9Round Fitness

What 9Round Fitness does

9Round Fitness (legal entity 9Round Franchising, LLC) is a privately held boutique fitness franchise founded in 2008 by Shannon and Heather Hudson in Greenville, South Carolina and now headquartered in Simpsonville, SC. The company delivers a differentiated 30-minute kickboxing circuit training format, structured as nine 3-minute rounds with 30-second active breaks, that combines HIIT, functional strength training, cardio, and kickboxing-style movements. Workouts are delivered without scheduled class times so members can arrive during open hours and begin immediately with trainer guidance, and the proprietary PULSE wearable heart-rate system tracks effort in five zones with a PULSE Points gamification layer. The company serves mass-market fitness consumers seeking time-efficient workouts and currently operates more than 600 independently owned and operated studios across 17 countries.

The product portfolio has expanded beyond in-studio workouts to include the 9RoundNOW subscription on-demand video platform distributed via iOS and Android apps and the web, a Member Portal that delivers nutrition guidance and fitness tracking, branded required equipment (gloves, hand wraps, heart-rate monitors) sold through shop9round.com, and a meal delivery partnership with Trifecta Nutrition. Pricing is set at the studio level by individual franchisees and is not publicly disclosed at the corporate level. The technology stack is relatively shallow: PULSE is proprietary hardware/firmware rather than software-platform scale, and 9RoundNOW is a content delivery layer rather than a data-rich personalization engine.

Revenue mechanics combine franchise fees and royalties from studio owners, monthly recurring memberships set at the local studio level, term and month-to-month subscriptions for 9RoundNOW, and merchandise sales. The primary go-to-market is the franchise model, supplemented by direct-to-consumer digital distribution through 9RoundNOW. The company employs 1,001-5,000 people across corporate and franchise operations and maintains WCAG 2.1 AA and CCPA compliance. In March 2024, 9Round acquired the competing iLoveKickboxing franchise concept, signaling an M&A-led consolidation strategy in the boutique kickboxing fitness segment.

Name

9Round Fitness

Legal name

9Round Franchising, LLC

Website

https://9round.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

9Round Fitness is a privately held boutique fitness franchisor founded in 2008 that delivers a 30-minute kickboxing circuit workout with proprietary PULSE heart-rate tracking through over 600 independently owned studios across 17 countries, serving mass-market consumers seeking time-efficient workouts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Boutique Fitness Franchise

NAICS

Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (71394), Sports and Recreation Instruction (61162)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Boxing & Kickboxing Fitness Classes (HSADABAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Functional Fitness / Cross-Training Groups (HSADABAH), HIIT & Circuit Bootcamps (HSADABAA), Small-Group Personal Training (Semi-Private) (HSADAAAN)

Keywords

• Kickboxing fitness
• Circuit training
• Boutique fitness
• HIIT workouts
• Fitness franchising

Headquarters

HQ city

Simpsonville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Studio Memberships: Monthly recurring memberships at locally owned and operated 9Round studios. Franchisees set pricing at individual locations. Members can choose from flexible membership options, freeze memberships, or purchase prepaid workout packs with no monthly commitment.
2. 9RoundNOW Subscription: Monthly or term-based subscription for on-demand workout video access through the 9RoundNOW platform. Monthly subscribers are billed month-to-month with automatic renewal. Term subscribers are billed for specified term periods.
3. Franchise Fees: Revenue from franchise sales to entrepreneurs who open and operate 9Round studios. The company provides franchise opportunities in US and international markets.
4. Merchandise Sales: Sale of 9Round-branded merchandise including gloves, hand wraps, and other workout accessories through the online shop (shop9round.com).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

9Round Fitness delivers a proprietary 30-minute kickboxing circuit training workout combining HIIT, functional strength training, cardio, and heavy-bag resistance across nine 3-minute rounds with 30-second active breaks. The workout is delivered through a global network of 600+ independently owned franchise studios with no scheduled class times, allowing members to arrive and start training immediately under trainer guidance. The offering is augmented by the PULSE wearable heart-rate tracking technology, the 9RoundNOW subscription on-demand video platform, branded workout equipment, and a member nutrition program.

Product overview

9Round Fitness offers a single unified boutique fitness product centered on its signature 30-minute kickboxing circuit workout, which combines HIIT, functional strength training, cardio, and kickboxing movements across nine 3-minute rounds. The core offering is supplemented by the PULSE heart-rate training system for real-time workout intensity tracking, the 9RoundNOW on-demand subscription video platform, and the Member Portal providing nutrition guidance, meal planning, and fitness tracking. Additional offerings include branded equipment (gloves, hand wraps, heart-rate monitors) and a meal delivery partnership with Trifecta Nutrition. The company operates on a franchise model with over 600 locations in 17 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• PULSE: Proprietary wearable heart-rate technology that tracks workout intensity in real-time across five heart-rate zones with PULSE Points scoring system.
• 9RoundNOW
• 9Round Nutrition

Products and services

• 9Round Fitness Workout Membership Recurring monthly membership at locally owned 9Round studios providing access to the 30-minute nine-round kickboxing circuit workout with trainer guidance, PULSE heart-rate tracking, and flexible open-hours access with no scheduled class times. Designed for adults seeking efficient full-body fitness training.
• 9RoundNOW On-Demand Subscription Monthly or term-based subscription video platform delivering 9Round kickboxing circuit workouts on-demand via website and mobile app, enabling members to train at home or while traveling.
• 9Round Branded Workout Gloves and Merchandise 9Round-approved workout gloves, hand wraps, heart-rate monitors, and related fitness accessories sold through the company's online shop (shop9round.com) for use during studio workouts.

Quantifiable outcome

• Members can burn more calories in 30 minutes compared to traditional longer gym sessions
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Trifecta NutritionminorStrategic or Co-development Partner9Round partners with Trifecta Nutrition to offer meal delivery services to members. The partnership provides members access to pre-portioned, chef-prepared meals delivered to their door, complementing the 9Round workout program with nutrition support.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Orangetheory Fitness: Heart-rate-monitored boutique HIIT franchise with a comparable 30/45/60-minute group workout format, multi-country footprint, and franchise model that directly competes with 9Round for time-pressed fitness consumers.
• iLoveKickboxing: Kickboxing-focused boutique fitness franchise with near-identical workout philosophy and franchise model to 9Round; acquired by 9Round in March 2024, making it both a subsidiary and a closest peer for portfolio comparison.
• Burn Boot Camp: Group HIIT franchise with 45-minute circuit workouts and a strong community orientation; competes for the same franchisee prospects and members as 9Round in the boutique strength-and-conditioning segment.
• F45 Training: Global functional training franchise built on 45-minute HIIT group classes with a very similar franchise-driven GTM, target customer (busy professionals seeking efficient workouts), and unit economics profile to 9Round.
• TITLE Boxing Club: Boxing and kickboxing-focused boutique fitness franchise offering group classes with heavy bags—the closest direct analog to 9Round's core workout format and target customer.

Broad incumbents

• Peloton: Connected at-home fitness platform with strength, cardio, and bootcamp content; the primary at-home substitute pulling time-pressed consumers out of boutique studios and directly competing with 9RoundNOW.
• Planet Fitness: Largest low-cost fitness franchise in the US; competes for entry-level and value-focused fitness consumers who might otherwise consider a boutique studio like 9Round, anchoring the budget end of the market.
• UFC Gym: Combat-sports-themed broader fitness franchise offering MMA, kickboxing, strength, and conditioning under a UFC brand; overlaps with 9Round on the kickboxing component but serves a wider audience.

Emerging players

• BoxUnion: Smaller boutique boxing/kickboxing studio chain combining in-person classes with a streaming on-demand platform—an emerging hybrid model that mirrors 9Round's studio-plus-9RoundNOW strategy.
• AKT (Aerial, Kickboxing, Tone): Boutique fitness brand with a dedicated kickboxing modality alongside dance-cardio and toning; targets a similar female-skewing demographic and competes for kickboxing-curious consumers who might otherwise join 9Round.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/9round
• Facebookfacebook.com/9RoundOfficial

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about 9Round Fitness