Basecamp Fitness, a popular West Hollywood gym, is one of the first WeHo businesses to officially announce that it is permanently closing because of the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
With a heavy heart, we share that we’ve made the decision to permanently close our West Hollywood studio, effective immediately,” Basecamp said in an email message to its members. “Please know, our members and employees are our top priority, which made this decision an incredibly difficult one.”
Basecamp said the requirement that gyms close during the pandemic “placed significant pressures on our operations and financial outlook in West Hollywood. Additionally, our lease renewal was in-process during this time and we ultimately could not come to a long-term agreement to remain in the studio. This unfortunate circumstance was specific to our West Hollywood location and no other studios will be impacted. “
Basecamp’s West Hollywood gym is located at 8714 Santa Monica Blvd. between Westbourne and Huntley drives. The gym, one of many in West Hollywood, has garnered praise from its members for the friendliness of the staff and the talent of its trainers.
” I was a newbie 2 years ago. I had no idea what I was doing and could barely do a push up,” said one member in a review on Yelp in September 2019. “I remember coming in for my first free class and being greeted by a friendly staff. They remembered my name every time I went back and made me feel like part of the family. I’ve been through all of their redecorating, trainer changes, time of class changes, etc, and have always felt that they have put the customer first.”
Basecamp froze all memberships on March 16, when an emergency order was issued to close all non-essential businesses because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In its email, Basecamp said its staff is reviewing prepaid and monthly memberships and special training packages and will offer a prorated refund. It also is working on a plan to offer a specially priced membership to those West Hollywood clients who want to use its Santa Monica or Pasadena locations.
Basecamp Fitness was created by Nick Swinmurn, the founder of Zappos, the online shoe and clothing retailer. In addition to its three Los Angeles County locations, there are two in the San Francisco area. In 2018 it was acquired by Self Esteem Brands which has said it is exploring possibilities for franchising the brand in the U.S. and internationally.
The West Hollywood City Council has on its Monday agenda a proposal by Council members John Duran and Lauren Meister that the city investigate possible strategies for helping “legacy businesses” recover from the pandemic.
The proposal would not apply to Basecamp because it defines legacy businesses as those with that have operated in West Hollywood for 30 years or more and are headquartered in WeHo. Businesses eligible for any assistance also would have to have “contributed to the city’s history and/or the identity of a particular neighborhood or community,” the proposal says. Their eligibility also would be based on their commitment to “maintaining the physical features or traditions that define the business, including craft, culinary, or art forms.” The proposal says there are more than 100 such businesses in West Hollywood.
Wow….. I truly loved that place and went until a tennis injury made it impossible to continue. #SUX
How many legacy businesses are located in WEHO? I am would guess, not too many.
The story notes that a memo to the City Council says there are more than 100
I started with them in October. Fantastic business with great people providing an invaluable service to the community. It’s a great loss.
This must have more to do with the lease than Covid. Less than two weeks ago they sent an email touting the changes they were making preparing to reopen. Why would they put money into the place if they knew it couldn’t survive? Something must have gone bad with their real estate deal.
I would doubt that. The fact is this shutdown dragged on and on and on. There had only been 10 deaths per hundred thousand in California. New York of course is at the top with 158 deaths per 100,000. The owners of this business probably just ran out of money or thought maybe it’s just not worth it to continue. Maybe they thought it’s better actually if we move to Florida or Texas where the taxes are cheaper. Than living in California or West Hollywood. Also, West Hollywood’s ad on mask wearing in WEHOville is inaccurate. You can’t breathe through… Read more »
“You can’t breathe through cloth masks.” Thats weird because I’ve been breathing fine through my cloth masks for weeks now.
The Mayor double majored from Notre Dame with a degree in Political Science as well.
That’s terrible news. That’s the only place I workout at and it’s around the corner from my apt 😭
This is very unfortunate. Most likely this is just the beginning of a lot of companies going out of business. The endless shut down obviously didn’t help. But I would never count on the City of West Hollywood for anything when it comes to the WEHO Council except for Meister. Especially Duran and Horvath who are totally in the pockets of developers aka Pay to play. I thought it was very insulting to the Mani brothers and the Townscape guys that Horvath did not have them to her online party when she was sworn in as mayor by Jane Fonda.… Read more »
I agree that this may be the tip of the iceberg as regards businesses closing their doors as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic economic devastation. It’s all very sad and distressing. As regards the comment that “…Horvath seems to have some problem with (men)”. I absolutely disagree. As a man (who happens to be gay), I have had many interactions with Mayor Horvath, who I did not initially vote for and she knew this. But she has always been receptive to listen to my suggestions, graciously kind and even took time out her busy schedule to visit me at… Read more »