I’ve been inside hundreds of studios over the last decade. And I’m going to make a prediction that’s going to feel uncomfortable to a lot of operators reading this.
The over-curated, made-for-the-gram studio aesthetic? The matchy-matchy lobby, the perfectly styled shelfie wall, the color palette that looks like it was approved by a brand consultant who’s never broken a sweat? That’s going to feel dated by 2027.
I don’t say that lightly. I’ve watched trends cycle through this industry long enough to recognize the early signals, and they’re flashing right now.
The girls I’d call the real tastemakers, the ones who set trends without trying, the Hailey Bieber types, aren’t showing up in head-to-toe matchy matchy pilates princess sets anymore. They’re rolling into $100 sessions in sweatpants and a mismatched sports bra. No coordination. No “outfit.” Just function, comfort, and an unbothered energy that reads as more expensive than anything matchy ever could.
And the spaces they’re gravitating toward have the same energy. Bare bones. Strength-focused. A little undone. Not neglected, just not trying. The kind of place that feels like it exists for the workout, not for the content you’ll post after. Don’t get me wrong, I think there is something to be said about an appealing space. Clean, cohesive, on-brand and a breath of fresh air. But there is this “try hard” energy that is definitely fading out.
A few things are converging:
Aesthetic fatigue is real. When every studio in a five-mile radius has the same dusty pink walls, the same script font on the mirror, the same “live laugh love but make it Pilates” energy, it stops feeling special. It starts feeling like a template. And the most discerning customers can smell a template from across the room.
Effort is the new tell. For years, looking like you tried (the outfit, the studio, the whole performance) signaled status. Now the opposite is true. The people with the most options are the ones who can afford to look like they don’t care. Mismatched sports bra, no makeup, walks in like she owns the place, that’s the new flex. Hair a little undone. Not the perfect slick back bun, no hair out of place look.
Substance is reasserting itself. This ties into the bigger shift toward strength training and away from purely aesthetic formats. A studio that’s a little stripped down, a little serious, signals “we’re here to build something” rather than “we’re here to look cute while doing it.”
It’s worth remembering this wasn’t always the vibe and that’s exactly why it’s about to flip.
Back in 2017, walking into a studio like Rumble felt like the moment. The boxing-meets-nightclub energy, the lighting, the whole production: you walked in and immediately thought “okay, this is where you need to be seen.” The aesthetic was the cool. It was the differentiator. Nobody had seen anything like it, and it photographed beautifully because it was genuinely novel. It was very obviously made so you go in there, you snap a picture and post it on Instagram (very guilty of this to this day!) Nowadays, you see a girl in a strength training gym, doing pull-ups you DM her: where is this place? Do I need to check it out?
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