How has Covid-19 changed the growth story of the Qatar Digital Fitness Services Market?

The fitness market in Qatar has witnessed strong growth with a considerable expansion in the number of boutique and budget fitness centers directly contributing to the economy. The rise in Personal Disposable Income, High Rates of Obesity, Rising Awareness about Health & Fitness, Increased Investment in Ladies Fitness Centres, Government Initiatives, and to overcome health issues such as diabetes and cancer have been the major key factors that drive the demand for fitness services centers in Qatar.
However, the global pandemic impacted the growth of the industry. But soon the market picked up pace as people started shifting to online mode to work out. This shift gave rise to the digital fitness service industry in Qatar. Here is a key insight into how COVID-19 carved the way for the digital fitness service market to thrive in Qatar.

1. Qatar Fitness Services Market is a largely under-penetrated market with less than 3.0% of the population actively participating in a Fitness Centres

Offline Penetration to increase from 2.5% in 2020 to 4.0% in 2025F

Key Trends Witnessed

The popularity of weight loss reality TV shows and efforts by the government to promote healthy living and weight loss have contributed to the increase in demand for fitness services.

Collaboration of fitness centres with corporates to promote health and fitness levels of their employees are increasing revenues for fitness clubs.

Providing Digital Fitness and Live Online Workouts to encourage fitness participation without the need of stepping out at home

Want to know the overview of the Qatar Fitness Service Sector? Request a free expert call now!

2. But Initiatives such as National Sports Day and Annual sponsored fitness events like Ooredoo Marathon are taken up by the Government to Raise Awareness About Healthy Lifestyle and Physical Activity

Government Initiatives

Aims to increase community awareness about the importance of physical activity and boost community’s capability to adopt healthy lifestyles, create a supportive healthcare environment, and encourage involvement of local communities and civil society organizations in the promotion of health awareness programs.

1

National Health Strategy

• The Qatar National Vision 2030 (QNV 2030) is the first comprehensive development strategy in Qatar aimed to re-design the model of diabetes prevention and care, including health promotion, to ensure lifestyle advice, education and counseling are available for patients and those at risk of developing type 2 diabetes or any other diseases

2

National Sports Day

• National Sports Day in Qatar a testament to the country's willingness to tackle its health issues. The day's main purpose is to promote sports and to educate the local population on ways to reduce health risks associated with an inactive lifestyle, such as coronary heart disease and diabetes.

3

Annual Sponsored Events

• Annual sponsored fitness events such as Ooredoo Marathon (a Winter Highlight charity event) and Dolphin Energy's Doha Dash (featuring a 5km run, a 3km route, a 1km children’s run and a 1km ladies’ walk) are also a hub for sports in the Middle East and is committed to promoting, an active lifestyle and physical well being of the population in Qatar.

Source: Government Websites, Industry Articles, Interview with Industry Experts, Ken Research Analysis

3. Presently, majority of the Population in Qatar, irrespective of age group participate actively in Regular Physical Activities such as Walking, Cycling & Gymming in Public Parks, Fitness Centers or at Home

Parameters	Children and Adolescents	Youth & Working Professionals	Middle Age Working Population	Older Adults
	Aged 5-17 Years	Aged 18-39 Years	Aged 40-64 Years	Aged 65+ Years and above
Activity Level	60 mins (1 hour) or more of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity daily	At least 150-300 minutes a week activity are carried out and are usually driven by Expat population	At least 120-200 minutes a week of moderate to low intensity activity are carried out	At least 90-150 minutes a week of activity are carried out to develop immunity
Activity Type	Boys generally prefer outdoor sports activity such as Football, Cricket, Martial Arts while girls prefer indoor activities such as badminton, Judo and others	Moderate to high intensity activity such as Brisk Walking, Cardio, Weight Training and Aerobics	Low intensity activity such as Walking, Strength Training and Yoga to manage work, stress and sedentary lifestyle.	Low Intensity workouts such as Walking and Yoga are carried out
Preference	Usually Physically active as part of sports recreation physical education or planned exercise, in the context of family, school, and community activities	Medium-Low cost popular offline commercial fitness centers and local gyms are preferred but online mediums are gaining traction post COVID 19	Boutique/Commercial Gyms offering lifestyle services such as nutrition consultations along with Personal trainers with ladies only sessions are preferred by women	Boutique Gyms or Personal Trainers with tailor made schedules in their residential localities are preferred

To know more about the customer cohorts in health and fitness market, request a free sample report

4. However, gyms, studios, and fitness centers had to be shut as they became an “immediate suspect” for COVID-19 infection which impacted the Qatar Fitness service market

Impact on Overall Fitness Centres across the Country

Facing months with no income from memberships, gyms turned to offering classes online for free, or for a fraction of their regular cost. But with running costs continuing to stay high for many, mounting bills have forced closure of many gyms in Qatar

Job Loss in Fitness Industry

25.0%

Of trainers lost some or all of their income

15.0%

Of personal trainers were furloughed or laid off

12.0%

Of personal trainers have not yet found new jobs

Moe than 30.0% of the industry employees were laid off due to COVID with Personal Trainers switching to freelancing in digital content such as Instagram and Facebook to stay afloat.

Comprehensive Prevention Measures Adopted by Fitness Centres

• Traditional gyms only opened aerobic areas, strength areas and changing rooms
• Swimming pool and shower facilities were closed to prevent gathering.

• Stores were equipped with disinfectants, hand sanitizers and forehead thermometers
• Floors, fitness equipment and locker keys were disinfected and cleaned in a timely manner

• Stores have adopted an appointment system to control the traffic – all members need to show a "heath code" and have their temperature taken

• Ensuring the use of cardio equipment in intervals, keeping safe distance of 2-3 meters in group exercises, and wearing masks throughout exercises.

Amid the pandemic, fitness centres were opened in accordance with national and local regulations and adopted a series of prevention practices to curb the spread of virus and promote healthy environment for physical activity

To know the impact of COVID-19 on the Qatar Fitness Service industry tap to get a free sample report

5. But, Fitness club owners grappling with declining memberships quickly caught on by offering on-demand and livestream group workouts through their own websites or with the help of social media

Pre COVID vs. Post COVID

Traditional gyms utilized new channels as the marketing tools

Countermeasures by Fitness Centres

Live Broadcast Courses

• Courses: Group or Private
• Places: Vacant gym/home
• Instructors: Professional coaches
• Content: Exercises that could be done at home with the family
• Results: Operators have gained success with these broadcasts, with average of over 10,000 views of a single broadcast

Use of Social Media

• Platforms: Apps like Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram WeChat, Snapchat, Tik Tok
• Format: Hashtags or posts to encourage participating and re-posting
• Results: Operators reached 5M+ views on Instagram/Tiktok and encouraged participants in the entire country.

With the spreading of the pandemic, most gyms have extended their memberships to retain customers, and have introduced online countermeasures to compensate for the loss of revenue and customers caused by the shutdown

*Growth rates are self reported percentage changes in activities and monthly spending since outbreak of COVID in 2020
Source: Interview with Industry Experts, Ken Research Analysis

6. Brick and Mortar fitness centres are facing competition from online weight loss programs owing to growing prominence of social marketing and platforms that have started online fitness tutorials

Snippets of Facebook and Instagram Live Workout Sessions

Fitness Centers and Personal Trainers along with Fitness Bloggers are using social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram to conduct live workshops for the ease and convenience of home workouts thereby leading to higher participation rate

Major Social Media platforms for Fitness engagements, on the basis of users, 2020

Top Fitness Influencers in Qatar²

1

Shougalnaqade (@shougalnaqde1) 132.7k Followers

2

Ntando Stemmet (@ntandostemmet) 114.5k Followers

3

Dr Hamad Al Jaber (@drhamadj) 68.4k Followers

4

Aga Nafiz (@aga_nafiz) 65.6k Followers

5

Saud Maadheed (@saoudalmaadeed)38.4k Followers

6

Femi Ogunode (@ femiogunode1) 34.3k Followers

1. Global Media Insight l 2. Followers as on 15th July, 2021Interview with Industry Experts, Ken Research Analysis

7. As a result, the Qatar Digital Fitness Market has witnessed a tremendous growth of ~51% CAGR over the past few years

Digital Fitness contributed $7.0 Mn Revenue in 2020

Key Trends

• Interactive workout programs incorporated into gym equipment are helping exercisers track mileage, speed, number of workouts, calorie burn which is consistently pushing the fitness subscribers.
• New fitness trends – from virtual workout to fitness apps and wearables, connected home solutions and more – are disrupting traditional fitness models.

Digital Fitness Key Facts, 2020¹

$30-$50

Average Revenue Per User (Paid Users)

~13%

Digital Fitness App Penetration Rate (out of 2.7 Mn Total Population)

0.3 Mn

Total Number of Users (Paid + Unpaid)

With the acceleration of digital fitness and home workouts, the total number of users along with penetration rate and average revenue per user has been growing steadily

Top Grossing Digital Fitness Apps

Paid Apps (0.1 Mn Users)

Top Free Apps (0.2 Mn Users)

Get an overview of the Qatar Digital Fitness Service industry in our free sample report. Request now!