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Partnership
As many of you will already be aware, FK.UK has teamed up with Leisure Industry Week as media partners for the LIW Show 2010:

"This partnership with the prestigious Leisure Industry Week (LIW) is a fantastic opportunity for us to help bring the benefits of functional training to the fitness industry. We look forward to building bridges between the mainstream fitness industry and the multitude of functional fitness related gyms, coaches and trainees out there….. particularly in terms of facilitating education and learning on functional fitness".

In our role as media partner we will be bringing you exclusive previews and insights in the weeks leading up the the event on 21st-23rd September 2010

To kick things off, we caught up with LIW Event Manager Jonathan Monks for a short explanation of the <strong>roots of the LIW show/strong>, along with his unique perspective on developments within the fitness industry.


60 Seconds with Jonathan Monks
Who are you?
Jonathan Monks

What is your role in the LIW?
Event Manager (Health & Fitness, Sport, Pool & Spa)

Can you give us a brief history of the week?
Established in 1989 as the annual meeting place for professionals in the ?active leisure? sector.

How has the LIW grown (or changed) since it started?
LIW has evolved over the years to reflect the changing markets it serves. A constant challenge is to ensure that each of the sectors provide value to fitness operators and fitness professionals attending the show to help them drive their business?s and careers forward. A constant throughout all the years of change is the event working as a fun and effective showcasing platform for new innovations.

Where do you see the direction of the LIW in the future?
As with all live events, LIW needs to develop to be more multi-dimensional through more regular engagement with all of the communities, so that connections are facilitated between suppliers, operators and fitness professionals on a year round basis.

What is the best part of your work with the LIW?
I enjoy being able to view the industry from so many different perspectives and meet with so many different stakeholders. I?m passionate about sport and the health & fitness industry so I never get tired of talking to like minded people, and its satisfying to have the opportunity to pull together so many people from across the UK for such an enjoyable event.

Do you see the increase in awareness of functional training in the fitness industry and how do you think this will affect the LIW?
I know from a personal perspective that clubs I have been a member of have gradually freed up more ?space? for functional training, whilst improving member retention, satisfaction and profitability by helping members get results from such training. The PTontheNET Functional Training Zone at LIW 2010 has been launched this year in part to help club operators/owners understand how they can use ?space? to create effective and profitable training environments within their facilities.

What are the most interesting things you see happening in the fitness community at present (new developments, changes etc)?
The growth of the low-cost gym sector is a significant development and one which will have an impact on the mid-price club owners/operators. The opportunity to join a budget gym will make gym users seriously question the value they get for paying double that amount to be a member of mid-priced club. As such these mid-priced clubs will need to ensure that their products and are positioned in such away to ensure that gym users can justify the additional level of spend.


Register Now
Pre-register now to receive free entry to the event!

If you are interested in booking one of the few remaining stands, you can contact Jonathan direct at jonathan.monks@ubm.com

To find out more, check out the LIW website, the LIW Facebook pages here and here, the LIW Twitter feed and Jonathan’s Twitter feed.



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