Leejam CEO says membership grew by 36,000 in 2022, new strategic partnerships eyed

Adnan Al-Khalaf CEO of Leejam Sports Co.

Leejam Sports Co.’s (Fitness Time) 2022 financial results were buoyed by a rise of 36,000 in the number of members in Q4 2022 to 327,000, the highest year-end level on record, CEO Adnan Al-Khalaf told Argaam.

The number of operating fitness centers increased by 11, stressing that these results underline the company’s strong trademark and position.

This set of results was backed by the institutional and concentrated efforts in the company’s segments. Leejam’s 2022 revenue and net profit rose to an all-time high, Al-Khalaf said, noting that profit margins were also maintained, excluding one-off lease discounts in 2021. The gym operator also grew its net profit margin.

Historically, Leejam’s operations are affected by seasonality factors. The company usually reports the lowest performance in winter, due to better weather conditions. Accordingly, Leejam’s results in the first half of every year is usually less than the second half in terms of revenue and profit.

The company should work on offsetting this impact. However, this trend is likely to continue in the medium term. Therefore, Leejam’s figures should rather be compared on a year-on-year (YoY) basis.

Moreover, revenue from men’s fitness centers jumped 29% to SAR 252 million in Q4 2022 from SAR 196 million in the prior-year period, with 195,000 members by the end of 2022.

Female centers reported a 30% rise YoY in the fourth-quarter revenue to SAR 85 million, Al-Khalaf added.

Leejam also continued to open Xpress Fitness Centers, bringing the total number of centers for males and females to 25 by the end of 2022.

He noted that the Xpress category’s contribution to revenue started, based on feasibility studies, upon construction in November 2020, especially after enhancing marketing strategies and adopting a focused approach for the segment. Leejam will proceed with expansion plans in this sector next year.

Elsewhere, Al-Khalaf indicated that Leejam signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Investment to expand investments in the sports field, improve the quality of life and pave the way for cooperation to develop investment opportunities.

The company also aims to attract new opportunities for strategic partnerships that can serve the Saudi sports sector. It also targets better ways of cooperation to raise the number sports facilities through the initiatives and enablers offered by the Ministry of Investment.

The gym operator’s 2022 net profit rose to SAR 257.3 million, from SAR 206 million a year earlier. In Q4, net profit reached SAR 107.2 million, Argaam earlier reported.