{"id":487,"date":"2026-05-20T11:04:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T11:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drouki.com\/?p=487"},"modified":"2026-05-20T11:04:00","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T11:04:00","slug":"the-athletic-club-changes-its-brand-name-to-club-athletic-and-aims-to-expand-nationwide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drouki.com\/?p=487","title":{"rendered":"The Athletic Club changes its brand name to Club Athletic and aims to expand nationwide"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A New York social fitness brand built on team-based training is expanding nationally. Here’s what founder Dane McCarthy had to say about the rebrand and what’s coming in 2027.<\/h5>\n

What started as an Australian immigrant looking for someone to work out with now operates seven clubs in New York, has a deal in Chicago, a tourist destination in Washington, D.C., and a new name to spread across the country.<\/p>\n

The Athletic Clubs has rebranded to Club Athletic, a social fitness brand announced today, formalizing the team-based training model that founder Dane McCarthy built on the idea of \u200b\u200bcollective pursuit.<\/p>\n

Only the parent brand will be renamed. Individual locations will maintain neighborhood naming conventions, with West Village Athletics, Williamsburg Athletics, etc. remaining the same.<\/p>\n

The new Pegasus logo, developed in conjunction with Sydney-based agency Fortem Media, pays homage to McCarthy’s Australian roots as part of the rebrand.<\/p>\n

Credit: Club Athletic <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Built on showing up<\/h2>\n

McCarthy, a former Australian semi-professional rugby player, launched the concept in 2021 with a small group of friends training on New York’s West Side Highway. The premise has remained unchanged since then. Members train twice a week as a team of 20 with a dedicated coach. At the end of each session, time is set aside for coffee and conversation.<\/p>\n

The model was a hit and has grown to serve more than 2,000 members at seven locations in New York City. Squad members have two strength and conditioning days, an optional run club two days a week, and elective classes Friday through Sunday based on their personal goals.<\/p>\n

The unique yet simple concept resonated with activewear giant Lululemon, which selected Club Athletic as its brand partner to promote fitness in its physical stores. <\/p>\n

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Credit: Club Athletic <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“I had no intention of growing the business or really doing anything like that. In the beginning, I was just scratching the surface,” McCarthy said. \u201cWhen I came to America, I was looking for a community of people to work out with. I was used to training with a rugby team from an early age, and the workouts I did in New York proved to be very effective.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team model created a member base that McCarthy divided into three groups. Former college athletes looking for a team environment, regular fitness members looking for accountability, and a third group likely to spend money on a Soho House membership for the social opportunity.<\/p>\n

“That group of people doesn’t seem to care too much about style…They’re there to get physical and get to know people,” McCarthy said.<\/p>\n

Brand members are 60% female and 40% male, with the majority being between the ages of 25 and 40. To date, there have been eight team-forming marriages, and Club Athletic’s first baby was born to a couple who met on the team.<\/p>\n

Growth without a franchise<\/h2>\n

Club Athletic will be expanding to Chicago this summer with two locations: Lake Street Athletic and Old Town Athletic. The pipeline also includes at least three additional clubs in New York City, a debut in Washington, D.C., and more cities in 2027.<\/p>\n

McCarthy is taking its footprint nationally without selling franchises, a deliberate choice in a category where operators rely on franchisee capital to fuel expansion.<\/p>\n

“I take a lot of inspiration from Solid Core,” McCarthy said of the boutique fitness brand with a cult-like following that has chosen not to franchise. <\/p>\n

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Credit: Club Athletic <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Solidcore founder and serial entrepreneur Ann Mahlum invested in McCarthy’s vision last year, leading a $3.5 million funding round. At the time, she said the brand had everything she wanted in an investment, calling Mr. McCarthy a “first-rate” founder and describing the community he has built as so sticky that it needed a new word.<\/p>\n

“We are very capital efficient and our unique balance sheet allows us to fund growth,” McCarthy added. “And we control our brand and our destiny. To me, the franchise model is you have to execute it really well. You’re essentially doing two business models. You’re selling a franchise and you’re trying to operate a gym. I think it’s hard enough to run a gym well enough. So we just have to stay focused.”<\/p>\n

AI as protection of relationships<\/h2>\n

McCarthy is also building an AI roadmap for businesses and has developed several agents.<\/p>\n

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Credit: Club Athletic <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“What I’m working on is having digital clones of all of my staff, because for most of my staff, the greatest value they bring is spending time with customers, drinking coffee, checking in on people, knowing birthdays, and actually spending time with a human being,” he said. \u201cThe idea is to create a digital clone of each coach so they can support their members.\u201d<\/p>\n

collective pursuit<\/h2>\n

This squad model created what McCarthy calls the biggest surprise: strangers randomly grouped together to become close friends. He mentioned one team that included a 20-year-old woman who had just graduated from New York University and befriended a mother of three in her mid-50s.<\/p>\n

Club Athletic will continue its program of events under the new name, including the annual AC Games and recent interclub races held at all seven New York locations. The brand has over 150 members signed up to Hyrox from one of its gyms.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea of \u200b\u200btraining with a purpose is to take team training seriously because that\u2019s when the magic really comes to life,\u201d McCarthy said. \u201cFitness can be easy and fun when you train with purpose and with people you know and love.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the end of the day, he said, everyone deserves to be on the team.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe next chapter is to bring that sense of belonging to more communities across the country,\u201d McCarthy said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n