A prominent storefront next to one of Bakersfield’s busiest intersections has finally been filled, six years after it was vacated, by a chain looking to break into the city’s crowded market for indoor exercise venues.
San Diego County-based Chuze Fitness recently began tenant improvement work at the space formerly occupied by Sport Chalet on the north side of Stockdale Highway just east of California Avenue. Already selling monthly gym memberships starting at about $10 per month, the gym expects to open this summer.
The deal erases one of the last remnants of overpopulation within Bakersfield’s sporting goods scene, while also signaling continued strength in a local fitness industry that has seen new clubs open across the city targeting different income levels and exercise preferences.
Chuze’s entry to the local market — it has three dozen locations in four states but none closer than the Los Angeles Basin — fills out