UBX Scales Up in Europe, Asia, North America

Australian boxing franchise UBX is aggressively pursuing global expansion.

What’s happening:  With plans to open in Spain, France, South Korea and Canada, UBX is marking its territory in Europe, Asia and North America. It also intends to scale swiftly in the US through geographical clusters with select franchisee partnerships.

Founded in 2016 by world-champion boxer Danny Green and fitness entrepreneur Tim West, UBX mixes boxing and strength for all fitness levels. Showcasing a less-intimidating side to boxing, the concept offers sociable, schedule-free sessions that blend digital instruction with personalised coaching.

For context: Expanding its footprint in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, UBX debuted in Japan, the UK, Ireland and the US this year. Having opened around 100 locations so far, it’s targeting a 3K worldwide network.

Ringside. With the US central to its strategy, UBX is eyeing 1.5K clubs stateside, starting with rollouts in New York and Florida. On the other side, the goal of 1.5K sites in the rest of the world will be fuelled by nurturing franchise pipelines in Europe and Asia.

West believes that boxing’s popularity and the concept’s accessibility gives it “infinite scale”:

“Currently we have over 500 clubs contracted to open, which makes us (on paper) three times larger than the biggest boxing provider in history. So we’re well on track.”

Fighting it out. Boxing-style workouts and strength training have increased in popularity over the last few years. However, UBX will grapple for market share with the likes of Xponential’s boxing-inspired Rumble and Spain’s Brooklyn Fitboxing, which debuted in France last month.

Portugal-based Bhout, known for its AI-powered boxing bags, is also launching in Spain this year, bringing its tech to boutique studios as well as scaling its own club concept.

Punchline: Once a male-dominated sport, the fitness industry’s inclusive version has stoked demand from men and women. While it may seem as though the market is suddenly flooding with boxing-driven workouts, there may be room for all, with some sticking to a familiar group format that brings in other modalities, and others pioneering a more personalised, tech-driven approach.