About 24 HOUR FITNESS
24 Hour Fitness is one of the most recognized gym brands in America, with a nationwide network of clubs offering accessible, high-quality fitness experiences to millions of members. Founded on the belief that fitness should be available to everyone, 24 Hour Fitness has long been a cornerstone of the American gym landscape — offering a wide range of equipment, group classes, personal training, and premium amenities, including Recovery Rooms and reformer Pilates at mainstream price points. Following a period of strategic transformation, 24 Hour Fitness entered 2025 re-energized and positioned for a new chapter of growth, innovation, and relevance.
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Their Challenge
Despite being a household name, 24 Hour Fitness faced the challenge of re-establishing itself as a modern, forward-thinking fitness leader. The brand needed a focused PR campaign to announce a major merger, reintroduce its evolved identity to national media, and recapture the attention of both industry trade press and the consumer fitness audience. The goal was clear: make the fitness world, and the public, take notice that 24 Hour Fitness was not just back. It was better.
Our Challenge
Dunn Pellier Media was brought on to lead a comprehensive earned media campaign to reposition 24 Hour Fitness as a powerhouse in the modern fitness landscape. Using strategic storytelling, the agency built a multi-layered narrative that bridged business strategy, brand legacy, consumer fitness trends, and visionary leadership — creating compelling angles that resonated across trade, lifestyle, business, and consumer media.
A core challenge was breaking through an increasingly crowded fitness media landscape at a moment when the news cycle was already saturated. DPM needed to generate an immediate national splash on the merger announcement, then maintain coverage momentum by executing a seamless transition from business-facing trade press into ongoing consumer storytelling — keeping 24 Hour Fitness relevant across multiple media categories simultaneously.
REPOSITIONING 24 HOUR FITNESS AS THE MODERN HOME OF ACCESSIBLE PREMIUM FITNESS
DPM set out to:
- Announce the merger and generate immediate national media coverage across business, fitness trade, and lifestyle outlets
- Position 24 Hour Fitness leadership as visionary spokespeople and industry thought leaders
- Secure high-impact press placements, podcast appearances, and broadcast segments to drive brand awareness and consumer interest on a national scale
- Differentiate 24 Hour Fitness from competitors by emphasizing its unique premium-value proposition: advanced amenities — Recovery Rooms, reformer Pilates, state-of-the-art remodels — at accessible prices
- Execute a strategic pivot from trade and business media into consumer fitness storytelling, targeting audiences across women’s wellness, men’s health, and lifestyle categories
MULTI-PHASE PR CAMPAIGN TO LAUNCH, SUSTAIN, AND SCALE EARNED MEDIA MOMENTUM
DPM crafted a two-phase earned media campaign designed to maximize impact from the merger announcement and build lasting brand authority in the fitness conversation.
In Phase 1, the team activated a high-urgency news-cycle strategy — pitching the merger story alongside a compelling founder-reunion narrative to secure immediate national coverage. By timing the campaign launch to coincide with peak New Year fitness media interest, DPM ensured that editors and producers across business, trade, and lifestyle desks were primed for exactly this type of story. Strategic messaging was developed to ensure both key narratives — the merger and the club remodel program — appeared consistently across all coverage.
The team leveraged 24 Hour Fitness’s strong brand name recognition and leadership credibility to open doors at top-tier national publications and major broadcast platforms. DPM also secured in-depth podcast appearances for company leadership, propelling the brand into mass business and consumer awareness through long-form conversation and storytelling.
In Phase 2, DPM executed a full consumer media pivot — shifting focus from trade and business press to lifestyle, wellness, and consumer fitness publications. New story angles were developed around member transformation journeys, a Master Trainer Media Program, editor club tours at newly remodeled locations, and CEO leadership profiles — keeping 24 Hour Fitness front of mind across the consumer fitness conversation for the full campaign year.
Our Results
Over the first six months of the campaign, DPM delivered a substantial earned media footprint, establishing 24 Hour Fitness as a major, credible voice in national fitness and lifestyle media.
90.5% of all coverage was entirely or substantially focused on 24 Hour Fitness — brand-led storytelling, not peripheral mentions. Both key campaign messages appeared in 100% of earned media placements, demonstrating exceptional message discipline and PR execution. The average Domain Authority of secured placements reflect consistently high-quality, credible media sources.
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