Boutique fitness industry lore says that summer is a time to expect a slowdown at your studio. Clients are taking vacations, kids are home from school, and summer activities are disrupting clients’ weekly routines.  

But is that perception reality? Is the “summer slump” real? 

We asked our customers one-on-one and in an Instagram poll and many of them said their businesses took a hit in the warmer months. Others saw the opposite, as people join specific summer challenges and set more fitness goals in the summer. So we turned to our data to tell us the true story of the summer slump.  

The Myth of a Universal Summer Slump 

When we looked at our data, we didn’t see evidence of a summer slump at the aggregate level. Since this idea seems to be so prevalent in the industry and among our customers anecdotally, we really expected to see it in the data. But when we aggregated our insights on fitness studios across the country, we didn’t see a significant slowdown in the summer in 2023 or 2024.  

It seems studios are getting good at filling in the gaps and evening out their business throughout the year – at least the ones running on Mariana Tek. These businesses are making use of tried-and-true tactics to avoid any seasonal slowdowns, using personalization (like B/SPOKE) and digital gamification (like M3).  

In the next two blogs in this series, we’ll dig into strategies to increase revenue and gamify fitness to help your clients reach their summer goals. But for now let’s look closer at one region where we DID see a significant seasonal impact to business – the Northeast.   

The Northeast Metro Summer Slowdown 

Mariana Tek data showed a significant slowdown in two major metropolitan areas of the Northeast: New York City and Boston.  In these locations, we have observed a dip in business metrics in summer months (July and August) compared to the rest of the year. Why? The region has several nearby destinations where city dwellers travel to on weekends – think places like Cape Cod, the Hamptons, and the Jersey Shore.   

Let’s dig into data from 2023 and 2024 for Mariana Tek studios located in Boston and New York City.

1) Drop in Revenue 

Across these cities, monthly revenue dropped by 13.5% in the summer months compared to the rest of the year. New York City studios saw the sharpest decline in revenue (15%). 

This drop was primarily driven by a decrease in the number of customers making purchases (9%), but revenue per customer also experienced a minor decline (5%). 

2) Fewer Acquisitions  

Studios saw fewer new faces in the door as well, with the number of new customer acquisitions per month dropping by 7% during the summer months compared to the rest of the year.  

3) Decreased Monthly Visits 

On average, monthly visits across the region dropped by 5% in the summer months. NYC once again saw the steepest drop, with attendance decreasing by 13%.  

4) Changes in Attendance Behavior  
Some of the most interesting insights came on a more granular level, when we dug into attendance data.  On average, attendance decreased across all the days of the week. 

Weekends saw the highest drop, with attendance decreasing by 10% on Saturdays and 9% on Sundays . Shoulder days had the next highest drop: Fridays decreased by 5% and Monday by 4%. This pattern suggests customers are more likely to travel or go on weekend trips during summer. 

What about New Jersey? 

We expected to see similar consumer behavior in New Jersey. There’s a huge culture of summer weekends spent on the Jersey Shore, which we expected to significantly impact the fitness business. But when we pulled the data, we didn’t see the same impact. Why? 

It seems studios on Mariana Tek in that region have gotten creative with their marketing and events. Half of the studios in the region offer exclusive summer products and special events that have worked to stabilize their businesses during the summer months.  

What Mariana Tek Customers Say

Our data tells us that there isn’t a significant summer slump in boutique fitness – but every business is different. So to find out how the warmer months are impacting individual studios, we went straight to the source: Our customers.  

Here’s what a few top studios across the country had to say about their business in the summer:  

We also took the discussion directly to our followers on Instagram and asked them one simple question: “What impact does the summer season have on your business?” 

About a quarter of respondents weren’t sure if there was any major business impact on their studios in the summer… meaning they’re still getting the hang of the seasonality of their business, or they need to gather more data. 

But nearly seven in ten studios said their attendance and revenue go down in the summer. So even though there’s no evidence of a summer slowdown on an aggregate level, it’s clear there are still many studios out there who struggle to drive revenue and maintain the same attendance rates in the warmer months. 

Key Takeaways

The idea of a summer slump just doesn’t hold up when you look at the data. While some metro areas experience short-term dips, especially on weekends, we see strong performance across most regions. And of course in seasonal markets, summer is often the busiest time of year.
Whether you slump or surge in the summer depends on how you’re engaging your community. Running challenges, encouraging member engagement with streaks and milestones to hit, and pop-up events can all switch up routines and help you pack those summer classes. 

If your studio is slower on weekends, ask yourself: what time slots are most impacted? Who could you bring in to fill those classes? Maybe offer a local office a free trial class? “Slower periods can actually be an advantage when it comes to conversion,” said Shannon Tracey, former studio operator and VP of Sales and Marketing at Mariana Tek. “With fewer people in class, your team has more time to create meaningful engagement and turn new clients into loyal ones. And you have more time to train them on how to convert!”
  

Summer Surge, Coming In Hot  

How can you join the ranks of successful studios who skip a summer slowdown? We’ve got you covered. This is just the first article in a new series, built based on data, insights from industry experts, and advice from studio owners. Stay tuned for more actionable content in the next few weeks to help you achieve your own summer surge. 

The Mariana Tek team can teach you how to run summer challenges, set up streaks and milestones, and share more trends from your specific region. Get in touch with us to learn more.