Crunch Fitness permanently closes its only location in Toronto
One of Toronto's largest downtown gyms just confirmed what its members have been suspecting for weeks now: Crunch Fitness at College Park has closed its doors for good.
The massive club, known for its dizzying array of classes and for being housed within what was once Madonna's failed Hard Candy Fitness centre, announced the news Thursday morning.
It's of note that the announcement comes almost an entire week after gyms were first permitted to resume operations in Toronto, and after completely ghosting many customers (and reporters) who'd contacted the company to find out what was up.
Hey! We replied to your DM. Crunch Canada is also on Facebook and IG: https://t.co/2jQWNtZqTY & https://t.co/RH8uyrWuQk
— Crunch (@CrunchGym) August 6, 2020
"Due to the unprecedented and unforeseen circumstances of COVID-19, Crunch College Park will be permanently closing its doors, effective August 6, 2020," reads a message posted to the Facebook page of Toronto's only Crunch location.
"We very much appreciate and value the support provided by the College Park community over the last few years. Our commitment to the wellbeing of the community will continue at our 20 Ontario Crunch locations."
The company is offering to transfer memberships from its College Park location to locations in Whitby, Brampton or Mississauga. Those who choose not to transfer will have their memberships cancelled automatically.
"We understand that when our facility closed due to COVID-19 on March 15, 2020, you may be owed partial membership dues or personal training. As we process each account, we will be in contact with you regarding your refund," reads the closure notice.
"We wish you the best in your fitness journey and hope to see you soon."
They’re not. The toronto location shut down permanently without telling anyone, and there is no response from any of their social media pages. They owe me a bunch of money but have shown there is no accountability.
— Karam (@karamallama) August 1, 2020
Crunch at College Park first shut down in March under government orders, like all other gyms in the province, to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
When Premier Doug Ford announced the beginning of Stage 3 in Ontario and the club stayed quiet, members started growing suspicious.
Once Toronto got the go-ahead to enter Stage 3 itself, they started calling the gym to ask when it would open, but nobody picked up... similar to the surprise disappearance of SoulCyle on King Street West.
"What's going on in downtown Toronto? We're in Phase 3 and other gyms are open. But Crunch is still closed, even though Google says it's open," wrote one member on the company's College Park Facebook page Aug. 4. "Nobody is answering messages or picking up the phone and no announcements have been made."
"Worst customer service ever!" wrote another at the end of June. "And you're not even professional to tell the members you are closing this location."
Crunch Fitness has yet to directly respond to a request for comment regarding the College Park closure. Based on how customers have fared in recent months, they may not ever get back to us.
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