RCS - GymNation - GymNation Announces Management Buyout

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21/11/2023 14:30

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RNS Number : 1738U  GymNation  21 November 2023

GymNation, the UAE's Leading Gym Operator, Announces Management Buyout

Homegrown UAE fitness brand, GymNation, has proudly announced a management-led
buyout of all equity held by previous investor, JD Gyms.

DUBAI, ARAB EMIRATES / ACCESSWIRE / November 21, 2023 / Homegrown UAE fitness
brand, GymNation, has proudly announced a management-led buyout of all equity
held by previous investor, JD Gyms.

GymNation Management Team

The deal, backed by Tricap Investments and Ruya Partners, sees the GymNation
founders and management team, Loren Holland, Frank Afeaki and Anthony
Martland, become significant majority shareholders in the business they
founded back in 2017.

Tricap Investments is a diversified principal investment group with offices in
Washington D.C. and Dubai, specialising in the execution of both direct and
fund investments, and private equity transactions.

Ruya Partners is an independent private credit firm based in Abu Dhabi whose
investor base includes institutional funds from the GCC including UAE
sovereign-backed Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners, a joint venture between Mubadala
Capital and Alpha Wave Global, and Jada Fund of Funds, a subsidiary of Saudi
Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF).

Since its launch, GymNation has delivered on its mission of making fitness
more affordable and accessible for the UAE population, and has rapidly grown
from a single gym start-up into the UAE's leading gym operator with 12 gyms
and over 60,000 members.

Having been voted "The Best Gym in the UAE" on Virgin Radio's The Kris Fade
Show for the last 2 years running, and with over 40,000 five-star Google
reviews, GymNation have cemented their position within the UAE as "The
People's Gym" and are now set to replicate this success across the GCC.

Loren Holland, Founder & CEO, GymNation commented; "This management buyout
is another exciting chapter for GymNation, and with the support and backing of
Tricap Investments and Ruya Partners we are perfectly positioned to accelerate
the growth of GymNation across the GCC. Within the coming weeks, we will be
announcing our first six Saudi Arabian locations, a further four more UAE
sites, as well as company formations in Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait. GymNation
has pioneered the democratisation of health and fitness across the UAE, which
prior to our launch was recognised as the 2(nd) most expensive market in the
world to own a gym membership. Now it's time for us to have the same impact
across other GCC markets."

The innovative structure of the deal has allowed GymNation to launch a
trailblazing Equity Incentivisation Scheme for the wider management team,
aimed at attracting and retaining world-class talent, through rewarding,
incentivising and aligning, key members of the team with direct equity in the
business.

Frank Afeaki commented; "On the day of signing the deal, 15 GymNation
management team members also signed their own documentation to become
shareholders in the business, I am proud that we are able to reward the team
in a way that no others within the industry do and have them as shareholders
alongside myself, Loren and Ant."

Ant Martland added: "We have an exceptional management team, supported by
significant ongoing investments into key technology and systems that are going
to place GymNation at the forefront of the fitness industry. It's still very
early days in our growth story, and the whole team couldn't be more excited,
and motivated, to rollout GymNation across the region."

The management team were advised by James Wigglesworth at Orca Capital
(Corporate Finance) who will also join the board as a Non-Executive Director
at completion, DLA Piper (Legal), Tatsu Partners (Debt Advisory) and PwC
(Financial, Tax and Commercial Vendor Due Diligence).

Tricap Investments were advised by TAAS Partners (Legal).

Ruya Partners were advised by Dentons (Legal).

About GymNation

GymNation is the UAE's leading gym operator. With the first location opening
in 2018, the company has grown to 12 UAE locations, with over 60,000 members.
With memberships starting from AED 99 per month and no-contract,
cancel-anytime membership options, GymNation is here to make a difference and
ensure that everybody in the GCC has access to affordable, world-class fitness
facilities - that's why we call ourselves "THE PEOPLE'S GYM".

For more information on GymNation, visit: www.gymnation.com
(https://stats.newswire.com/x/html?final=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ3ltbmF0aW9uLmNvbQ&sig=Ai5fgiVdNQolsBXRAQSY8t8ctACfBBj5yrJIOn_08rGvVgqvyj_2XJAtwalPEPuGNZr5WVzudnF3biqfZsppug&hit%2Csum=WyI0MnZ1a2giLCI0MnZ1a2kiLCI0MnZrbDUiXQ)

About Tricap Investments

Tricap Investments is a diversified principal investment group with offices in
Washington D.C. and Dubai. Tricap invests on behalf of its principals,
shareholders, and partners. The group sources, develops, structures, and
executes both direct and fund investments and private equity transactions. For
more than 30 years, Tricap and its principals and partners have invested
globally in real estate, infrastructure and technology sectors.

For more information on Tricap Investments, visit: www.tricapinvestments.com
(https://stats.newswire.com/x/html?final=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudHJpY2FwaW52ZXN0bWVudHMuY29tLw&sig=HILYWDuiIvJMwfd9KkSSLTDvO5Dq_0GRs2m1W3OAxVCyfEAACx6lG3Lqm-YBXRIE-igm0VmZG8wIqnbfI3dz7A&hit%2Csum=WyI0MnZ1a2oiLCI0MnZ1a2siLCI0MnZrbDUiXQ)

About Ruya Partners

Ruya Partners is an independent private credit firm that provides bespoke
funding solutions to private sector companies in developing markets. Ruya
Partners investor base includes sovereign-backed and pension funds from the
GCC including UAE based Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners, a joint venture between
Mubadala Capital and Alpha Wave Global, and Saudi Arabia based Jada Fund of
Funds. Ruya Partners is headquartered in Abu Dhabi and regulated by the ADGM
Financial Services Regulatory Authority.

For more information on Ruya Partners, visit: www.ruyapartners.com
(https://stats.newswire.com/x/html?final=aHR0cHM6Ly9ydXlhcGFydG5lcnMuY29tLw&sig=jVM4VYvFJWruIzCLh1DuZPKNStBYGi1kAy_T9wRb0YTFU3Aurpmjae7GVQ3S0D4sWRQeQVKYqjtCVsWpEiNt9g&hit%2Csum=WyI0MnZ1a2wiLCI0MnZ1a20iLCI0MnZrbDUiXQ)

Contact Information

Gym Nation

Head of PR
getfit@gymnation.com (mailto:getfit@gymnation.com)

SOURCE: GymNation

 

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