Mom-and-pop fitness brands may have mixed feelings about booking platforms, but a new survey suggests they can pay off<\/p>\n
For a certain kind of consumer, discovering the independent studio or gym is more interesting than tapping the tried-and-true chain. It carries the same pull as skipping the big grocery store for the farmers market, a sense of being part of something special that isn\u2019t copy-and-paste.<\/p>\n
New findings from fintech company<\/a> Global Payments (formerly Worldpay), put a number on that feeling: one in eight consumers who book fitness or wellness services through an app say they actively use platforms to discover and support independent businesses.\u00a0<\/p>\n The figure comes from a Censuswide survey of 4,002 U.S. and U.K. consumers who booked through a platform in the past year, with the desire to discover independent operators (defined in this case as non-franchised, small businesses) playing out against a booming backdrop.<\/p>\n In the U.K., consumers now spend an estimated \u00a315 billion ($19.7 billion) a year booking services such as classes and massages through apps and marketplaces. Roughly \u00a37.5 billion of that comes from Gen Z and Millennials, the two groups most likely to say they book this way more than they did two years ago. Nearly a third of U.K. adults (31%) now book fitness classes or gym visits through a platform, and 60% say they do so regularly.<\/p>\n The survey also revealed what platform users expect once they commit \u2014 ultimately, an easy booking process with a quick refund when necessary.<\/p>\n ClassPass, the booking marketplace now under parent company Playlist<\/a>, says it put more than $50 million into marketing in 2025 to send new faces to its partners, an audience it describes as younger, more budget-conscious and chasing variety. But it\u2019s bred loyalty, too: in a February 2026 survey, ClassPass found that 72% of users agreed they would not have found their regular studio without it.<\/p>\n