Crunch Fitness is a chain

Chain store

Chain stores are retail outlets that share a brand and central management, and usually have standardized business methods and practices. These characteristics also apply to chain restaurants and some service-oriented chain businesses. In retail, dining and many service categories, chain businesses...

 of approximately 20 American fitness clubs

Health club

A health club is a place which houses exercise equipment for the purpose of physical exercise.-Main workout area:...

 located in and near New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

, the San Francisco Bay Area

San Francisco Bay Area

The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...

, Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, Portland

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

 and Miami.

Locations

As of March 2011 the club had 30 locations.

Los Angeles Area,
Miami,
San Francisco Bay Area,
Orange County,
Portland,
Sacramento Area,
San Diego,
Washington D.C.

At various times the club has also had locations in Tokyo and Atlanta.
Crunch currently is planning on opening a new location in Burbank, Ca. Location will be in the Burbank Town Center above the Barnes & Nobles.

History

Crunch was founded in 1989 as a fitness studio by Doug Levine, a former stockbroker. The clubs became popular by appealing to young upscale members and featuring heavy promotions and marketing with some humorous and sexual connotations. They were initially profitable in large part due to successful promotion of logo merchandise sales within the clubs. They featured some unusual classes such as pole dancing, bicycle-based yoga, coed wrestling, an "Abs, Thighs and Gossip" class run by a drag queen

Drag queen

A drag queen is a man who dresses, and usually acts, like a caricature woman often for the purpose of entertaining. There are many kinds of drag artists and they vary greatly, from professionals who have starred in films to people who just try it once. Drag queens also vary by class and culture and...

, and Capoeira

Capoeira

Capoeira is a Brazilian art form that combines elements of martial arts, sports, and music. It was created in Brazil mainly by descendants of African slaves with Brazilian native influences, probably beginning in the 16th century...

. Although the classes were later standardized across various locations, some popular offbeat classes remained, such as dodgeball

Dodgeball

Dodgeball is any of a variety of games in which players try to hit other players on the opposing team with balls while avoiding being hit themselves. This article is about a well-known form of team sport with modified rules that is often played in physical education classes and has been featured...

 and karaoke

Karaoke

is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...

 bicycling.

Bally Total Fitness

Bally Total Fitness

Bally Total Fitness is an American fitness club chain which operates 100 gyms, in several U.S. states. In November of 2011, competitor L.A. Fitness took over operation of 171 former Bally locations...

 bought Crunch in 2001 for $90 million in cash and stock. Initially intending to double the size to 40 gyms, Bally found the business unprofitable and was unable to get out of long-term leases in poorly performing locations. In 2005 Bally's sold Crunch to Angelo, Gordon & Co.

Angelo, Gordon & Co.

Angelo Gordon & Company is an American private equity firm focused on making distressed investments and a hedge fund sponsor. Within its hedge fund activities, Angelo Gordon focuses on a number of alternative investment strategies...

, a private equity

Private equity

Private equity, in finance, is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange....

 firm, for $45 million. In May, 2009 the chain filed for bankruptcy, as part of a reorganization by which it was acquired by New Evolution Fitness Company ("NEFC") New Electonic Fund Company, a company founded by Mark Mastrov (co-founder of 24 hour fitness), Jim Rowley, and Dean Moloney some of the Angelo, Gordon principals. NEFC was developing plans in 2009 to open a series of UFC-related gyms. The first of the UFC gyms opened in November, 2009 in Concord, California

Concord, California

Concord is the largest city in Contra Costa County, California, USA. At the 2010 census, the city had a population of 122,067. Originally founded in 1869 as the community of Todos Santos by Salvio Pacheco, the name was changed to Concord within months...

, with other gyms planned for Montreal, Canada and Hawaii.