Altrincham’s first CrossFit gym has opened in the final available unit at the Stamford Brook Shopping Centre in Broadheath.
Fortitude Strength and Conditioning has taken a five-year lease on Unit 12, just yards from Waitrose, providing 2,350 sq ft for the gym at an annual rental of £22,000 per annum. Regional Property Solutions acted for the landlord, Aberdeen Asset Management.
The gym is a brand new venture for friends Callum Stewart and Nikki Harrison, who previously worked in a gym at the Valley Lodge Hotel near Manchester Airport.
Stewart, a former Great Britain windsurfer, said they had been looking for an opportunity for two years but had chosen Altrincham because of the positive things they had heard from the Altrincham-based members at their previous gym.
He said: “There are obviously a lot of things going on in the town, and we’d hear from our members all the time about the changes to the market and the bus station, for instance.
“The spot we have here is fantastic. You can’t beat the footfall – when we were looking we stood outside for five minutes and 40 people walked past.
“Plus Altrincham is a bit of a dry spot for CrossFit, and it’s something new we can offer not only to people in the town but to all the local residents around Stamford Brook.”
Originally founded as a fitness company in 2000, CrossFit has exploded in popularity in recent years.
It’s a strength and conditioning program consisting mainly of a mix of cardio exercise – everything from rowing to running – through to gymnastics and Olympic weight lifting, and uses equipment from a range of disciplines including barbells, dumbbells and pull-up bars.
The gym currently has three staff and Harrison says that membership is capped at 125 to ensure that coaching is always done in small groups. He said they were also looking at converting the upstairs space into a personal training suite.
“The best thing about CrossFit is that it can be scaled to all abilities and ages,” added Harrison, “you can set any goals and achieve pretty much whatever you want to.”
