Club Pilates, the world’s largest Reformer-based Pilates franchise, is deepening its footprint in the U.S. Northeast. On June 3, 2026, Atlanta-based Aligned Fitness Holdings announced it had acquired six Club Pilates studios in New Jersey, marking the operator’s entry into the state and lifting its portfolio to 61 studios nationwide.
The transaction underscores how quickly capital is consolidating around proven boutique fitness concepts. Aligned Fitness Holdings is already one of the largest operators inside the Club Pilates franchise system, and the New Jersey studios give it a foothold in one of the country’s densest suburban wellness markets.
Aligned Fitness acquired six operating Club Pilates studios across two separate agreements. All six are already open and trading, so the deal is an immediate revenue addition rather than a ground-up build.
The studios bring Aligned’s national total to 61 locations and mark the 10-year-old company’s first entry into New Jersey, where Club Pilates now operates more than a dozen sites.
“Gary, Todd and Karen built outstanding businesses with strong teams and loyal members.” — Jon Smith, Aligned Fitness co-founder
Private equity is increasingly backing multi-studio operators rather than single-unit owners. Aligned’s growth is supported by Eagle Merchant Partners, an Atlanta private equity firm focused on health, wellness and consumer services. That capital lets disciplined operators absorb studios from first-generation franchisees who are ready to exit.
The economics favor scale: shared management, centralized marketing and stronger purchasing power all improve franchisee unit economics. Club Pilates’ membership-based, low-overhead model — built around small-group Reformer classes — is particularly well suited to roll-up strategies.
For investors, the message is that boutique fitness has matured into an institutional asset class. Well-run Club Pilates studios are now liquid enough that private-equity-backed operators will pay to acquire them, giving original franchisees a credible exit and signaling confidence in recurring-membership cash flow.
That dynamic resonates well beyond the United States. In Asia and the MENA region, where Pilates and small-group fitness are still early in their adoption curve, the same playbook — build a cluster of studios, professionalize operations, then consolidate — offers a clear roadmap for master franchisees evaluating where the next wave of wellness demand will come from. Xponential’s multi-brand portfolio has already signed large-scale agreements across the Gulf, suggesting the consolidation now visible in New Jersey will repeat in faster-growing markets.
Source: NJBIZ — Aligned Fitness acquires 6 New Jersey Club Pilates studios
