In the second part of our Gymtopia series, Ray Algar takes a look at a fundraising venture by UK-based budget operator The Gym Group.

Back in 2009, UK low-cost gym operator The Gym Group decided it wanted to start raising money for a range of UK charities. To keep joining fees as low as possible, all members join via the company’s website. The simple idea was to add one additional question to the sign-up process: ‘Would you like to make a one-off donation to our charity of the month?’ Members choose how much to donate, and this is added to the fi rst month’s gym payment.

How did the project start?

The Gym Group was receiving many requests from members to organise charitable events in its gyms, as well as direct requests for funding from charities. It decided that some structure was required to evaluate which charities to support, and to develop a way of maximising the fundraising effort…

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