Shafiq Ahmed, Founder and CEO of NRG Gyms Limited
The London-based entrepreneur and HFA board member explains how he built a community-focused fitness brand.
BY JON FELD
Corporate HQ London, UK
Brand Portfolio NRG Gyms Limited acquired Pump Gyms on August 31, 2025, taking the brand’s locations from seven to 12 units. A 13th location is due to open in Glasgow later this year.
Career Background Corporate finance, financial services manager for Harrods, director of a microfinance bank in India.
Ahmed
Shafiq Ahmed, founder, CEO, and chair of London-based NRG Gyms Limited, has built his brand from a single location into a rapidly expanding portfolio in just 12 years. Launched in 2013, NRG Gyms Limited utilizes a high-volume, low-price (HVLP) model to deliver premium fitness experiences to a broad audience.
Ahmed’s journey is unique. He has held a number of corporate finance positions, including being financial services manager for the famed Harrods department store and supporting the launch of a microfinance bank in India. The latter experience instilled in him a deep-seated desire to foster community and social impact. His commitment to social betterment is evident in his desire to promote health and fitness on a broader scale, which led to his applying and being accepted to serve on the HFA board, beginning his term in July 2025.
Following a recent major acquisition of Pump Gyms, which nearly doubled NRG’s membership base, Ahmed sat down with HFB to discuss his origins, the philosophy behind his brand, and his vision for the future of fitness.
“I literally sat on a park bench in front of a building I wanted with a ticker, counting how many people walked past. When you don’t have data, you have to go out and make the data.”
• Shafiq Ahmed
Inside NRG Gyms’ Acquisition of Pump Gyms
In late August 2025, NRG Gyms completed its acquisition of Pump Gyms, a strategic move that significantly accelerated its growth trajectory. The deal, supported by Puma Growth Partners and NRG’s banker, HSBC, was far more than a simple expansion; it was a carefully calculated step toward Ahmed’s long-term vision of building a national brand with more than 100 locations.
There was a clear logistical and market advantage to the acquisition. Pump Gyms’ locations provided a perfect geographic infill for NRG’s existing portfolio, allowing for expansion without the risk of market cannibalization. The gym profiles were very similar in size and scope, ensuring a smooth operational fit.
The financing of the deal was also strategic. Ahmed clarifies that his long-time investors, Puma Growth Partners, provide capital for organic growth, not acquisitions. The funding for the Pump deal was facilitated by HSBC, which provided additional capital to complete the transaction. This distinction is crucial, as it underscores that the acquisition was driven by Ahmed’s vision and not external investor pressure.
Fulfilling His Vision
However, the most significant value, according to Ahmed, came from an unexpected source: infrastructure and talent. While many business leaders focus on eliminating redundancies after an acquisition, Ahmed saw an opportunity to inherit established teams that NRG could immediately integrate to support its newly enlarged operation.
“For me, taking the leap from eight gyms to 13, those departments turned a potential integration challenge into a powerful asset, providing a built-in support structure for future growth,” he notes.
His team met with Pump employees within the first 96 hours to communicate a message of unity. Ahmed’s approach was centered on merging cultures rather than imposing a new one.
“The most important thing is to win hearts and minds very early,” he says.
A key part of this strategy involved empowering the local managers, asking them what improvements they wanted to see in their facilities and then working to implement those changes. This collaborative approach, combined with the fact that the core operating systems were already similar, has set the stage for a seamless and successful integration.
A Global Perspective: Shafiq Ahmed on Joining the HFA Board
In July 2025, Shafiq Ahmed was named to the HFA board of directors, bringing a unique perspective to the organization. His motivation for taking on the role stems from the same principles that guided the creation of NRG Gyms: a desire to serve the broader community and promote the transformative power of fitness.
“I wanted to help the wider global community with fitness and also to be a governor of an organization that’s promoting it,” he explains.
As a newer member, his priority is to listen and learn to gain a better understanding of the board’s vision before making contributions.
“I want to be a listener first,” Ahmed asserts. “I want to understand the dynamics of the board and where it wants to go as a collective. That’s what I’m passionate about.”
Ahmed sees a bright future for the industry and HFA’s role within it. He identifies fitness services as evolving from a discretionary expense to an essential need for many.
“The next 10, 20, 30 years present an exciting time for us as an industry.”
He believes HFA is perfectly positioned to lead this charge, especially with the integration of technology like AI to personalize human performance.
“With data, we can see people living for longer,” he adds. “As a body, HFA could be at the forefront of this.”
Health & Fitness Business is a publication of
Health & Fitness Business (HFB) is the leading health and fitness industry publication. Published monthly by the Health & Fitness Association (HFA) and distributed free to the industry, HFB offers analysis of the opportunities, challenges, issues and news that impact the industry.
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