Nike Studios Closes All Locations Just 3 Years After Launching With FitLab

Nike closed all of its Nike Studios boutique fitness locations on March 27, ending a roughly three year experiment in the IRL fitness market. This experiment launched in partnership with sport lifestyle platform FitLab in 2023. The closures span sites in West Hollywood, Austin, and across Texas and California. This marks a full exit from the branded studio format.

A test that didn’t stick

Nike Studios offered HIIT, treadmill running, and strength training under the Nike banner. These classes were operated by FitLab as an affiliate. The concept was built to gauge Nike’s viability in the growing physical wellness space. However, the brand has now confirmed it is stepping back entirely from the boutique studio model.

How locations are transitioning

FitLab co founder and co CEO Brian Kirkbride confirmed that most Nike Studios locations will not simply close. Instead, they will reopen under FitLab’s existing portfolio of brands. Those include yoga brand Y7, small group strength training brand Racked, Mile High Run Club, and XPT. XPT is the performance wellness brand co founded by Laird Hamilton and Gabby Reece. Former Nike Studios web addresses now redirect to Nike’s main website.

Nike’s broader fitness pivot

Nike is not abandoning fitness entirely. The brand has renewed its After Dark women’s running series. It has also struck partnerships with Everlast Gyms, Fitness Park Spain, and European football clubs Atlético de Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain. These agreements allow Nike to install premium strength equipment in their facilities. The moves signal a shift toward equipment integration, and event led fitness rather than owned studio spaces.

Why this matters

The exit arrives as boutique fitness faces ongoing headwinds, rising costs, member churn, and difficulty building loyalty outside of core urban markets. For Nike, the closure marks a calculated retreat. The brand tested a format and found the unit economics or brand fit lacking. As a result, Nike redirected resources toward its core return to sport strategy.

For members across the shuttered locations, the transition to FitLab’s brands offers continuity, but the Nike name on the door is gone.