Gym owners counting losses, staff fear layoffs

Tribune News Service

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Amritsar, May 18

The restrictions imposed to check the rapid spread of Covid-19 have started taking a toll on the business of gym owners in the city. The gyms have been closed for the past nearly two months, causing a big loss of income to them. Gym owners, employees and their clients have their own cup of woes.

Deepak Kumar, a gym owner, said it was the second time that his gym was closed. Earlier, it was closed from April to September, 2020. “After successfully running the business for nearly a decade, I had taken on rent a much bigger hall in January 2020, little knowing that the restrictions would be imposed. The monthly rent of nearly 1,400 square feet floor area is Rs 35,000 per month, about Rs 8,000 as monthly power tariff and salaries of five employees — how we will bear the expenses when our gym is closed. Paying unavoidable expenses is exhausting all my savings of previous years.”

Dilpreet Singh, owner of another gym, said, “They did not earn enough between October 2020 and February 2021 to make up for the loss incurred during the first lockdown. Now, again strict restrictions were imposed on the gyms. He said the costly machines in gyms required maintenance regularly otherwise these would not function properly.”

He said the installation of indigenous machines in a gym required an investment between Rs 15-18 lakh. “In case the machines are imported, the cost doubles. Getting no regular income leads owners to fall back on the savings or take more advances,” he said.

Ramanjit Singh, a trainer, said, “He has not been receiving his salary (Rs 10,000) for the past two months due to the closure of work. Similar is the condition of most of the trainers and other staff at almost all gyms in the city.” He demanded that the government should consider re-opening of gyms with minimum people.

Sandeep Kumar, who sells food supplements to gym goers, said the sale of items at his shop had gone down since its closure. “Workout enthusiasts are doing exercises from their houses without pumping iron which requires intake of more supplements,” he added