Barry’s, a fitness studio chain known for its high-intensity workout sessions with 70-plus facilities across the United States and other parts of the world, will move its headquarters out of Los Angeles and into Miami’s Wynwood Arts District by Dec. 1.
The new office will occupy 9,000 square feet on the top floor of 2214 N.W. 1st Place, which, incidentally, is the headquarters of the building’s landlord, Goldman Properties.
Goldman Properties was founded by the late Tony Goldman, who redeveloped properties throughout Wynwood as well as South Beach, SoHo New York, and Philadelphia’s Center City. With Barry’s arrival, Goldman Properties will move its main office to 310 N.W. 26th St., which is a block away from the murals of Wynwood Walls.
In response to written questions from the Business Journal, Barry’s CEO Joey Gonzalez stated that his company has already made 17 new hires in Miami and plans to hire “at least an additional 30 [headquarters] employees” next year.
Barry’s also plans to expand its presence in Florida and Miami-Dade, Gonzalez added.
“We have signed a lease in Tampa [and] have already identified a location in Coral Gables,” he stated. The exact location of Barry’s future Coral Gables gym could not be obtained by deadline.
Barry’s currently has gyms at 3250 N.E. 1st Ave. in Midtown Miami, 1835 Purdy Avenue in Miami Beach, and 2920 N.E. 207th St. in Aventura.
As for his reason for moving the company to Miami, Gonzalez conveyed in a Goldman Properties press release that the area is where his family lives and where he was married to his partner. Gonzalez also claimed to have been persuaded to move by Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, himself a fitness fanatic, who reached out to Gonzalez via Twitter. As part of his social media-centric “How Can I Help?” campaign, Suarez has sought to lure executives of various venture capital, tech and cryptocurrency companies to move or open offices in Miami.
Scott Srebnick, CEO of Goldman Properties, said Barry’s move into Wynwood is a “furthering of Tony Goldman’s vision from 17 years ago,” which was to create a place for the creative class and energetic young people.
Wynwood’s office market in particular is “on fire now,” Srebnick noted.
“There are a lot of tenants looking to move here and a shortage of office space in the core of Wynwood,” he said. The demand is so strong, Srebnick added, that “office tenants are actually taking retail space.”
Asking office leasing rates in Wynwood and the neighboring Design District average $59.67 a square foot, according to Colliers’ (Nasdaq: CIGI) third quarter market report on Miami-Dade’s office market. Asking leasing rates for retail in Wynwood and the Design District averages $63.03 a square foot, according to Colliers’ recent market report on retail. South Florida’s office and retail spaces are in high demand, Colliers’ market reports noted.
In the leasing deal, Frank Begrowicz, a director at Cushman & Wakefield’s (NYSE: CWK) Miami office, represented Goldman Properties. Aracibo Quintana and Liz Higgins of Miami-based Acre represented Barry’s.
Barry’s, originally known as Barry’s Bootcamp, was co-founded in 1998 by fitness instructor Barry Jay. Gonzalez became the gym’s CEO in 2015. In July 2015, Greenwich, Connecticut-based private equity firm North Castle Partners bought a majority interest in Barry’s.
