Yorkshire fitness company sold to new owner for five figure sum

A Yorkshire fitness company has announced that it has been sold to a new owner for a five figure sum.

Simply Running, based in Hull, has been owned by Kevin and Melanie Hayward for 18 years, and is now being sold to local athlete Karl Holmes.

The owners said that the business has seen a boom in athletic interest since the UK lockdown.

The company is due to switch hands later this week.

Kevin, current owner of Simply Running, commented: “I genuinely believe that when the restrictions are lifted there will be a percentage of people who go back to their old ways but there will also be a lot who carry on with their exercise.

“There are a lot of runners out there at the moment and that’s a great positive, people out running and cycling, families out walking together which was almost unheard of just a few weeks ago.

“We would like to thank all those customers that supported the shop and made it such a happy time for us.

“Seeing the progress of so many people over the years who, at the beginning, did not think they were able to run but who managed to get themselves up to the 5k park runs and beyond gave me the most joy.

“I would like to think that the encouragement and advice we gave them helped in some small way.

“Karl is certainly enthusiastic and I think he will reap the rewards of a boom in the fitness activities so would like to wish him every success with the shop.

Karl added: “I used to work as a healthcare assistant at County Hospital in Louth but I have been a regular runner for a number of years.

“I was interested when I heard Kevin was looking to sell the business and I’ve ended up buying it!”

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