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Fitness fetish
Li admits that Nirvana is one of the most expensive health clubs in Beijing, with its annual membership card costing more than 5,000 yuan (US$600). "But I don't worry about the number of customers," Li says. "Chinese people are making more money. Just think about how many people owned cars five years ago? It's a matter of consumption habits." Still, China is a nascent market in terms of the small number of fitness enthusiasts as well as the lack of fitness professionals. About 13-14 per cent of Americans go to gyms but in China, only 1-2 per cent of urbanites do so, according to Amante. "You need to spend a lot 'educating' this market," Li says. Compared with other fitness clubs, Nirvana is a big spender in advertising. It is the first health club in China that uses outdoor advertising at railway stations and on streets and buses. It is also the first to place full-page advertisement in newspapers and magazines. Nirvana also invites Chinese movie stars to become its members and image ambassadors. "I want 'going to Nirvana for fitness' to become a buzz phrase," Li says. "I want people to regard this as trendy and fashionable." Jin Shan, director of business development at CSI-Bally Total Fitness Club Co Ltd, says besides advertising, fitness clubs also need to offer more customer-oriented services to better satisfy the young market. Jin is the chief representative of Bally in the joint venture. "Fitness is so new here. Chinese people have little experience with fitness. Most of them haven't even seen a health club before ... Club members are usually perplexed when they first see the machines and the whole procedure," Jin says. "Compared with the US, we have to do more handholding and spend more time
with each member so that they get used to it and enjoy it. Otherwise, they would
just be scared entering a club."
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