investment and franchise operator business Empowered Brands is partnering with UBX Training, an Australian boxing fitness concept, to launch the chain in a deal worth £50 million.

Operating a traditional franchise model, Empowered Brands aims to roll out an initial 250 UBX Training sites across the UK and Ireland, creating some 750 jobs.

It will be targeting six sites in Glasgow and five sites in Edinburgh specifically. Ultimately as many as 450 to 550 sites could be opened within the next 15 years in the UK and Ireland as a whole, given the strength of demand identified by the venture.

UBX Training is a fast-growing fitness business co-founded by four-time world boxing champion Danny Green, alongside Australian fitness and tech entrepreneur Tim West. It first opened in Australia in 2016 and has since expanded rapidly.

UBX Training is a fast-growing fitness business co-founded by four-time world boxing champion Danny Green, alongside Australian fitness and tech entrepreneur Tim West. It first opened in Australia in 2016 and has since expanded rapidly.

Inspired by Green’s methodology, the training is non-contact and focuses on a mixture of bagwork, padwork and strength training across 12 rounds.

John Jempson, chief financial officer at Empowered Brands, said: “UBX Training is an innovative, entrepreneur-led concept and we are excited to work with the team to bring it to the UK and Ireland, where demand for accessible health and fitness is stronger than ever.

“While the fitness sector has remained resilient and bounced back well post-lockdowns, access to traditional forms of lending remains impacted, and we will look to fill this gap.”

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