By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The popular fitness and gym chain, i-Fitness, now has a new investor and it is Verod Capital Management, a private equity company.
Verod Capital has become a major shareholder in i-Fitness, which has branches across the country, including in Lagos and Abuja, courtesy of CardinalStone Capital, another private equity firm.
Cardinal Stone divested its 65 per cent stake and this was acquired by Verod Capital in a deal said to be worth about $12 million, according to TechCabal.
i-Fitness, valued at $18.5 million, was established in 2015 by Mr Folusho Ogunwale and the organisation has grown to become one of the most popular fitness firms in the country with a huge subscriber base.
The company operates with different subscription fees across its branches.
In Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja, subscribers pay a monthly subscription fee of N24,890 while new subscribers pay a one-time fee of N18,896, while in Ibadan, the subscription fee is about N19,890.
Members can train in any of its branches with a single subscription and an app that serves as a pass into the gym. The gym offers its members high-end equipment, personal trainers and yoga instructors, making it a standout in Nigeria’s relatively small fitness industry.
In 2021, the gym had 8,000 members and projected it would reach 100,000 subscribers by the end of 2024. At the moment, it has over 26,000 active subscribers.
In 2019, CardinalStone invested in i-Fitness in 2019, with the funds used to upscale the fitness firm’s operations. The company boasts 18 branches in Lagos, including in the Egbeda area of the metropolis.
Commenting on the divestment, the Managing Director of CardinalStone, Mr Yomi Jemibewon, was quoted by TechCabal as saying, “This has been an extremely exciting and rewarding journey for us,” said Yomi Jemibewon, Managing Director of Cardinal Stone.
“From believing in and supporting Foluso’s vision when others wouldn’t to weathering the storm of a 6-month COVID-19 shut-down only three months after investing; and then exceeding our growth and impact objectives 12 months ahead of schedule.”
