 Fitness First has more than one million members |
Gym operator Fitness First is gearing itself up for a potential �800m ($1.5bn) sale, it has been reported. The UK firm, one of the world's largest gym chains, has appointed bankers to carry out a review of a possible sale, according to The Sunday Times.
Its owner, private equity firm Cinven, is said to wish to double the �400m it paid for the company two years ago.
In 2003 Cinven backed a management buyout which took Fitness First off the London Stock Exchange.
Global network
Today the company, founded in 1993, has more than one million members and 430 outlets worldwide.
Its profits are said to have almost doubled in the last two years.
Investment bank UBS is said to have been appointed by Fitness First to look at the potential sale.
No-one from Fitness First was immediately available for comment on Sunday.
One-Minute World News 
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